Wandering in the Rain

EVENT DESCRIPTION

Art Projects Gallery is proud to introduce Hong Kong artists Lai Wai Lam, Fung Hoi Shan and Tao Hoi Chuen in the group exhibition “Wandering in the rain”.

The title of the exhibition “Wandering in the rain”, is a metaphor illustrating the key characteristics of the “Gongbi traditional chinese painting technique”. Gongbi requires drawing with fine lines first to represent the exaggerated likenesses of the objects, and then adding washes of ink and color layer by layer, so as to approach the perfection of exquisiteness and fine art.

In their respective ways, the three artists uses Gongbi to express unique narratives and interpretations of the city.

Ink medium plays a pivotal role in the Chinese painting system while cities, as subject matters and scene settings, are often depicted in the traditional academic paintings. Painters usually use ordered compositions and fine lines to create elegant visuals in traditional Chinese academic paintings. These paintings were traditionally used as a documentary of life and the city.

For contemporary Gongbi paintings, the function of Gongbi is not just a documentation of the city but as a means for the artists to express themselves visually, using their own perception and sensitivity to portray the impressions of the city, while advancing the traditional ingenuity of the Gongbi painting.

Lai Wai Lam’s works focus on the Gongbi flowers and birds genre, seamlessly integrating with experimental ink art. His abstract and poetic works describe subtle relationships between man, nature and the built world. Lam’s experimental ink painting technique adds a more casual, flexible and organic visual quality to the traditional Gongbi paintings.

Fung Hoi Shan’s works re-investigates the relationships between human, animals and the city. She constructs surrealistic settings in her works, placing cityscapes and different wild animals together, creating a sublime and poetic atmosphere that wanders between reality and imagination. Her use of Hong Kong literature as themes further elevates and deepens the meaning in her works.

Tao Hoi Chuen’s practice explores the possibilities of multiple-perspectives in Chinese Landscape Painting and Gongbi Portraiture. Influenced by the traditional theories of Chinese Painting. Tao’s works reflects the idea of “Qi” in his work, which he combines with his fascination with Photorealism to create his unique expression. The subject matter depicted in Tao’s paintings reflects the daily life of Hong Kong people realistically, in which he expresses the sense of alienation and numbness among the city dwellers.