The Chambers Fine Art
gallery in Chelsea is currently presenting Transformation, an exhibition
featuring recent works by Wu Jian’an. While he often works with paper cut-outs,
Wu also experiments with other materials such as metal and ox hide.
The most prominent piece in
the show is the painting Nirvana of the White Ape where the artist
derives inspiration from the 16th Century Ming Dynasty novel Journey to the
West. Wu creates an environment by using watercolors and colored wax to
convey his interpretation of the legendary story about adventures of a Tang
Dynasty priest called Sanzang and his three disciples, Monkey, Pig, and Friar
Sand, as they travel west in search of Buddhist Sutra, and conquering evil spirits
along the way.
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| "Nirvana of the White Apes" (2014) by Wi Jian'an |
These paintings are
accompanied by a group of recent paper-cut works that illustrate his
fascination with patterns of connectivity and using various element to reveal
mysterious truths. Wu’s Faces series depict the animals in the names of
each work. For instance, in Faces Oriole, he uses multiple layers of
hand dyed wax paper and cotton thread to portray various creatures such as
snakes, fish, birds, and enlarged faces clustered together in the shape of a
bird’s head. These characters are laid out in symmetrical form with both halves
of the shape delineating the same design on each side.
Two other works in the show
88 Color Balls and 792 Overlapping Color Balls, are both
watercolor paintings of multi-colored circles grouped together so closely that
they overlap causing the colors to blend smoothly and forming eloquent
patterns. There are also unique patterns found within each circle as well. For
instance, in 88 Color Balls some of the things that can be seen in each
circle include spirals, triangles, zigzags, small dots varying in size
resembling micro-organisms, and one circle even contains a Jewish star. Wu Jia’an’s
fascination with mythological and enigma are undoubtedly conveyed with this
latest body of work.
At Chambers Fine Art, 522
W. 19th St., through Dec. 20. The gallery is open Tues.—Sat. from 10 a.m.—6
p.m.
