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8/12/2011

Beijing online inlive 10 hands 100 fingers

Galleria Continua, Beijing

The only truly sacred Temple is the world of men united by love.
(Lev Tolstoj)

Respect... Listening... Contamination... Fusion...

5 artists have come together, to take the international language of Art to its most expressive point. 5 artists open to influences through the relationship and understanding of common experiences; sharing affinities and diversities, without fear of offering or sharing.
This exhibition started with an online discussion of the following topics:
“Why are people afraid of differences, being them either cultural, religious, racial or linguistic? Why it is not immediately understood that diversities are a treasure?”

This group show combines the universality of art with the idea of political trans-nationality. Equality and dissimilarity are two opposing terms that represent conflicting tensions. In this increasingly globalised world we need to acknowledge and accept differences between people and social groups, in order to finally give meaning to the word ‘humanity’. Tolerance, in its broader sociological meaning, is based on the belief that intolerance, and the attempt to eliminate all differences (leading to one single thought and way of living), leads to violence and social instability. Non-tolerant behaviour is an uncompromising way of being, which is completely blind to consequences; a residue of a mentality that belongs to an era in which encounters and confrontations with the "different" were extremely limited. Today, in this globalised society, we should be aware of the fortune and fruitfulness of a peaceful coexistence of differences.

In this show, 10 hands and 100 fingers work together focusing on CREATIVITY: understood as an expression of FREEDOM, and as a strategic element that lies at the centre of all sectors of human activity, including communication, religion, ecology, education, philosophy, spirituality, economy, labour, nutrition, politics, and science.

KADER ATTIA born in Dugny (France); lives and works in Paris.
Kader Attia grew up between a Paris ‘banlieue’ that is a hotspot of intercultural conflict and the poor neighbourhood of Bab El Oued in Algiers. Using his own identity, which has been defined by several cultures, as the starting point, he tackles the increasingly difficult relationship between Europe and immigrants, particularly those of Islamic faith. In doing so he does not allow himself to be tied down to one specific medium. His photographic works and films portray the smouldering conflicts arisen from a history of French colonialism and are characterised by an exceptional attention to detail. The allegorical minimalism of his sculptures and installations are unsettling owing to the discord between their external sensory appeal and their controversial content. Kader’s starting point for this show has come from an old Laozi saying: “Man creates things, but Void gives them meaning”, and originates from extensive research on the notion of tracks. His most important exhibitions include shows at Sydney Biennial (Australia, 2010); Centre Pompidou (France, 2011); Havana Biennial (Cuba, 2009); Centro de Arte Contemporáneo (Spain, 2008); Henry Art Gallery (USA, 2008); ICA (USA, 2007); BALTIC Centre (UK, 2007); Lyon Biennial (France, 2005), and Venice Biennial (Italy, 2003). In 2005 he was nominated for the Marcel Duchamp Prize, and in 2009 he received the Cairo Biennial Prize and the Abraaj Capital Art Prize. Kader is a fellow of the Smithsonian Institution’s Artist Research Program.

CARLOS GARAICOA born in Havana (Cuba); lives and works between Havana and Madrid.
Carlos studied thermodynamics and painting at the Instituto Superior de Arte in Havana (1989-1994). He employs a multidisciplinary approach to address issues of culture and politics, particularly Cuban, through the study of architecture, urbanism and history. His main subject has been the city of Havana, and his media include installation, video, photography, sculpture, pop-up books, and drawing. For our current exhibition Carlos is presenting a series of photographs collected during 3 years of travelling around China. It’s a series of vintage B/W pictures, portraits and industrial landscapes of China from the 50s’, 60s’ and 70s’, taken by local photographers and press agencies. Carlos‘ work builds a bridge between contemporary China and the old China as it is still retained in western collective memory.
Carlos‘ most important exhibitions include shows at Matadero de Madrid (Spain, 2010); IMMA (Ireland, 2010); Palau de la Virreina (Spain, 2006); LA Moca (USA, 2005); Biblioteca Luis Ángel Arango (Colombia, 2000); Bronx Museum of the Arts (USA, 2000); Museo Alejandro Otero (Venezuela, 2000); and Palazzo delle Papesse (Italy, 2004). He has participated to the Shanghai Biennial (China, 2010); Venice Biennial (Italy, 2009, 2005); Liverpool Biennial (UK, 2006); Moscow Biennial (Russia, 2005); São Paulo Biennial (Brazil 2004, 2008); Documenta 11 (Germany, 2002); Havana Biennial (Cuba, 2001, 1997, 1994, 1991); Yokohama and Echigo-Tsumari Triennials (Japan, 2001 and 2006); Johannesburg Biennial (South Africa, 1995).

SUBODH GUPTA born in Bihar (India); lives and works in New Delhi.
The objects Subodh uses in his work appear as emblems, as icons which with extraordinary simplicity codify the complex social, economic, and most importantly cultural situations in India. The artist’s monumental sculptures and installations are created by putting together hundreds of shining stainless steel objects and form a real and proper tribute to the glory, dignity, and beauty of his continent while simultaneously reflecting the short circuit between ancient and modern culture as well as between tradition and change. For this show Subodh created mesmerising installations using ordinary objects, and transformed them from the icons of everyday life into extremely poetical and universally readable artworks. As Subodh said: “I am the idol thief. I steal from the drama of Hindu life. And from the kitchen - these pots, they are like stolen gods, smuggled out of the country. Hindu kitchens are as important as prayer rooms.”
Subodh‘s most important exhibitions include shows at the Sara Hildén Art Museum (Finland, 2011); Hauser & Wirth (USA, 2011); Pinchuk Art Centre (Ukraine, 2010); The 4th Fukuoka Asian Art Triennial; The Garage Centre for Contemporary Culture (Russia, 2009); Tate Britain Triennial (UK, 2009); Palais des Arts de Dinard (France, 2009); and Arario Beijing (China, 2008).

JEAN APPOLINAIRE TAYOU born in Cameroon; lives and work in Gent (Belgium).
In the 1990s Jean changed his name, declining it in the feminine form to become Pascal(e) Marthin(e) Tayou. Pascale’s work, like his name, is deliberately fluid and eludes pre-established schemes. Multiple, ungovernable, unexpected, and proliferating, it is always linked to the idea of travel and the encounter with what is other to self. Being a traveller is not just a condition of life for him, but also a psychological condition capable of subverting social relations and the political, economic and symbolic structures of our lives. The objects, sculptures, installations, drawings and videos produced by Pascale have a recurrent feature in common: they dwell upon an individual moving through the world and exploring the issue of global village. For our show in Beijing, Pascale planned several different works; among them striking landscape of 6 tall columns made from stacks of Jingdezhen precious porcelain vases. Like colossal totems, they rise from the floor and reach towards the sky.
Pascale has contriuted to a number of major international exhibitions and art events, such as the Biennials of Venice (Italy, 2005, 2009); Lyon (France, 2005); Istanbul (Turkey, 2003); Documenta 11 (Germany, 2002); and has shown his work in museums around the world. He has had solo shows at the Musée du Louvre (France, 2011); MUDAM (Luxembourg, 2011); Revure Noir (France, 2011); MACLyon (France, 2011); Gare Saint Sauveur (France, 2010); Malmö Konsthall (Sweden, 2010); Milton Keynes Gallery (UK, 2007); MARTa Herford (Germany, 2005); S.M.A.K. (Belgium, 2004); and MACRO (Italy, 2004).

NARI WARD born S. Andrews (Jamaica); lives and works in New York.
Nari’s dramatic sculptural installations are composed of systematically collected material from urban areas. By revealing the numerous emotions inherent within found everyday objects, his works examine issues surrounding race, poverty, and consumer culture.
For this exhibition Nari’s strategy consisted of working with mundane materials and re-actualizing a form that takes the object out of its normal relations to the viewer. The exploration of body, recreation, process, and modularity of form and service becomes even more interesting in such a politically and culturally loaded context as China. His involvement in this show leads a very creative path with a composite and emblematic work titled Down Door. The piece is made of 5 old doors that appear to have been air dropped into the gallery and are adorned with pockets stuffed with feathers. In the piece Hand Command the floor of the gallery is marked with rocks that have drilled Braille signage words (rock, paper, scissor) into them; these are installed according to the trail marking code of the US Aircrew Survival Manual. The work incorporates the playful gesture of “Rock, Paper, Scissor”; a hand game where one attempts to beat an opponent by recognizing their non-random decisions. The game originated in ancient China, Han Dynasty (206 BCE – 220 CE), and was originally called Shoushiling.
Nari has an extensive exhibition history having participated in numerous solo and group exhibitions around the world: Lehmann Maupin Gallery (USA, 2010); Palazzo delle Papesse - Centro Arte Contemporanea (Italy, 2006); Walker Art Center (USA, 2002); and Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (USA, 2002). Nari took part in important group exhibitions at MACRO (Italy, 2010); Studio Museum Harlem (USA, 2010); Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (USA, 2010); Whitney Biennial (USA, 2006); Documenta 11 (Germany, 2002). In April 2011, the artist opened Nari Ward: Sub Mirage Lignum at MASS MoCA.

Opening:Saturday 10th December, 2011 from 5pm to 7pm

GALLERIA CONTINUA
Dashanzi Art District 798 #8503, 2 Jiuxianqiao Road, Chaoyang Dst. - Beijing
Hours: tue-sun 11-18
Free admission

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