“Pandemic • Empathy”Invitation Exhibition of Overseas Chinese Artists
Curator：Grace Young
Artists：
Andi Young /Ai Zhongliang /Cai Qing / Xiaowei Chen / Guan Wei
Yingmei Duan/Guo Yan / Guo Qingling / The Gao Brothers / Zhen Guo
He Haoyuan / Hua Huang/Li Xiaofei /Liu Qiming /Ma Yongfeng Mou Huan
Ren Qian / Noah Ng Fong Chao/ Wang Yu / Xiaoze Xie / Jian Jun Xi /Tan Xu
Xu Zhongmin /Echo Morgan/Yang Qian/ Zhang Kexin / Zhou Ping
Exhibition Assistant：Aaron
Resource Coordinator：Wang Zhongning
Exhibition Time：12-07-2020
Domain-free • The Art of Empathy
Curator：Grace Young
Domain refers to the boundaries of a country or a certain scope. In the “Biography of Lu Zhonglian and Zou Yang” in the Records of the Grand Historian, it is said that “to discuss matters beyond the boundaries of the domain, and to observe the broad and bright path alone,” which means to express opinions without any limitations and to see the truth clearly. “Beyond the domain” thus highlights its unique importance, and “artists beyond the domain” here refers to artists who are not restricted by national borders or any other limitations. This is obviously the highest praise for freedom of thought and a full affirmation of the intellectual footprint left by artists in human history.
Throughout the long history of human development, people’s thinking has always been sustained through the words of certain celebrities or masters. However, in the game of ideas, any self-justifying theory is difficult to withstand the heavy blow of reality, and life always gives the empiricists a subtle tearing and pain. Faced with suffering, art quietly helps humanity move forward.
Just like William Wordsworth’s book “Abstract and Emotionalism” based on pure logic, abstraction is not the ultimate proposition of this world, and emotionalism has more human significance. Since the artistic expression of human emotions, although the content and presentation of works of art are diverse, and artists are not always at the forefront of human civilization, they are only more concerned with human emotions and constantly seeking diverse ways and means of emotional communication.
Humans have never been far from viruses, and epidemics have always accompanied human growth. Human history is also a history of the confrontation and balance between humans and viruses. At present, the epidemic has become the era and background that no one can avoid today.
Certainly, artists, as the most sensitive group of humans, are natural perceivers and magicians who are good at emotional transfer.
The current thoughts presented here from 27 artists from 12 countries are not an attempt to give the audience a standard posture to face the epidemic. Through exchanges with these artists, perhaps we can find another self in a parallel world.
In October 2020, in New York.