Contemporary art | Beauty is a Sleeping Cat

As you may remember, this summer I went to the ART fair in Basel where I discovered the work of Chinese artist Ye Hongxing. She was one of those artists who stunned me not only because of the art she created but also because of the technique she used. Her art is very colorful, some pictures are Mandalas, like the one above, others are depictions of colorful gardens or dreamlike landscapes.

You may like this or not but once you stand in front of her work you’re in for a major surprise. This is art you need to see close up to appreciate how amazing it is as only when you stand quite close will you see that the individual pieces are collages made of hundreds of stickers. The result is stunning and surprising. A mass-product, something we might all have collected as children, creates powerful images which represent religious symbolism, fantastic landscapes and modern technology alike.

I’m glad Lee Sharrock PR informed me of her upcoming exhibition in London. Ye Hongxing is based in Bejing and this is her first UK exhibition. At the same time this is Scream’s opening of their new gallery space on 27 – 28 Eastcastle Street, London W1.

I will not be able to see the exhibition as I will not be in London during that time but for all those who live in London or the UK, don’t miss it. It’s really amazing what she does.

Ye Hongxing is considered to be one of the Top 20 rising Chinese artists. The exhibition is called The Modern Utopia and runs from 13 September to 20 October. As the press release states

The title of the exhibition references the 1905 novel ‘A Modern Utopia’ by H.G Wells and is suggestive of the artist’s investigation into society and modern life.

Here is a bit more about Ye Hongxing.

The ART Basel is one of the biggest art fairs in the world. Meanwhile it is a week-long event which takes place all over the town. Smaller and bigger venues show contemporary and classic art. I used to work in a gallery while I was still in school and during my years as a student and my interest in contemporary art has never ceased. Every year I discover at least one painter or artist who really amazes me. This year one of them was Japanese painter Noriko Kurafuji whose flower paintings are some of the most beautiful paintings I’ve seen in recent years. I’m looking forward to an exhibition which will take place this summer.

What I like in contemporary art is the experiments with different media. From the point of view of the technique this years discovery was the work of Chinese artist Ye Hongxing. You may not see it well but these Buddha “paintings” consist of stickers for children. When you approach the work you see that the stickers which have been divided by colors show figures like Tweetie or Hello Kitty and many others like this. A religious symbol becomes upon approaching a reflection of our consumer society.

The idea to cut out smaller pictures from vinyl records and to arrange them in order to form a bigger whole is pretty amazing too, I thought. This work called Face to Face with Death is from Spanish artist Carlos Aires.

I saw the three artists in a parallel art show called Scope, not at the main ART fair.