Chen Ping: Garden

Informality is delighted to present an upcoming exhibition by Chinese artist, Chen Ping. The exhibition shows a selection of work which explains the artist’s deep traditional interest in humanity and Chinese mythology.

There are threads throughout Chen Ping’s art that are reflective of both hopeful optimism and shared humanity. From his earliest works to more recent pieces, Ping highlights the symbiotic relationship between humans and the environment around us. This is not an individualised relationship between one single person and their specific relationship with nature, but one that seeks to represent how we are all connected to this relationship. This shared experience is of a cosmopolitan nature – a mutualism that we must embrace if we are to overcome the crises that confront us. Ping’s flows of colour have no sharp lines. The images are intertwined. The people, mountains and trees blur into each other and often difficult to distinguish. This is not only expressive of Ping’s distinctive style but reflective of his philosophy. Inspired by ancient Chinese proverbs and maxims, Ping draws out these intricacies. He does not see a separation between people and nature, but endless contours that overlap and influence each other. Here, the wild animal is the human, the human the mountain and the tree, and the tree the wild animal. It is a circular relationship that challenges our desire for linearity.

In today’s atmosphere, it is simple to ask, ‘does art matter?’ Do the aesthetics we witness on a canvas placed on a wall or sculptured in a garden mean anything? Viewing the world through the lens that Ping provides confirms that are has never been more important for it confirms to us that we are all interlinked. We are connected and as such, reliant on each other. When viewing Ping’s work, one often does not know where to stand: up close to see the layers or from a distance to observe the patterns. This is reflective of our interactions with the world around us – and it is why Ping provides us with a gateway across these worlds. This is the being of art.