Monday 13 October 2008

New art from China at The Saatchi Gallery in London - 'The Revolution Continues'

Wonderfully weird (or weirdly wonderful). I had no idea that Chinese art could be so exciting. This was a discovery for me. Brilliant exhibition. Highly recommend it.

May I just say how much I missed The Saatchi Gallery. It became one of my favourite places in London when it was opened on the South Bank few years ago. Then, in couple of years, the gallery was closed down due to the problems with the lease of the building or so.

This newly opened space in Chelsea is very nice, love it. It was launched only few days ago, and instantly became one of my old new favourite places in London. My only main thumbs down re new Saatchi gallery is the lack of space for a permanent collection of contemporary art. As far as I understand from conversations with staff members, it will effectively be based on temporary exhibitions; there will be no permanent collection displays, which I loved so much in past. But hey, each 3 months or so, the exhibition will change.

Zhang Huan. Ash Head No. 1. 2007 (Mixed media and ash.)

Zhang Xiaogang. My Dream: Little General. 2005

Zhang Xiaogang. Bloodline. 2005

Zhang Huan. Donkey. 2005 (donkey f**king skyscrapers)

Liu Wei. Indigestion II. 2004-05 ("monumental poo"; "on closer inspection, half digested kernels emerge as hundreds of toy soldiers, spilling forth in an unmistakable sentiment of protest.")

Zhang Hongtu. Long Live Chairman Mao Series #29. 1989 (China's answer to Andy Warhol)

Sun Yuan and Peng Yu. Angel. 2008 (Life-size sculpture in fibre-reinforced polimer and silica gel.)

Xiang Jing. Your Body. 2005

Zhang Dali. Chinese Offspring. 2003-05 (each sculpture is a representation of a migrant construction worker; each bears a unique tattoo as a "witting commentary on social engineering and population control.")

Wang Guangyi. Materialist's Art. 2006

For more photos from the exhibit, see my Picasa Web Album

No comments: