For the Love of Clay
An exhibition in support of the Barnsdall Art Center's Ceramics Studio
This diverse collection of Los Angeles artists who focus on ceramics, offering a window into contemporary explorations of the medium, from traditional functional objects to the conceptual and experimental. Proceeds from artwork sales will support the ceramic studios and classes at the Barnsdall Junior Art center, advancing its mission to foster creativity through engagement and publicly accessible classes for adults and children.
Participating Artists
Adam Alessi Adam Miller Anais Franco Angelica Lorenzi Anna Furman Chris Wawrinofsky Claudia V. Solórzano David Hicks Eiffel Wong Elysabeth Gwendoline Belle Emily Marchard Emily Sudd Galia Linn Jay Kvapil Lucile Littot Masaomi Yasunaga Miyakono Yasuda Rando Aso Shoshi Watanabe
Special thanks to: Luis deJesus Gallery, Diane Rosenstein Gallery, Night Gallery, Hannah Hoffman Gallery and Nonaka-Hill Gallery and Roche Projects.
As globally acclaimed well-known artists, Song Dong and Yin Xiuzhen have witnessed and participated in the entire historical process of contemporary art in China over the past thirty years, which also represents a microcosm of the tremendous changes in Chinese society. Their works have distinct aesthetic frameworks, but all focus on the interrelationships between personal emotions, memories, fate, and society in the context of rapidly changing political and economic environments. Both artists are skilled at using various materials as mediums for their works, but this exhibition marks the first time they have used glass as the main creative medium.
The exhibition spans five years, including three years during the pandemic, and comprises three independent parts: Song Dong's To Be or Not To Be, Yin Xiuzhen's Ripple Stress, and the joint exhibition of The Way of Chopsticks - Tasting Light by Song Dong, Yin Xiuzhen, and their daughter Song ErRui.
Glass has been a part of human life for thousands of years, with its earliest history dating back to ancient civilizations over 4,000 years ago. With the innovation and development of technology, glass has become widely used in various fields of daily life. However, the extensive use of glass in contemporary art has only emerged in recent years. This exhibition features a total of thirteen sets of works that cover various manufacturing processes and categories of glass, including frosted glass, casting, blowing, neon lights, flat glass, lampworking, glass casting, LED screens, and mirrors. This is the first time in the field of contemporary art that glass has been used so extensively and creatively. Among them, the bold and groundbreaking mixing and firing of glass with everyday items such as clothing and fruits is a pioneering move in the history of glass art and art in general. "Non-glass is indispensable", is Song's general description of this exhibition. Because of glass, there is existence. Song and Yin are skilled at thoroughly understanding the materials they use, and then deconstructing and reconstructing them conceptually, integrating them into their own aesthetic systems. This exhibition uses glass as a narrative carrier, breaking the conventional understanding of glass. It invites us to start from the representation of glass and delve into philosophy from the outside in.
To Be or Not To Be Song Dong Solo Exhibition
Apl 29 to Oct 28, Shanghai Museum of Glass, 2023
To Be or Not To Be Song Dong Solo Exhibition
Part One, Traceless, 2023. Frosted glass, brush, water.
Part Two, Ignorance, 2020-2023. Glass publications, cast glass and window spaces.
Part Three, Limitless, 2020-2023,. Cast glass and food crops.
Part Four, Desireless, 2020-2023. Blown glass, daily necessities, old furniture, projectors, no annealing.
Part Five, Not To Be, 2018-2023. Neon lights, steel plates, controllers.
The exhibition consists of seven parts.
Outside and inside the exhibition hall, there is a flesh-colored horn named "Xiuzhen Pink". This breathing apparatus is clamped by huge steel pipes, with its broken wounds and needles shocking to the eye. Submerged Throat is a series of works made from the same material, connects the inside and outside of the exhibition. When viewers try to look out through the holes, they don't see a straightforward view, but rather the reflection of the surrounding environment in the opposite mirror of the horn and the glass balls in the shallow throat.
The first group of Ripple Stress, which gives the exhibition its name, is laid flat on the ground and consists of layers of fruit and glass that have been fired. Although the sweet fruit has been carbonized, its original contours can still be vaguely seen. The glass is picturesque, and each piece tells a story about life.
The other group of Ripple Stress is an adventurous attempt by the artist, who mixes everyday items such as washbasins and bowls with plaster and constantly stirs them during the glass-making process, changing the humidity, temperature, and force fields of the glass to produce ripple stress that cannot be controlled.
Looking up at the top of the exhibition hall, twelve holes are filled with old clothes, echoing the works on the ground. Along with these clothes are 108 bubbles containing the breaths of 108 people collected as permanent memorials and evidence of their existence. In a separate space,
108 groups of teardrop-shaped vessels are arranged from low to high. Each group of vessels differs by one centimeter, and viewers can find a group that suits their height. Tear Instrument is a space for inner self-isolation and emotional placement.
The final work of the exhibition is composed of a piece of glass debris and a mosquito that the artist accidentally discovered in this space and named Heavenly Mandate.
Ripples Stress Yin Xiuzhen Solo Exhibition
Apl 29 to Oct 28, Shanghai Museum of Glass, 2023
To Be or Not To Be Song Dong Solo Exhibition
April 29 to Oct 28, Shanghai Museum of Glass, 2023
This exhibition features a total of five sets of works that cover various manufacturing processes and categories of glass. "Non-glass is indispensable", is Song's general description of this exhibition.
Part One, Traceless, 2023. Frosted glass, brush, water.
Part Two, Ignorance, 2020-2023. Glass publications, cast glass and window spaces.
Part Three, Limitless, 2020-2023,. Cast glass and food crops.
Part Four, Desireless, 2020-2023. Blown glass, daily necessities, old furniture, projectors, no annealing.
Part Five, Not To Be, 2018-2023. Neon lights, steel plates, controllers.
Ripple Stress Yin Xiuzhen Solo Exhibition
April 29 to Oct 28 Shanghai Museum of Glass, 2023
The entire exhibition is named Ripple Stress, and borrowing the artist's own interpretation, "every circular water wave that ripples on the water's surface records a meeting, but also simultaneously obscures more narratives beneath the water's surface." Ripple Stress is an exhibition that is actually a carrier of memories of life.
The Way of Chopsticks Tasting Light by Song Dong, Yin Xiuzhen, and Song ErRui
April 29 to Oct 28, Shanghai Museum of Glass, 2023
The Way of Chopsticks is a 20-year-long art project by the married couple, Song Dong and Yin Xiuzhen. They agreed to keep their works a secret from each other and create independently, while exhibiting together. For this exhibition, the couple continued their original plan and invited their daughter Song Er’rui to join them. Each of them created a "chopstick" and arranged them in the shape of the Chinese character "品" (pǐn), naming it "Tasting Light" (品光).
The Way of Chopsticks - Tasting Light by Song Dong, Yin Xiuzhen, and Song ErRui, 2023, Mirror, glass, plants. videos.
The Way of Chopsticks, earlier works by Song Dong and Yin Xiuzhen.
The Way of Chopsticks Tasting Light by Song Dong, Yin Xiuzhen, and Song ErRui
April 29 to Oct 28 Shanghai Museum of Glass, 2023
The Way of Chopsticks - Tasting Light by Song Dong, Yin Xiuzhen, and Song ErRui, 2023, Mirror, glass, plants. videos.
The Way of Chopsticks, earlier works by Song Dong and Yin Xiuzhen.
The Way of Chopsticks is a 20-year-long art project by the married couple, Song Dong and Yin Xiuzhen. They agreed to keep their works a secret from each other and create independently, while exhibiting together. For this exhibition, the couple continued their original plan and invited their daughter Song Er’rui to join them. Each of them created a "chopstick" and arranged them in the shape of the Chinese character "品" (pǐn), naming it "Tasting Light" (品光).