Contrasting the complex
About the only thing shared in common by Beijing-based artists Liu Jianhua and Hai Bo's solo exhibitions at the Pace Gallery in the 798 Art Zone is their dates of duration: July 26 to September 1. Art appreciators will find that's where the similarities end between the two exhibitions, which offer sharp contrasts in form and style.
Installation artist Liu explores deeply what he calls "quiet aesthetics" by overlapping contemporary art with the "traditional Chinese spirit," while Hai conveys the effects of time through his photographs capturing the poetic essence of rural life in China.
Country folk in focus
Hai's exhibition of more than 30 photographs invites visitors to admire beauty captured behind the lens of people, still-life subjects and landscapes, most in black-and-white shot in villages surrounding his native home of Changchun, Jilin Province.
As one of China's pioneering conceptual photographers, Hai's craft has seen him predominantly work in Northeast China since 1987, where he has dedicated his effort at exploring unavoidable changes, both external and internal, within individuals.
Wang Kai, a visitor at the exhibition, said he could feel the message of mortality echoing from Hai's photos, even if the morose theme emphasized by the lack of color left him feeling a little unnerved.
"One thing I don't understand is why Hai shoots his subjects in dark and gloomy colors," he told Metro Beijing.
On show at the gallery is a collection of Hai's iconic and most recent works.
Untitled No.8 (2009), portrays an elderly man positioned between inanimate objects. The setting sun in the distance reminds viewers that immortality is an unavoidable fate and time, sooner or later, catches up with us all.
Wired to impress
Across the gallery in a separate hall is Liu's exhibition, where the masterpieces Behind the Lines and Elegancy and Danger, Your Visual Experience are simple in their form yet elusive in clarity.
Entering the exhibiting hall, visitors are greeted by Behind the Lines; a small room encircled by plates stacked in high rows.
In another room housing Elegancy and Danger, Your Visual Experience, the space is almost fully occupied with wires spanning around four meters in length that stretch from the ceiling to the floor.
"From a distance, the wires look smooth and elegant, yet as you get closer they appear dangerous," Liu explained. "It's represents objects in life that combine elegance and danger."
Artists and curators of the exhibitions were tight-lipped when asked why both exhibitions were being held simultaneously.
Compared to the complex themes of mortality anchored to Hai's photographs, the abstractness of Liu's installation artworks left visitor Zhang Jie under whelmed. "I don't understand the meaning of the plates on the wall," he mused. "I was even hesitant to enter the room with iron wires for fear they might injure me."
Liu is unfazed at the fact some of his art has been lost on visitors. "As an artist, you expect everyone to understand your work in their own way," Liu explained.
When: 10am-6pm, July 26-September 1
Where: Pace Beijing, 798 Art Zone, 2 Jiuxianqiao Raod, Chaoyang district
Admission: Free
Contact: 5978-9781