One city and one place in an instantRead Yang Wenli's He Shengqiang Art Exhibition.
Author: Feng Caofei.
Tomer, a Los Angeles-based artist who attended the wedding of a friend and family in Israel, joined ZAKA's volunteer team for the first time after October 7. For weeks, he did the work of picking up the slack, returning dust to dust, and returning dirt to earth. The impact on sight, smell and touch made him sigh that all the art he had done was in vain...
This month is the final stage of preparation for Yang Wenli and He Shengqiang's exhibition "Symbiosis and Reconciliation".
The exhibition arrived as scheduled. The works of Yang Wenli and He Shengqiang draw on the ordinary local landscape of Vancouver and through the perspective that ordinary people do not pay attention to, and consciously and harmoniously construct the familiar and alienated mountain and water banks, flowers and driftwoods, and wandering and intimate feelings of life. I also read a clear and awesome law of order and an atmosphere of mercy. In today's era when "the people will attack the people, and the country will attack the country", the artist's sincere and humble sense of heart and perception will not be in vain with the soft voice and glimmer of the apocalypse reflected in his works.
Yang Wenli and He Shengqiang are both from professional backgrounds, have received traditional visual training, and they are familiar with art history. Yang Wenli's passion for continuous learning has made her sensitive to artDiligence has enabled Roy to never lag behind in the use of cutting-edge imaging technology, and he understands the impact of AI's progress on artistic creation.
The series of works in the exhibition of Yang Wenli and He Shengqiang are based on their personal observation paths and awareness of problems, and they are cautious and restrained in the use of materials and formal expression. They did not show off their skills because of their detailed familiarity with video tools, nor did they particularly pursue the unified visual schemas and symbols of the overall work, nor did they force a set of concepts as a coat. The visual presentation of the various series of works in the exhibition is relatively independent and echoes each other. In the process of composing the works with photography as the original material, we can see the painting heritage of the two artists, which is infiltrated by the essence of artistic flux, and there is no restriction and restraint of a certain language style. At a time when video and visual art are heavily coerced by commercial trends and flattery and fun, their works convey a somewhat detached indifferent tonality, and at the same time, the audience can experience the creator's in-depth understanding of his situation, and the purification of his mind.
Some of the works make people's hearts feel empty and harmonious, and the rhyme is inexhaustible to open up precious nodes that make people reverie and rise...The artist's work is like a testimony of an individual's life. Some personal intimate experiences have an incomparably broad basis for empathy, and a living and humble spirit prepares to hear the call of transcendence.
In this exhibition, the two artists dedicate themselves to presenting a momentary image of the nature of this city and a place, and the competition and cooperation between the two artists clearly express the theme of the whole exhibition: "Symbiosis, Reconciliation".
Feng Caofei. 2023.12 Vancouver.
About the exhibition
Symbiosis and reconciliationYang Wenli and He Shengqiang Art Exhibition
Opening: November 10, 2023, 7-9pm
Tea: January 5, 2024, 10am-5pm
Closing: January 18, 2024, 2-5pm
Leeson Art Gallery in Vancouver is pleased to present the visually stunning artworks of Vancouver artists Wenli Yang and Shengqiang Ho. Yang Wenli and Ho Shengqiang's latest exhibition, Symbiosis and Reconciliation, explores the complex relationships and influences between people, space and nature through a variety of artistic techniques such as painting, installation, photography, and collage. These works are on display for the first time and demonstrate the creative prowess and conceptual depth of both artists.
Vancouver is a city that has been repeatedly praised for its high quality of life, with lush natural landscapes blending perfectly with sophisticated cities. However, the once-famous praise "B.C. – the best place on earth" is fading, suggesting a change in value. The pandemic has profoundly affected our understanding of quality of life, self-healing and environmental awareness. These factors provide the background for both artists.
Drawing inspiration from Vancouver's well-known neighborhoods, ubiquitous real estate developments, and Vancouver's verdant flora, Yang and Ho capture the city's evolving story through art. Their work goes beyond mere superficial aesthetic appeal and delves into the essence of our coexistence with the city and the natural world. Their work is a synthesis of thoughtful interpretation and visual appeal, derived from their meticulous artistic handcrafting and relentless experimentation with materials.
The innovative techniques employed by the two artists in their images culminated in a unique visual language. Symbiosis. Reconciliation invites viewers to rediscover and re-evaluate the fragile balance between urban development and harmony with nature. Through this exhibition, we hope to provoke a discussion about how we survive in a deep and complex relationship with the urban environment and related things.
conversion (triptych)
Wenli Yang & Roy Hoh
Photographic collage on wood, embossed vinyl** printing, UV-resistant finish.
48 x 114 x 2 inches
seeking the gleeful pony
Wenli Yang & Roy Hoh
Vinyl** printing, acrylic painting.
47 x 47 x 2 inches each
the entanglement
Wenli Yang & Roy Hoh
Vinyl** printed collage.
53 x 42 x 2 inches each
human, nature, and the city
Wenli Yang & Roy Hoh
Mirrors with a partial primer treatment, embossed vinyl** printed with a UV-resistant finish.
20 x 24 x 1.5 inches each
About the artist
Yang Wenli
Yang Wenli graduated from the Academy of Arts and Design of Tsinghua University with a Master of Fine Arts in Design and currently lives in Vancouver and Richmond. Yang Wenli used to be an art design teacher at Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology. After moving to Canada, she continued her visual arts studies at prestigious local art universities such as Emily Carr University of Art and Design, and immersed herself in Vancouver's vibrant arts scene.
Yang Wenli's art is deeply rooted in the search for self-awareness. From her hometown to Beijing to Vancouver, Yang Wenli has experienced cultural changes in different regions, and her works are full of questions about "Who am I?".and invites the audience to participate in the exploration of their own existence.
Yang Wenli's artistic practice is also concerned with special visual effects—transforming canvases into works with visual aesthetics. She sees visuals as the essence of artistic beauty and is committed to exploring diverse forms of expression through her art.
In addition to the exploration of self-awareness and the study of visual aesthetics, Yang Wenli also extends her art to focus on global issues, striving to raise public awareness of the protection of the common environment and heritage. Yang Wenli hopes that through her art, she can not only give the audience a new aesthetic experience aesthetically, but also evoke a sense of responsibility and reflection on pressing issues that transcend national borders.
He Shengqiang
He Shengqiang, also known as Roy Hoh, is an accomplished artist who studied at the High School Affiliated to the Sichuan Fine Arts Institute and received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology. In Beijing, he has worked as a visual creative director for several well-known agencies and organizations, honing his aesthetic sensibilities and storytelling skills over the years.
In 2010, Roy Hoh moved to Vancouver, Canada, to become a professional photographer and teach photography at the same time. At the same time, he combines his own artistic practice with teaching, and still maintains active learning and exploration in the continuous update of science and technology, and his teaching characteristics are unique.
Roy Hoh has always maintained his passion for artistic pursuits, constantly learning and thinking, and his works show his reflection on the unique essence of different themes, which in turn provokes subjective emotions in his heart. Ho's creative process is spontaneous, and his surge of inspiration leads him to capture the harmonious synchronicity between introspection and the external world.
AboutFeng Caofei.
Feng Caofei is an artist who graduated from the Oil Painting Department of Xi'an Academy of Fine Arts.
He is currently the graduate art director of IPIAT at Regent College, UBC University, Canada, and a professional member of the Federal Artists Association of Canada (FCA).
In 2021, he received the Outstanding American Artist Award from the United States Trade Development Council (ATDC).
In 2020, Cao Fei's work wedding won the first "Yage Literature and Art Award" at Duke University in the United States.
In October 2019, he held a solo exhibition at the Dal Schindell Gallery at the Victorian College of UBC University, Canada, and Professor Iwan Russell-Jones, who has been the art director of the BBC for many years, personally hosted the exhibition.