Art Basel Hong Kong 2025: INK LINES IN MOTION: Works by Gu Xiaoping

 

Leo Gallery is thrilled to unveil "Ink Lines in Motion," a solo project by Gu Xiaoping, at Art Basel Hong Kong 2025. This exhibition will feature three of Gu's recent hallmark series: “Ink Lines in Motion”, “Inspiration by Observation of Form” and “Moderacy.”

 

Since the 1990s, Gu Xiaoping has been a dynamic force in the Chinese contemporary art scene, making waves with his bold and unorthodox explorations across photography, installation, and performance art. His fiercely avant-garde experiments have offered a raw, unfiltered view of China’s societal landscape amid its economic and cultural metamorphosis. He is renowned as one of the most forward-thinking contemporary artists in China. In 2013, Gu began a new chapter with his “Ink Lines in Motion” series, marking a distinct shift in his creative trajectory. From this series through to “Inspiration by Observation of Form” and “Moderacy,” he has continued to push the boundaries of abstract art using traditional Chinese carpentry tools. His innovative use of these tools in both painting and performance practices has given rise to a unique philosophical stance on art, blending physical exertion with contemplative reflection.

 

The “ink line tool” featured in Gu’s works is a traditional wooden instrument used in carpentry. Gu reclaims this tool, rich in Oriental aesthetic tradition, and breathes new life into it within a contemporary context. By affixing ink lines to the edge of paper or canvas and immersing the tool in ink, Gu creates his artwork by “playing” these lines onto the surface. This meticulous process involves precise control and rational calibration, repeatedly tracing lines until the surface is engulfed by these seemingly futile markings. The repetitive motion of the ink line crafts a texture that is both structured and variegated - appearing as profound color fields from afar and revealing a dense, grid-like pattern up close, with natural contrasts in color emerging during the process. The intensity and frequency of each stroke shape the final composition. More than a two-dimensional visual arrangement, Gu’s paintings are a synthesis of actions that transcend conventional spatial boundaries. In this sense, “Ink Lines in Motion” goes beyond the traces left by ink lines, pointing to the accumulation of physical energy in vertical space, the concentrated labor behind the process, and the flow of time embedded in the action itself.

 

In these meditative, and classically inspired movements, Gu Xiaoping embraces the craft of the artisan to establish a new mode of creation. He perceives this daily, unbounded repetition as a form of “nature” cultivation - eschewing the clamor of modernity with a time-honored manner, steadfastly reconstructing and safeguarding order; simultaneously, he subtly subverts the conventional language of aesthetics, distancing himself from familiar visual tropes. Curator and art critic Feng Boyi insightfully remarks, “Rather than merely utilizing the ink line tool in an objective manner, Gu intentionally manipulates and disrupts our established aesthetic sensibilities. His approach to painting is a form of hypertextual parody which arises from his rebellion against the traditional views of art history.…It not only deconstructs and overturns previous aesthetic tastes and styles but also serves as a collage and constructive exploration, generating a fresh visual tension.”

 

Thus, in a broader sense, the “Ink Lines in Motion”, “Inspiration by Observation of Form” and “Moderacy” series reflect Gu Xiaoping’s decades-long artistic journey across China, embodying his unwavering engagement with and critique of societal realities through multi-media art. As he enters his later years, Gu crafts a new sense of identity and presence through introspection and careful practice, responding with a grounded and powerful resolve to the chaos of the external world. His integration of mental discipline with physical practice transcends and soothes the chaos and pain of past experiences. In the repetitive layering of ink lines, viewers are invited to witness the traces of “Ink Lines in Motion”, experiencing the endless passage of time and the imprint of thought flowing through the ink lines in this unique artistic practice.