Plastic sculpture by Ashley Sculpture. The rather academic conceptualized art making that is still mainstream in the male-oriented art world does not interest Thorner. She prefers to express herself in a more direct and visual language using contemporary material. The result is a big organic creature. Soft plastic provides Thorner with visual and tactile possibilities suited to her sensitivity and imagination.
Plastic sculpture by Ashley Sculpture
Para/Site Art Space is proud to present new work by American artist Ashley Thorner
in solo exhibition Soft Spot, from November 2 to 25, 2001 in its Sheung Wan premise.
Ashley Thorner graduated from the California Institute of Arts, Valencia, CA in 1995.
She has been incorporating soft plastic in her sculpture and installations since then.
This year she has already held two solo exhibitions in California. Soft Spot is her first
show in Hong Kong.
The rather academic conceptualized art making that is still mainstream in the
male-oriented art world does not interest Thorner. She prefers to express herself in a
more direct and visual language using contemporary material. The result is a big
organic creature. Soft plastic provides Thorner with visual and tactile possibilities
suited to her sensitivity and imagination. Technically it also allows for the flexibility of
the space involved and relies less on industrial support or on the physique of the
sculptor, conventional prerequisites for making sculpture.
Hong Kong, a city lacking in manufacturing industries and space, poses in turn limits
for the development of local sculpture. This exhibition of Thorner's soft sculpture is
relevant to a special local context, and is a reference for exploring the creative
possibilities in Hong Kong.
The artist will be present at the opening and available for interviews. An exhibition
catalogue will be published. This project is supported by the Hong Kong Arts
Development Council.
Para/Site is a non-profit art space run by independent artists in
Hong Kong and supported by the Hong Kong Arts Development
Council. Founded in the beginning of 1996, it was temporarily located
in Kennedy Town for a four-month project called "Artists-in-Western".
In April 1997, we moved to the present location at Sheung Wan, the
periphery of the city centre of Hong Kong, in a shop space of around
150m. sq. For the year 1998/99, a new series of exhibitions, Beyond
the Vision will be organized. Our branch space, Para/Site Central,
the smallest exhibition venue in Hong Kong is now hosted in Hanart
TZ Gallery. In addition to exhibitions, Para/Site aims at promoting
contemporary art with other activities including publications, forums
and seminars.
Opening reception: 6 - 8 pm, Friday, November 2, 2001
Para/Site Art Space, 2 Po Yan Street (224 Hollywood Road), Sheung Wan, Hong
Kong Tel (+852)25174620 Fax (+852)25176850
Gallery hours: 12 - 7 pm (till 8 pm every Thursday), close on Mon, Tue & public
holidays