Huang Baoying: Choice of Oblivion and Remembrance

MOU PROJECTS is pleased to present “Choice of Oblivion and Remembrance,” Huang Baoying’s first solo exhibition at the gallery as well as in Hong Kong. Unveiling a captivating collection of recent paintings, the exhibition invites viewers to a space populated by the ethereal presence of flowers, books, indoor plants, and museum objects from the artist’s everyday life. Through the coded narratives and signs in her paintings, as well as the floral installations scattered around the show, Huang seamlessly intertwines personal diasporic experiences, contemporary cultural symbolism, and a poignant melancholy that resonates with recent collective societal events, revealing a tapestry of ideas and emotions intricately entangled with her identity.

While emanating a delicate sense of tranquility and introspection at first glance, Huang’s works exude a stirring energy beneath the serene façades, resonating with the repressed, filtered, and eliminated social undercurrents implied in her works. Featured at the heart of the show, Uneventful Nights (2022) captures a nighttime scene by the window in her temporary apartment in Boston. At the center of the composition, a reflected computer screen on the window glass faintly reveals a news article by The New York Times, with specific information blurred and obscured. Set off by the quiet atmosphere of the night, the title Uneventful Nights suggests a prevailing atmosphere of suppression, alluding to a peculiar feeling of powerlessness as memories are buried underneath collective consciousness.

Evinced in many works featured in the show, Huang’s painting practice is largely shaped by the conflicts, differences, and antagonism that arise from her dual experience of having grown up in China and currently residing in the US. These complex interplays of cultural, social, and personal dynamics serve as a compelling source of her inspiration. The diptych Mother Tongue (2023) presents two distinct interior scenes by the window, each adorned with vibrant bunches of pink lilies. Although very similar in appearance, one of the bouquets is real while the other is a mere imitation. The left panel reflects the simple décor of Huang’s New York residence, where she brought the fake bouquet all the way from China. In contrast, the right panel suggests her home in Shenzhen, with vivid real flowers set against a backdrop of Chinese-style furniture and the silhouette of a family member. Overladen with transparent mosaic patterns outlining the traditional and simplified Chinese character bao from the artist’s name, these floral arrangements further blur the line between the authentic and the imitation, just as it becomes challenging to pinpoint the true “home,” the self-awareness, and a sense of belongingness.