Hollow Chambers Project Exhibition 5-6 March/2019
the Corypt Gallery,Norwich, London
Abstruct of the exhibition
Hollow Chambers is a multi-strand project which has to date encompassed new art works created in caves, a presentation and discussion for the DRAW Postgraduate Reading group and an exhibition showing work from across the UAL Post-Grad Community.
In November 2018 MA Drawing and MA Painting students from Wimbledon made a series of field trips to the Mendip Caves near Cheddar.UK to experience and explore the notion of caves and the underground. They worked alongside experienced cavers and supported each other to create new work in situ. This initial stage developed into a project bringing these direct encounters back to a wider group of participants across the UAL postgraduate community in the form of talks, discussions and an exhibition,
The proplosal for the apprication
My work Arp273 is a galactic rose that came from the idea of a flower that can bloom in the dark. As a rule of nature, it is impossible to grow any plant in the darkness like inside a cave. Darkness makes us feel scared because almost nothing can live in a place of darkness. However, if there was a flower too bloom there, it would make our common concept of darkness more positive and romantic. Arp 273 is a painting of a couple of spiral galaxies which are called a galactic rose, the rose was born in the universe and will be scattered over billions of years. I find interesting what we each see when we face the darkness. This work represents one of my ideas about this concept.
Artist statement
"Nature is a godsend. It just has so much in it. And I think nature wants to express itself in the sense that we are nature, humans are of the universe. The universe is in our mind, and our minds are in the universe."(Shanon, T)
In these few decades, society became full of the beautiful images were taken and edited instantly by digital technologies, nowadays even AI can paint a worthful painting. Following the situation, it is becoming more and more difficult to find the meaning of creating hand-made paintings. However, when I define my art-making as a way for nature expresses nature, the meaning of my painting activity becomes clear. My painting is a result of the instinctive expression of nature as a spirit on the earth. I aim to depict the essential energy of life as beautiful as possible using basic oil painting techniques which I believe is the most beautiful painting format. To paint the essential energy of life in a realistic way, I paint life in the universe such as stars or planets which shape the form of energy itself depending on the astronomical study.
About the Exhibition
About the Hollow Chambers Exhibition, the most engaging thing for me was space. The exhibition held at the Crypt Gallery. This Gallery is in the underground of a church, the exhibition space is the interval between gravy stones. Additionally, the air inside is much darker and cooler than outside, smell like soil struck by the rain. Firstly I thought this space is locating between this world and that world.
" This Gallery is the most suit place for my work" it was the biggest motivation to apply the exhibition. The suspicious lighting and the intrusive internal structure is effectively stand out exhibited artworks by separating the inside the gallery from the real world outside. A tutor said, " You are trying to make a threshold from the reality by your works." The Crypt Gallery supported the threshold effect of my work by separating the space from the outside world.
I think my work is not about this world, but about the between this and that world the same as the gallery. As evidence, subjects of my painting hasn't related to the reality, for example, the universe, the memory of ghost, artistic films, and invisible nature exoplanet. I am not interested in the political, financial, national, or sexuality problem. I have almost nothing to say about this world, my public is beings actually there but invisible as long as I live. Until I joined the exhibition, I was having a contradiction in the location of my works. I have known my works doesn't match the white cube gallery where treats painting as a product and doesn't much the space to claim something to the world. However, the crypt gallery and the Hollow Chambers Project was different from anything I experienced. The most significant role of artworks in the exhibition was to exist. Needless to express or claim something, needless to stand out more than others. I found the nature of my work throughout the exhibition which is to exist just quietly.
Outcome
Through
the
show
I learned a lot of things from the show. Firstly the significance of keyword/ theme. In this show, the common theme was "cave" I thought this keyword makes organizing the exhibition easy. Even though all artists have a totally different approach, the keyword brought a sense of unity in the space. Also, the greatest point was the word "cave" is not a forced word. It doesn't represent a specific direction or concept, that's why each artist could understand the meaning flexibly in the unity depending on own work style.
Secondly the effect of the light. The gallery was dark, so the lighting had a huge weight on the showcase. It is very difficult to explain with words, but I found a slight difference in lighting angle and number significantly influences on the perfection of the work.
Thirdly the effect of the wall texture and color. I was thinking of the white wall is the best to show art. however, I noticed my work is much more suit for the wall which is uncolored because the painting has the potential of assimilation. Through the show, I noticed the necessity of studying the curation of my work. for example, where my work stands out the most, and which darkness makes the work stand out the most. The perfection of painting is not only affected by the painting skill of technic, but also the curation supported by a deep understanding of the c=haracterlistic of the work. And in terms of the curation, I am very amateur. I should have more opportunity for the exhibition and need to learn about the way to show my work.