SOLO EXHIBITION
SOLO EXHIBITION
SOLO EXHIBITION
The World's Leading Contemporary Fine Art Gallery
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The World's Leading Contemporary Fine Art Gallery
Xu
Zhang
UNITED STATES
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“The ink is speechless and cannot be written.”
When she was just eight years old, Xu Zhang started Chinese painting. Then, after teaching herself about traditional Chinese ink painting, she started experimenting with contemporary ink painting.
"When I create these works of art while I am pregnant, it feels like they are done with the baby. Whenever I am very excited about the painting, the baby kicks me. It seems to say, Mommy, I like this stroke you painted... Haha."
Although currently living in Louisiana, Xu’s works continue to carry very distinctive national characteristics due to her strong connection to her birthplace, China. Her works also combine Asian painting ideas with American contemporary art ideas. She works in a style that is a combination of contemporary creativity and Chinese traditional ink technique.
Xu has a strong perspective when it comes to creating and presenting work. Talented and agile as an artist, her works always portray black and white.
“I’m deeply connected with Tibetan Buddhism, which explains why my work remains mysterious and unpredictable.”
There is implicitness in her works, and at the same time there’s enough tension to make them flow. Her creed is to be "soft but strong."
In 2016, Xu was selected for the Unbounded United Nations Youth Art Exhibition in New York as the "Most Potential Art Youth in China." The same year, she participated in the 4th Asian Young Artists Nomination Exhibition, which was held at the Bird's Nest Cultural Center in Beijing. In 2017, she participated in the "Transportation of the 57th Venice Biennale: Transbordering Art Crossover" in Venice, Italy. In 2018, she participated in the "China-European Cultural Exchange Hungarian Painting Invitational Exhibition" in Budapest, Hungary. Her painting "墨本无言 不可文字" won the "First Chinese and Foreign Art Literature Award." Xu’s work, "With all the World in Sight—Who`s Pupil?" was selected for the Unbounded United Nations Youth Art Exhibition. In June 2021, her artwork, "," was included in "Textures & Patterns," an online art exhibition in the USA.
With works deeply connected with Tibetan Buddhism, her work remains mysterious and unpredictable. In addition to paintings, her works also include installation art. Chinese ink technique has also played a major role in her creative process.
"The "墨本無言 不可文字" series of paintings is the painting of my heart. All the paintings can be connected and viewed separately. When I was pregnant and meditating, I had two separate consciousnesses in my body, so my thoughts were very rich, and I realized the relationship between the spiritual world and the real world. This is when I created these works."
Her work has very solid basic skills but does not stick to traditional ones, instead being abstract and containing rich experience. Chinese ink painting is more like a medium or carrier in her works, taking her view of the world along for the ride. Together, they carry great potential.
Specifically, her series of works of "墨本無言 不可文字,” which roughly translates to “The ink is speechless and cannot be written.” The power of her works emanates from this sole idea.
Xu’s series of works will remind one of the origins of the universe and the evolution of human beings. Depicted are cosmic nebula, gamma rays, human cells, brain waves, and other subjects that, while inscrutable, are also profoundly close to us. Her art gives the viewer a mysterious and relaxing experience. Part of this is due to her unique cultural characteristics and the power of mystical beliefs.
“I always hope that my art gives the viewer a mysterious and relaxing experience.”
In the era of highly advanced information technology, we continue to chase outside forces, but we forget to stop and think. How do we face our own hearts? This is where the necessity of an artist such as Xu arises: to calm people’s hearts and sooth viewers’ minds.
Appreciation of her work is like commencing a dialogue with our own hearts, the beautiful lines and texture of her paintings like our breath, rising and falling with clockwork regularly.
