SPACING MEMORIES

  • SPACING MEMORIES If we perceive the world through the lens of sight, then visualizing memory becomes a journey of chasing...

    SPACING MEMORIES

     
    If we perceive the world through the lens of sight, then visualizing memory becomes a journey of chasing dreams. This exhibition features the most important works of visual artist Xu Xiaowei from the past decade. Using nonlinear storytelling and modern visual language, he rebuilds the space of memory. The people, objects, events, and spacetime captured through his lens may seem absurd, yet they reveal the underlying truths of the post-internet age in their strangeness. In the play of shadows and light, Xu Xiaowei's personal memories and the spirit of the times flicker and intertwine—humans and the world merge yet remain alien to each other, making the present as much like the past as possible. In Xu Xiaowei's mnemonic space, the texture of light and shadow, the narrative of the lens, and the interplay of figures create a dynamic potential and field, allowing the works to interact with the audience and environment like quantum entanglement.
     
    Renowned international photography master Roger Ballen once remarked with genuine admiration upon viewing Xu Xiaowei's works: "Ultimately, Xiaowei's work admirably embodies the complexities of modern Chinese culture, revealing the interplay between tradition and progress, absurdity and reality. Within the framework of collective memory. Through this lens, I find not only kinship with the artist but also a mirror reflecting my own artistic journey."
     
    It is hoped that this exhibition will offer the audience a glimpse of a particular collective visual memory of this era, sparking resonance and illuminating the brilliance of humanity and hope amidst the absurdity of existence.
     

    Text / Joshua Gong

  • ARTIST: Xu Xiaowei Photographer / Photographer / Visual Artist Over the past decade, he has maintained close collaborations with numerous...

    ARTIST: Xu Xiaowei

     

    Photographer / Photographer / Visual Artist

     

    Over the past decade, he has maintained close collaborations with numerous fashion brands and magazines including Vogue, Bazaar, Elle, L'Officiel, and Figaro. Simultaneously, he has worked with some of the most renowned contemporary artists, creating photography-based artworks that bridge his dual practice as both professional photographer and artist. His works have received international recognition, including the Award of Excellence from Communication Arts and the Gold Award in Press/Fashion at PX3.

  • CURATOR: Dr. Joshua Gong Dr. Joshua Gong is a leading expert on contemporary Chinese art and chinoiserie. He taught at...

    CURATOR: Dr. Joshua Gong

     

    Dr. Joshua Gong is a leading expert on contemporary Chinese art and chinoiserie. He taught at the University of Sussex from 2010 to 2018, then lectured at Shanghai Normal University. He was a recipient of the Young Scholar Grant, Tate Modern, 2015. His first monograph was nominated for the best art publication by the Award of Art China.
     
    He has been working and publishing with and for various leading publishers and institutions, including in China: the Ministry of Culture, the Museum of Contemporary Art, Yinchuan, the Palace Museum, The Commercial Press, and the Chinese National Art Publishing House; and in the UK: Unicorn Publishing Group, the Art Newspaper and Oxford University Press. His book Iconography and Schemata: A Communicating History in Painting between China and the West, 1514–1885 is a landmark in the field. Recently he published three monographs: Hsiao Chin and Punto: Mapping Post-War Avant-Garde (London: Unicorn), Challenging Leonardo da Vinci, An Alternative Art History (Beijing: CITIC Press Group), and Chinese Art Today: From 20th-Century Tradition to Contemporary Practice (London: Unicorn).
  • Xu Xiaowei, Fire During the Day, 2017-2018. Inkjet print on fine art paper, 100 × 80 cm. Courtesy of the artist.
  • Xu Xiaowei, They Will Be Afraid When You Become Stronger, 2009-2021. Inkjet print on fine art paper, 100 × 80 cm. Courtesy of the artist.
  • Xu Xiaowei, Pets, 2018. Inkjet print on fine art paper, 60 × 80 cm. Courtesy of the artist.
  • Xu Xiaowei, Get Rid of Those Shiny Bugs, 2020. Inkjet print on fine art paper, 60 × 80 cm. Courtesy of the artist.
  • Xu Xiaowei, One Must Have Tilted One's Head When Slid Down, 2021-2024. Inkjet print on fine art paper, 100 × 80 cm. Courtesy of the artist.
  • Xu Xiaowei, A Shadowed Gentleman, 2020. Inkjet print on fine art paper, 60 × 80 cm. Courtesy of the artist.

  • OFOTO & ANART

     

    OFOTO Gallery was officially established in 2006 at M50 Shanghai, collaborating with more than 100 artists from home and abroad, successfully organizing hundreds of exhibitions and inviting well-known experts as curators or academic supports. OFOTO is actively engaged in exchanges and cooperation with other international galleries and institutions. In 2009, the gallery expanded to include "ANART Space" as a space to showcase a richer and more diverse range of contemporary art. OFOTO & ANART has always adhered to its artistic philosophy, strives to discover and cultivate emerging potential young artists with individuality in idea or in technique, and offers them a platform for exhibition, communication and assessment, and to promote their outstanding works to the domestic and international art market.