Dai Yun has attained outstanding achievements in contemporary sculpture in China. Red bricks, grey bricks, cement and concrete iron have become his iconic sculptural languages, which is unique in the art community of Chinese contemporary sculpture. Leo Gallery is delighted to present Dai Yun’s first solo exhibition in Hong Kong during Hong Kong Art Week 2016, and is honoured to have invited the well-known sculpture art critic Dr Sun Zhenhua to give academic advice on this exhibition.
Architecture builds the city; cement, concrete iron and bricks create the structure of a city. When the artist removes the external visual elements, the essence in structural framework of sculpture is exposed. The texture of materials and the aesthetics of objects form a strong contrast and create unusual perceptions and artistic languages. In recent years, Dai Yun has been creating more challenging object images like the weapon AK 47, a designer sofa and a bike. These familiar objects are created by primitive building materials in agricultural society which give an experience of unspeakable bare reality.
Opening reception: 6 pm - 8 pm Friday, 2016.11.4
Artist Dai Yun and Academic Advisor Dr Sun Zhenhua (Dean of Shenzhen Sculpture Academy) will be present at the Exhibition Opening
PREFACE
The world constructed by an artist and his works is a relationship between who are looking for each other. In 2007, Dai Yun finally encountered his “Brick” series and from then on, Dai Yun puts his heart into the dialogue with “brick”. He constantly extends and explores the “Brick” series with new works of this family created successively.
Today, “brick” has become a symbol of Dai Yun, which is not only the object on which Dai Yun is working with, but also the artistic world of Dai Yun. As the discoverer of “brick” and interpreter of its cultural significance, he raised the common architecture material to an impressive level.
Obviously, “brick” is not only the material of sculpture; except for the national boundary of its physical characteristics and function, brick also has history, story and character. Of course, “brick” cannot speak for itself; it needs to encounter the people who could liberate and present it and the process to encounter each other is artistic creation in itself.
Facing Dai Yun’s works, we are reminded of the famous case of Zen which questioned “can rubbed brick become a mirror”; the boundaries between art and non-art, truth and skill, spirit and material, delicate and rough are dissolved in this way, our common knowledge is thus subverted and our habits are thus changed.
Then what is left for us? It is the new visual experience created upon the wisdom of and effort made by the artist.
Dr. Sun Zhenhua
Academic advisor, Art critic, Chief Editor of “China Sculptures”, Ph.D. mentor of China Academy of Art
