Galerie du Monde is pleased to present a solo exhibition by Wu Chi-Tsung: Exposé, curated by Hong Kong based Ying Kwok – unveiling the complicated and unpredictable process behind his Cyano-Collage through an immersive viewing experience.
Wu’s work explores light and time, and ways to recreate traditional art forms and aesthetics without losing the spirit. Born in Taipei in 1981, Wu received his BFA in 2004 from the Taipei National University of the Arts, where his training from an early age in the practices of Chinese calligraphy, ink painting, watercolor and drawing were furthered. After decades of creating experimental ink paintings, Wu turned to photography, video and installations to apply his aesthetics in classical landscapes.
The Cyano-Collage Series is a further development of the earlier Wrinkled Texture Series, reinterpreting the traditional Texturing method (Cun Fa) of Chinese landscape paintings (Shan Shui) on an even bigger scale. Instead of using ink and brush, Wu utilises a classic photographic technique – Cyanotype, to create his Textures. He would soak Xuan paper with a photosensitive solution, and then expose them to the sunlight, while at the same time he crumbles and shapes the paper into various form and wrinkles. The paper then becomes a record of time, light, and human gestures that is marked with folds and different shades of blue.
Whether it is a painting, an installation or a video, there is always a transparent aspect in Wu’s work. It is this honesty that is so inviting, allowing for such powerful bodies of work to be fully experienced by the audience. Wu’s practice also inspires us to carry on traditions and recreate new readings of classical techniques and aesthetics. Ancient or contemporary, they shall continue to cross-pollinate and together grow into a new realm.
About the curator – Ying Kwok
Ying Kwok is an independent curator based in Hong Kong. She works with a diverse range of art and cultural institutions locally and internationally, from artist’s initiatives, art festivals, to public museums and the commercial sector. Kwok is the festival director of Peer to Peer: UK/HK online festival, curator for Contagious Cities: Far Away, Too Close for Tai Kwun Contemporary and Wellcome Trust, and guest curator at M+ Museum for Samson Young: Songs for Disaster Relief as the Hong Kong presentation at the 57th Venice Biennale. Kwok also founded the Art Appraisal Club and bilingual journal Art Review Hong Kong to develop critical thinking in local art discourses in Hong Kong. In 2014, Kwok was awarded the Asian Cultural Council Fellowship, and an international fellow in the Clore Leadership Programme 2018/19.
