'The Gift'

Our gallery will be joining other artists and artisans in selling their wares and raising money for local NGOs at 'The Gift' charity bazaar in Beijing this weekend.

We will be selling functional ceramics and jewelry pieces, perfect for holiday gifts.

If you are in the area, please come by the Canadian International School and show your support!

When: Sunday, November 29, 9:00 am to 6:00 pm
Where: The Canadian International School, 38 Liangmaqiao Road, Chaoyang district
Entry fee: 5 RMB

Pottery of the people!

We are excited about Jackson Lee's second solo exhibition at our gallery. His first solo exhibit in October 2008 featured his series "New Imperial Wares," which modernized the grace and beauty of porcelain vessels used by the imperial families of dynastic China.

The upcoming exhibition features new "mingei" (folk art), Jackson's interpretation of the pottery of the people. These wares are earthy and rough, yet possess simple and functional aesthetics. Jackson attempts to reconnect us to ceramic wares and the role they play in the rhythm of our daily routines.

Jackson is also an award-winning documentary filmmaker and the co-founder of Sanbao, a ceramic art institute in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province.

Opening reception: Saturday, November 21, 4:00 to 6:00 pm

china: Unlimited

We are participating in Shanghai's first ceramic art expo entitled "china: Unlimited." This expo runs from November 6 to 9.

We are representing Jackson Lee (Li Jian Shen) and pieces from his "New Imperial Wares" collection. These pieces are utilitarian and elegant, echoing the grace and grandeur of dynasties past while embodying modern functionality and accessibility.

Some photos from our booth:



Come find us at booth 48, 4th floor at the ShanghaiMart.

Jackson's next solo exhibition opens at our gallery on Saturday, November 21. This exhibit, called "From Day to Day", will feature his latest body of work, "New Mingei." Otherwise known as "pottery of the people", this new series of pieces examines the role that ceramics plays in our daily life, from bowls to vases, adding both beauty and utility. Jackson endeavors to reconnect us with folk art in his latest exhibition.

Booth C97

Photos of our booth at Shanghai Art Fair:

With glass artist Yang Meihua, posing near her works.

Shanghai Art Fair

We will be participating in the Shanghai Art Fair for the first time this year.

Dates: September 9 - 13
Venue: ShanghaiMART, 99 Xinyi Road near Yan An West Road
Entry fee: 50 RMB

We are located at booth C97 on the fourth floor. Please come visit us!

Sneak peek...

Very excited about our contemporary jewelry exhibit opening on September 26! A sneak peek at some of the works that will be featured:

Artist: Kang Qing

Artist: Wang Zhenghong


Artist: Wang Zhenghong

'Hand in Hand' opening Saturday

Hand in Hand / 6 人行

Contemporary lacquer group exhibition

August 29 to September 20

Opening reception: Saturday, August 29, 4:00 to 6:00 pm

Lacquer painting is a laborious process: preparing just the canvas requires layers of lacquer and linen cloths applied to plywood. Lacquer artists meticulously incorporate tree sap, egg shells, dyes and minerals, blending natural and sometimes artificial materials to capture aesthetic visions.

‘Hand in Hand’ features six young artists committed to reviving this ancient art form. They are both bearers of tradition and pioneers of new concepts and techniques.

Artists:

Jin Hui

Kou Yan

Xie Zhen

Zhang Yi

Xu Jin

Chen Yu

6人行

当代漆艺群展

8月29日—9月20日

开幕酒会：8月29日，周六下午4点到6点

漆画创作是繁复的，仅准备画板就需在底板上几层漆、并以亚麻布密封。漆艺家以天然漆或化学漆入画，为求达到视觉上的美观，还将树脂、蛋壳、染料及金属粉融入画布中。

“6人行”当代漆艺群展汇聚了六位投身于漆艺--这一传统艺术形式的年轻艺术家。他们代表着传统工艺的传承，同时代表着全新理念和技法的继往开来。

金晖

寇焱

谢震

章益

徐进

陈宇

twocities in tune: jazz evolution

After a short summer hiatus, we are back and ready to go with a full fall calendar. To kick off our events (and the fourth season in the twocities in tune concert series), pianist Steve Sweeting will lead us through a "history of the jazz piano" on Friday, August 21. A concert with a lecture component, this performance will feature Sweeting as the main performer and lecturer, joined by Joey Lu on vocals and piano as well.


twocities in tune: jazz evolution

Friday, August 21st, 7:30 pm

Free and open to the public

Artist In Focus: Yeh Weni

Yeh Weni is a young Taiwanese ceramic artist living and working in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province. Her work is functional and decorative, ranging from cups to kitten figurines to jewelry. A graduate of Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts, Yeh Weni started working in ceramics because she found the medium to be fun and versatile. She cites Zeng Peng (of the famed Zeng brothers) as the artist who has influenced her the most.

Drawing from daily life and Chinese traditions, Yeh Weni's work is whimsical, filled with color and comical images. Her white and blue bowls are handpainted with simple images: a single turnip resting at the bottom or an old house peeking from the edge. Her kitten figures raise their paw in mid-air, batting playfully at the observer. Yeh Weni's jewelry have an indigenous feel to them: brightly colored string, abstract ceramic pendants, bells and charms dangling from the necklaces.

In "All Sing Together," Yeh Weni pieces together a choir of more than 200 little dinner roll-headed boys, sitting and singing together.

"This piece reflects joy and happiness, and I hope it relaxes the viewers and makes them smile," says Yeh.

Title: All Sing Together
Dimensions: 1m x 1m
Medium: Ceramic

Summer group show

Foundation: Summer Show features 8 young artists working in glass, ceramics and jewelry. Here's a sneak peek at what will be exhibited:

Huang Weiwei

Yang Meihua

Yuan Wenjuan

Kang Qing

This exhibit runs from July 3rd to August 25th.

As for the summer holiday, we will be closed July 20 to August 10.

Bowls for Beggars: Photos

Ceramic bowls created by Chinese artist Xu Hongbo for Swiss beggars, blogged about here.


More pictures of the Swiss beggars using ceramic bowls made by Chinese artist Xu Hongbo can be found here: http://tinyurl.com/mae2tp

The Swiss Beggars Ceramics (SBC) exhibit runs at the gallery L'Artelier Céramique in Lausanne until July 1.

Summer Conferences

We are slowing down for the summer here at twocities, but here are a couple of international shows and conferences in July worth noting.

Australian Ceramics Triennale, July 16 - 20, 2009

This national ceramics conference, in its 12th year, will be hosted in Sydney from July 16 to 20. Ceramic artists from around the globe are invited to present, exhibit and lead workshops, and the conference aims to promote international dialogue on the development of ceramic art in Australia. Two Chinese artists, Li Jianshen (Jackson Lee) and Chen Guanghui, will be participating this year.

This year's theme is 'Facing the Future' and focuses on the relationship between contemporary ceramic practices and the emergence of various global forces.


Glass Weekend at Wheaton Arts, July 17 - 19, 2009

Sponsored by The Creative Glass Center of America at Wheaton Arts and Cultural Center and the Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass, this biennial event has been held since 1985. From July 17 to 19, this international symposium and exhibition brings together glass artists, collectors, galleries and museum curators for three days of exhibitions, lectures, demonstrations and hands-on workshops. A gallery exhibition features the most current works of over 200 international artists.

Proceeds from the weekend benefit the Creative Glass Center's fellowship program, which provides working fellowships to 12 individual artists, selected from around the world, each year.

Artist In Focus: Cheng Xiang

On our blog, we will periodically highlight various artists twocities works with. The first artist to be featured is Cheng Xiang, a pioneer in the Chinese contemporary glass art world.

Cheng Xiang is a young artist who explores color in her work, using the inherent characteristics of glass in optical playfulness. Her use of color and composition in glass pulls the viewer deeper into the object itself.

"In my opinion, glass has a special quality: transparency. This trait helps lead our thoughts from the material world to the spiritual arena--it is the medium to express that metaphor. Its energy is expressed through refraction and scattering of light, and the material itself expresses abstract beauty," says Cheng.

Cheng Xiang notes Colin Reid as the artist who has influenced her the most, with his innovative kilncast work. She also draws inspiration from her native culture and history, integrating her love of Chinese poetry and paintings with her passion for glass.

"Glass artworks combine the concepts of emptiness and fullness. The overlap of the glass language and my Chinese background leads the inspiration for my artworks," explains Cheng. She employs the techniques of mold casting and lost-wax casting in her process.

A graduate from the master's of glass art program at Shanghai University, Cheng Xiang stayed on at her alma mater to teach in the glass department at the School of Fine Arts. Her work (pictured below) was recently selected by a jury to be included in New Glass Review 30, an annual survey published by Corning Museum of Glass.

Title: Chinese Scenery - Lost Flower, Autumn
Process: Lost-wax casting
Dimensions: 31 x 6 cm
Year created: 2008

Jackson Lee: Reinterpreting Tradition

Article on ceramic artist Jackson Lee (Li Jianshen) is in the current issue of 'Ceramic Arts & Perception,' available on newsstands.

Jackson held a solo exhibition of his "Neo-Imperial" porcelain ware at twocities in October 2008 and is planning another solo exhibition this fall. Stay tuned!

Xu Hongbo: Bowls for beggars

Two months ago, Chinese ceramic artist Xu Hongbo arrived in Vevey School CEPV for an art exchange program. As he adjusted to life in Switzerland, he noticed the beggars on the streets and how the community interacted with them--a sense of courtesy and dignity even when money wasn't given. As a representative of China and Chinese porcelain, Xu Hongbo wanted to give something back to the Swiss community; he landed on the idea of creating ceramic bowls from Chinese clay for the beggars to use.

Hailing from Jingdezhen, the porcelain capital of China, Xu Hongbo decided to create the bowls from clay indigenous to his hometown. The bowls are designed with a cross-shaped opening, and Xu Hongbo's hope is that the bowls will bring both beauty and utility to the beggars' lives.

Artist's statement:
I named the bowls “SBC”, an acronym for Swiss Bowls with a Cross and Swiss Beggars’ Ceramics. In the Bible, you can read that God changes humankind like a potter transforms the pots on the wheel by his hands. Maybe the first or the last wish of beggars is just wanting a little bit of “change” in life.

The first ten bowls in this series will be exhibited at the gallery L'Artelier Céramique in Lausanne, and some of the beggars who will be using these bowls will be invited to the opening. The exhibit will run from June 10 to July 1.

Xu Hongbo received his bachelor's degree from Jingdezhen Ceramics Institute and his master's degree from the Fine Arts College at Shanghai University. His works often express his concern with social issues and human relationships.

Xu Hongbo's website (mostly in Chinese): http://www.hongboclay.cdd.cn/home.asp?m_id=80012

Planeware

Derek Au is a young American artist currently exhibiting in Form & Function. He is based in Jingdezhen and works as the Studio Manager at the Pottery Workshop. His newest series received much interest and glowing praise at our opening reception last Saturday.

This series of "planeware" takes inspiration from the Hutian kiln, located close to Derek's studio. During the Song dynasty, the Hutian kiln produced Qingbai porcelain wares that were partly influenced by Tang and Song dynasty silver wares. Derek's works embody the same delicate beauty, but he employs a porcelain slab technique that he developed, emulating metalsmithing techniques. The result is skillful precision and gentle lines.

Form & Function: Ceramic language

Six young ceramic artists explore the intersection of aesthetics and utility in their collection of functional ceramic ware in “Form & Function”, an upcoming exhibition at twocities gallery. Cups, plates and bowls are intertwined in our daily lives but the significance they hold extends beyond containers for food and water; these vessels define our way of life and appreciation of beauty.

Li Suyi, Han Yunfei, Kang Yang, Li Qiang, Wang Hao and Derek Au are all based in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province. Jingdezhen is inarguably the porcelain capital of China if not the world, known for its rich heritage of providing porcelain wares to the imperial families for several dynasties. During the Jingde Period of the Song Dynasty, Emperor Zhenzong decreed that Changnanzhen (as the city was known then) would provide the official porcelain wares for the imperial court. Each piece was inscribed with “Made in the reign of Jingde” on the bottom, which led to the town’s association with high-quality porcelain and its current name. Ceramic artists continue to work out of Jingdezhen, building on the 1,800-plus year history and maintaining the city’s reputation as a national center for porcelain production. The exhibiting five Chinese artists and one American artist represent the growing contemporary handcrafted arts movement in China, a movement that draws on tradition as much as it expands the vision of modern design and fine art.

Opening reception for the exhibit at twocities gallery will be held on Saturday, May 16, from 4 to 6 pm. This exhibit runs until June 30.

"Beyond lacquer"

Cheng Xiangjun: Solo Exhibition

April 18 – May 10, 2009

Opening reception: Saturday, April 18, 4 to 6 pm

Lacquer has a long standing and cherished heritage in China's history, reaching back as far as 7,000 years. Lacquer art reached its first peak in development during the Warring Period (770 - 256 B.C.) and also enjoyed rapid development during the Han dynasty (206 B.C. - 220 A.D.). Contemporary lacquer artists draw upon this rich legacy while also striving to expand aesthetic, technical and conceptual boundaries. Cheng Xiangjun is at the forefront of this contemporary lacquer art movement in China.

Cheng Xiangjun is a well-renowned lacquer painter who employs techniques of oil painting while pushing the tradition of lacquer art in his work. In a style that echoes abstract expressionism, Cheng’s art breaks the conventional mold of lacquer paintings, employing abstract images, geometric shapes and colors that layer and leap from the wood canvas. This solo exhibit features paintings from his series entitled “Tibet Impression”. In this body of work, Cheng explores the mystical, philosophical and religious through symbols, colors and the aesthetic qualities of lacquer.

Cheng's work is described as the reinterpretation of an ancient language in a modern context: "His recent works are a breakthrough into exploring a modern native language. By reconstructing traditional symbols, he seeks the long-interrupted pulse of Chinese culture." (Zhang Xiaoling, Dean of the Graduate School, China Art Academy)