2015 – CEAC

fashion design project

Sat, 12 Dec 2015 16:06:38 +0000

Opening

19/12 2015

Duration

19/12/2015-09/01/2016

Location

CEAC (Xiamen, China)

Artist

Ýr Þrastardóttir

What inspires YR for her collection made in Xiamen is the existence of the melting pot between culture, genders, and different personalities ethnic backgrounds, and all sorts of individuality that vary from one person to another.

Both places Xiamen and Iceland are Islands in the ocean with extremely different landscapes and culture. Still both places find a strong connection of the individualism of Island people, the way they live close to the ocean, always coming or going.

An obsessional work dedicated to finding the delicate line that would draw a connection between these Islands is a contemporary answer to a classic, eternal silhouette. Yr strives to create a garment which feels like a partner you want to travel with, a garment that complement.

YR’s collection emphasizes in combining classics with a modern and nonchalant attitude. The garments focus on embodying the individual’s ability to portray their narrative through their own unique style.

All YR’s designs are created in her own studio and entirely produced in there from a selection of noble and carefully selected fabrics, such as silks, wool, leather etc.

The uniqueness of YR is translated by her ability to mix and match more than one fabric boldly creating distinguished pieces. An efficient number of simple but exclusive pieces, personal, precious and unique.

This show is a sneak peak of the full armed Autumn / Winter collection 2016 which will be completed in YR’s studio in Iceland and showcased at the Reykjavik Fashion Festival next spring.

Gallery

Lift Off – Touch Down

Sat, 12 Dec 2015 13:37:06 +0000

Opening

Saturday January 31 at 5PM, 2014

Duration

January 31, 2015 till February 7, 2015

Location

CEAC (Xiamen, China)

Artist

Astra Howard

In Xiamen, Astra spent time walking the streets of the city, in order to identify characteristic features that could be extracted, interpreted and then reconfigured. In particular, wall and ground surfaces of Xiamen captured her attention and she soon began to ‘lift off’ parts of the city’s surface (the skin like membrane between pedestrian and the working body of the metropolis) and then ‘touch down’ with her original observations and interpretations. The form (scale and materiality) of each aspect of this surface/skin chosen was reimagined and the new renderings were then performed, installed and documented throughout the streetscapes of Xiamen.

Local resident’s who chanced upon these interventions, stopped to watch and then invariably talked to Astra about the meaning of her works. Many suggested ideas for additional commentary upon the city and others offered their assistance with the project being undertaken. It was apparent that people understood the reference points for each intervention and appreciated Astra’s reinterpretations as being perceptive and in some instances, amusing.

Some examples of these interventions undertaken during the residency period (December 2014 – January 2015) include- window/balcony scenes transformed into wearable objects and a transportable trolley; red carpets reformed through plant-inspired designs and laid in front of anonymous entrances; pavement tile patterns being transplanted to and reconfigured in parkland areas; ‘Opening Soon’ signs detached from specifics of a yet to be refurbished shop, reduced in scale and then wheeled around the broader landscape of the city; chance encounters with locals recorded and then displayed in construction sites; the architectural pulse of an abandoned shopping centre monitored to gauge its life/death struggle, and because of the ever presence of the sea, aquatic inspired clothing designs. Astra intends to further develop these Xiamen residency projects when she returns to Sydney, Australia.
(See Astra’s residency blog: chinaresidency-astrahoward.tumblr.com)

“I think your work touches on some of Xiamen’s current state of mind: the carpets and the opening soon trolley perfectly encompass the eagerness and excitement of a city ushering in tidal waves of new commerce, all while maintaining a closeness to the region’s natural setting through the ubiquitous potted plants.” – Kira Simon-Kennedy, Program Manager China Residencies

Astra Howard’s residency at CEAC is part of the China Residencies’ “Two To Three” program, which is generously supported by the Australia Copyright Fund. Arts NSW, NSW Artists’ Grant Scheme, a devolved funding program administered by the National Association for the Visual Arts on behalf of the NSW Government has also provided valuable support.

Gallery

Exploding Mountains

Sat, 12 Dec 2015 13:20:46 +0000

Opening

Saturday January 10at 5PM, 2014

Duration

January 10, 2015 till January 23, 2015

Location

CEAC (Xiamen, China)

Artist

Josie Jenkins

Josie Jenkins is a painter who explores the way human interference impacts on the landscape. In the past she has taken inspiration from the British landscape, her imagery evoking a sense of the edge lands between city and countryside and the subtle incongruity between the natural and the unnatural.
She is interested in overgrown wastelands and forgotten places containing disused and discarded buildings and objects. Her paintings include ambiguous elements, which emphasise confusion, or unnatural colours, objects and patterns, which exaggerate the contradictions and conflict presented by our modern landscape.

In China, Jenkins has turned her focus towards the visible consequence of heavy industry, as well as exploring her overall perspective on the Chinese landscape and the way it is shaped by people. During her residency with CEAC, Jenkins visited the Yangshan Deep Water Port in Shanghai, the largest container port in the world, and imagery from this research trip features prominently in her new body of work. The landscape speaks of the people who occupy it and, in Jenkins’ paintings; people are notable by their absence.

“When I came to China my intention was to search for landscapes that relate to my artistic practice, but actually, no searching was required; everywhere I look I see images that inspire me. In China, I continually see and hear things that surprise me and some things that at first I found unbelievable. The landscape of China offers a complete contradiction to the landscape of Britain.”

Jenkins’ work has also changed in response to her situation as an ‘artist in residence’. She says, “Having limited time and materials to create work for a residency exhibition, rather than constraining me, has in fact pushed me to work more spontaneously and think more freely. I have had little time to contemplate the technical and theoretical decisions that I am making and so this work feels fresher to me than anything I have done before.”

Gallery

Dry Landscape

Thu, 12 Nov 2015 16:16:30 +0000

Opening

November 7, 2015

Duration

November 7 till 28, 2015

Location

CEAC (Xiamen, China)

Artist

Paul Beumer

‘At first you see nothing but a chaos of colours; then it begins to look like something, it resembles – no, it does not look like anything. All of a sudden, a point detaches itself; like the nucleus of a cell, it grows, the colours are clustered around it, heaped; rays develop, shooting forth branches and twigs like ice crystals on the window panes…and the picture reveals itself to the viewer, who has assisted at the birth of the painting. And, what is more: the painting is ever new, it changes with the light, never growing tired, springing to life anew, endowed with the gift of life.’
August Strindberg – On Chance in Artistic Creation (1894)

Paul Beumer’s painting practice oscillates freely between figuration and abstraction. His recent works on paper, made with watercolour and ink, bear a strong relation to the manifold spontaneous processes happening in nature and its ever-changing scenes and colours. Just like one cannot predict the shapes of a cloud or the structures of semi-precious stones, Beumer leaves it partly up to chance how his work will turn out.

For his solo exhibition Dry Landscape at CEAC in Xiamen Beumer created a floor piece, which consists of works made on paper, textile and towels. The predominant colour is black, which references classic Chinese landscape painting. The various components of the installation are held together by stones, which the artist found on the beach. The title of the exhibition Dry Landscape nods to the concept of the Zen garden, in which water is symbolically represented by the means of white pebbles or sand. Beumer’s artistic process entails an abundant use of water, which in the end evaporates, but nevertheless leaves traces of its natural properties. The ‘dry’ landscape at hand does not symbolize, nor does it aim to reproduce a natural beauty that one can find in the real or mythical world. It ultimately is an abstract composition of objects in space, a composition that invites and perchance incites meditation.

Gallery

Tell me what love is

Mon, 12 Oct 2015 15:55:48 +0000

Opening

October 10 2015

Duration

October 10 till 24, 2015

Location

CEAC (Xiamen, China)

Artist

Wei Na

Since I live in Xiamen (a three hours’ flight from where my parents live), the contact with my parents is mainly over the phone. Each time my mother calls, the topic remains the same. “I can’t fall asleep at all as I think of you. You’d better approach more guys and get married this year.” That’s what she said upon my refusal to a possible guy who was introduced to me by a friend of hers.

“His name is Huhu. He works in the film industry. He is 36 years old, 178cm in height, a Mongolian. His parents also shoot movies. They already own several apartments and a yard in Hohhot and only have one son. He is going to Xiamen for his movie with the crew soon. “Our parents as a strong mediator, I decided to check this guy out. We met in Xiamen. I learnt that he worked as a movie photographer for an average of three months each year. “I don’t watch TV or surf the net. I don’t like talking about the current issues or read complicate books. I never seek working opportunities myself. I always wait for the movie crew to come to me. My parents give me money.” Looking at this boy in aubergine sports wear and blue jeans, I fell into silence. It seemed we couldn’t communicate at all both in deeds and in words.

More candidates were introduced to me by friends of my parents, aunt or neighbour. One day I got a phone call from my mother’s friend, the one who introduced the first candidate, “You must hurry up. It can’t be delayed, no matter how busy you are. Everything else is less important. Marriage is your priority now. It will get more and more difficult as you grow older. Hurry up…”

To make matters worse, last year my parents decorated an apartment that they bought a few years ago. Once I am married, I am supposed to live there. Does such story only happen on me? One day, I visited a VIP dating agency in Xiamen, a Ms. Lv told me that each day at least five, sometimes ten young singles, come to sign a contract with her. During this period, the agency would find someone that matches them from more than 3000 members based on their information, once a month at the minimum. And it would cost 10,000 Yuan each year if you want to find your lover there.

‘Tell me what love is’ is a personal quest on how young people pick a partner in life. I took my camera with me and walked down the streets. I started asking young couples how they met and what they think about love. To my surprise, young couples seemed more interested in posturing than talking. “Shall I look at the camera?” Asked a boy, taking off his girlfriend’s handbag quickly and hung it on the girl’s neck. Also I got lots of interesting answers, but the most general answer is “love is being together.” “Marriage is a promise.” However, is it possible that a couple don’t love each other while they are together? Do you need a promise for love? I started to get interested in what love is about in general and why love becomes such a pressure in China.

In the old days, your parents would choose your future spouse.Now young people try to find their partners for life themselves.On what grounds do they choose? How do they know if their partners are a good match?

Gallery

Exhibition and book launch

Sat, 12 Sep 2015 15:33:28 +0000

Opening

August 29, 2015

Duration

August 29 till September 26, 2015

Location

CEAC (Xiamen, China)

Artist

Theresa Kampmeier

This exhibition presents a group of works made during the three months period German artist Theresa Kampmeier spent at the artist residency of the CEAC in Xiamen. Some of them can be considered works in progress whereas others are concluded.

The point of concentration and reference for all works in the show is the artist book Poems of the Cold. This publication includes 29 usable postcards showing photographs and collages, as well as a book of prose in English and Chinese. It is on display in the art center for the duration of the exhibition. It is also distributed extensively among street vendors in Xiamen, for them to use, sell or reproduce as they wish, and will probably be seen there for longer.

Furthermore, there is a sound piece on a phone line called Solitude. There is a multi-part installation occupying most of the space, left untitled and representing an organic and sparse mirror of Kampmeier’s working period while writing the Poems of the Cold. In the entrance, there is a laser-engraved acrylic sheet, At Amoy, relaying visitors to an online short story through several QR codes. The images shown on the poster of the exhibition stem from the shooting of the photograph Cock, Ginger & Jade – Love Story on the Beach, part of a series yet to be concluded.

While in Xiamen, Theresa Kampmeier was reaching at possibilities of site specificity in fiction. This is a continuation of her ongoing work on place. Among other tropes visitors will find, the everyday – the common, the unspecial – plays a great role in her appeal to imagination and awareness. In language and in objects and habits, she finds the common and begins an immersed game, full of word plays, associations and suggestions; very simple. Relationships to ancient Chinese thought are extended here. The exhibition at the CEAC therefore holds a momentary glimpse of its own location seen from both: elsewhere and within its environment, while the art on its inside opens gates between insides and outsides alike, not being independent, claiming no authority, floating as a substance which only as an element is singular.

Gallery

Filling the Void

Wed, 12 Aug 2015 15:20:43 +0000

Opening

August 21, 2015

Duration

August 21 till August 26, 2015

Location

CEAC (Xiamen, China)

Artist

Françoise Issaly

On August 21st, 2015, Canadian artist Françoise Issaly will be presenting the result of her two months residency at CEAC in Xiamen, Fujian, in an exhibition called Remplir le Vide / Filling the Void. She came to CEAC and China with the idea of working on a paper cut out installation inspired from the patterns she creates with paint. Using acrylic mediums, Issaly (who defines herself as a painter at heart), draws abstract patterns that she turns into stencils then uses as the basis for her artwork.

For this exhibition, Issaly uses Chinese traditional paper to cut out organic patterns and uses them as the different components of her installation. The elements are placed in the space of the gallery as colors or words would be placed to create a poem, a painting or a musical composition. Each of the components overlapping another, sometime masking one another, limiting our vision of each individual part but nevertheless creating a harmonious ensemble.

During her stay here, Issaly also created paintings on Chinese paper with overlapping patterns where she explored effects of acrylic mediums on paper.

In her work ISSALY intertwines the complexity of perceptions, mathematics, the geometry of space, and hidden patterns, and mixes it with her personal exploration of materials. Her work and approach is complex even though it is presented in a light esthetic appearance. In her art practice Issaly explores painting, drawing, installation, photos, videos and writing.

Gallery

First moments of things I saw

Wed, 12 Aug 2015 15:00:43 +0000

Opening

August 1, 2015

Duration

August 1 till August 8, 2015

Location

CEAC (Xiamen, China)

Artist

Antoinette Nausikaä

Antoinette Nausikaä on her undertaking:
“My project is a visual testimony and expression of this ongoing investigation and an attempt to recapture the original spiritual core of the mountains. I was initially pulled to the mountains in 2005 when I lived and worked in the city of Tokyo for five months, developing a desire for more space and a slowdown in this busy metropolis. During my journey around mt Fuji I experienced the big contrast between the eternal and unchangeable character of the mountain and the ephemeral and fleeting city life.

In China the original plan was to stay on one mountain and observe life for two months, exactly like I did on mount Olympus in Greece in 2014. But when entering China by train and really experiencing the pace of the country it felt unnatural to stay on one mountain. I tried at Zhongnanshan near Xi’an but I wanted to move, like everybody and everything seems to be on the move here. So, the plan changed to a journey along the ancient five great sacred mountains. That made a whole new experience. The constant movement and change of scenery, from ascending the mountains and experiencing the nature to the descent back to reality of city life, it all inspired me to make this publication.”

Gallery

Please wait whilst…Monkey Magic Sings Chinese Covers of Pop 80’s classics in Times Square..

Sun, 12 Jul 2015 15:47:33 +0000

Opening

Thursday July 23 at 5 PM, 2015

Duration

July 23 till July 28, 2015

Location

CEAC (Xiamen, China)

Artist

James Johnson-Perkins

This exhibition Johnson-Perkins will show new works inspired by his time in China, alongside his most recent Panoramic Photomontage, Times Square Nude.

At once this Monkey learned to climb and run around Times Square; but its first act was to make a bow towards each of the four quarters, whilst singing ‘Beat it’ by Michael Jackson in Mandarin. As it did so, a steely light darted from this Monkey’s eyes and flashed as far as the Palace of the Polar Star in Folkestone. This shaft of light astonished the Xiamen Emperor as he sat in the Omani Cloud Palace of the Tyne Bridge, in the Treasure Hall of Holy Moscow, surrounded by his fairy Ministers. Seeing this strange light flashing, he ordered Monkey Madonna to open the gate of the Southern Heaven and ROCK OUT.

At her bidding she went out to the gate, and picked up the sacred colourful telephone…she looked so sharply and listened to the Russian voice on the end of the line, “Please wait whilst…Monkey Magic Sings Covers of Pop Classics in Times Square….” Meanwhile, on the mountain the magic rock gave birth to an egg. This egg changed into a stone Monkey. This auspicious event inspired James Johnson-Perkins to create an exhibition at CEAC.

Gallery

Rolling Snowball 6, Djupivogur, 2015

root — Sat, 11 Jul 2015 09:03:29 +0000

Opening

July 11 at 3 PM, 2015

Duration

July 11 till August 22, 2015

Location

bræðslan, víkurland 6, 765 djúpivogur

Artist

Rolling Snowball/6 is an international visual art exhibition that presents the works of 26 visual artists from Iceland, China, the Netherlands and other countries.

The exhibition was initiated by the Chinese European Art Center (CEAC) in Xiamen, Fujian province. CEAC, founded in 1999, is a non-profit art center with an artist – in – residence program open to visual artists, architects, designers, curators and writers. The art center’s exhibition calendar consists of ten to twelve shows annually, with supplementary programs including lectures and workshops, outdoor video and film festivals and concerts.

CEAC’s main task is to establish contact between Chinese and Western cultures. In Xiamen, CEAC has organised numerous exhibitions of Chinese and Western artists, and since 2010 large group exhibitions have been held in Shanghai, Quanzhou, Guangzhou and, for the first time in Europe, in Djúpivogur, Iceland in 2014.

After last years success CEAC is proud to present the second exhibition in Djúpivogur; Rolling Snowball/6, as well as the second summer artist – in – residence program.

We thank the Municipality of Djúpivogur for their good advice, support, their wonderful collaboration and for giving us the opportunity to show the exhibition in the old fish factory in Djúpivogur.

Last but not least we thank the artists for sharing their work with us, and the public in Iceland. It is with your participation that we are able to make this special project happen.

May Lee and Ineke Gudmundsson, CEAC Xiamen Annelie Musters, CEAC Platform Amsterdam

The exhibition will be opened by Mr Gunnarsson, Minister of Education
and Culture from Iceland, Mr. Zhang Weidong, Ambassdor of the People’s
Republic of China to the Republic of Iceland.

Participating artists
Árni Páll Jóhannsson, Aernout Mik, Bård Breivik, Bjørn Nørgaard,
Finnbogi Pétursson, Guido van der Werve, Hekla Dögg Jónsdóttir,
Hrafnkell Sigurðsson, Josie Jenkins, Kan Xuan, Kristján Guðmundsson,
Libin Chen, Marike Schuurman, Marjan Laaper, Ólöf Nordal,
Ragnar Kjartansson, Rúna Þorkelsdóttir, Sarah Mei Herman,
Scarlett Hooft Graafland, Sigurður Guðmundsson, Stevens Vaughn, Þór Vigfússon,
Tim Chen Chuanxi, Voebe de Gruyter, Zhang Ya, Zhifei Yang.

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