THE HORIZON

  • The Horizon It doesn't matter in which corner of the world you were born, what age or gender you are,...

    The Horizon

     

    It doesn't matter in which corner of the world you were born, what age or gender you are, if you own an impressive camera or not: we all love a good sunset. The fiery rose and peachy coloured skies triggers the desire in us all to capture and share this dramatic show with others. There are millions of these pictures added every day, making it one of the most photographed topics in the world. Stretching the topic from sunset to ‘the horizon’, and you can easily multiple this number a couple of times.
     
    For this exhibition I had the pleasure to select photographs from over 2000 participants who responded to the open call placed by NIO and Jimei x Arles International Photo Festival. The request was to send in works related to the theme ‘The Horizon’ in the widest way possible, and boy, wide it was!
     
    Generally speaking it's possible to divide the entries in a couple of groups. The largest group can be defined as ‘true horizon lovers’. No matter the weather conditions, the geographical boundaries or physical impossibilities to reach the perfect spot, they do it. The centre of the exhibition highlights four groups of these photographs separated into photos of clouds, sunset, snow or photos taken at night by 30 different photographers.
     
    It’s only honest to point out that a lot of horizon photographs are obviously very replaceable. I included a few of these classic beauties as we can all relate to them. Some others however, for example the magic evening horizon taken above the clouds or a photo of a very perfect single cloud are truly unique and were selected for that reason.
     
    Another group of works can be seen as ‘alternative horizons’, often taken by talented creative minds. I selected six of these projects, sometimes a single photograph and sometimes the entire series. Have a look for example at the works of Wang Yongchun who managed to turn plastic bowls of lockdown soup into the most splendid pictures of the universe. I was also impressed by the works of Shi Jiao who made drawings of two mountains using different digital materials. I’m still flabbergasted by the ability of recent technology to generate this type of mountain poetry by a few simple clicks and keywords. His project will blow you away!
     
    I would like to thank all the participating photographers, NIO and the Three Shadows for their trust in me to make this exhibition a success.
     
    Ruben Lundgren 
  • CURATOR: Ruben Lundgren Beijing-based photographer and curator Ruben Lundgren (b.1983, the Netherlands) received his masters’ degree photography from the China...

    CURATOR: Ruben Lundgren

     

    Beijing-based photographer and curator Ruben Lundgren (b.1983, the Netherlands) received his masters’ degree photography from the China Central Academy of Fine Arts. He made a name within the conceptual photography duo WassinkLundgren with award winning publications as Empty Bottles (2007) and Tokyo Tokyo (2010). He now works as a photojournalist for Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant, and as an independent curator of Chinese photography. Together with British photographer Martin Parr, he co-edited The Chinese Photobook (2015). As guest curator of BredaPhoto he curated China Imagined (2020) offering contemporary photography projects from China including the sticker album Wow Taobao. He edited Ellen Thorbecke: From Peking to Paris (2021), and published Real Dreams (2021) presenting his photography works made all over China.

  • Artist: Bai Kai, Bas Meelker, Chen Wenchang, David Costor, Du Yegang, Jaimie, Ge Jieyun, Jia Songzhou, Keen Heick Abildhauge, Cool Ray, Li Fangping, Lv Guanghui, Lei Jinlong, Pan Langbin, Ren Zeyuan, Shi Jiao, Stefan Gerlach, Seven Song, Angenlsong, Willie Tian, Tobias Haag, Vincent Wang, Wang Jinlei, Wang Lihui, Wang Yongchun, Wu Hao, Xiao Bowen, Xu Qiyu, Yao Xiaoyi, Yang Zhewei, Steven, Harano, Zhang Kechun, Zhou Weiming (Sort by Chinese initials)

  • Harano,The Unnoticed Cloud. Courtesy of the artist. 

  • SHANG (Xu Qiyu),The Horizon,2022. Courtesy of the artist.

  • Keen Heick-Abildhauge,The Horizon, Courtesy of the artist.

  • Zhang Kechun, Hanging Garden, 2022. 110cm x 77 cm,Courtesy of the artist.