18.01 - 17.02. 2023
Contemporary by Angela Li
248 Hollywood Road, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong
Contemporary by Angela Li is honoured to present the first solo exhibition of Kwong Man Chun – Moonlit Dancing.Kwong specialises in portraying an anachronistic modern memory with unbounded imagination, by using a mix of Chinese traditional mineral pigment, ink and oil paint. Deeply influenced by Chinese South School painting, he creates a poetic and dreamy artwork with a touch of nostalgic stroke. The exhibition opening will be held on Wednesday 18 January, 2023 from 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm, and will remain on view until 18 February, 2023. The artist will be present during the opening.
“Dancing to my moonlit shadow,
I feel no longer the mortal tie”
「起舞弄清影，何似在人間」
---- Prelude to Water Melody
水調歌頭
Su Shi (蘇軾), 1076
Love is in the air, it makes the mortal world more attractive than the eternity of heaven. Kwong is inspired greatly by his daily life, especially the warmth from his family. The wooden dividers inside Tong Lau 唐樓(tenement buildings) are the memories of his childhood. The interlace of nostalgia memories and contemporary atmosphere, crochet a time traveling journey between ancient China and modern Hong Kong. The exhibited artworks include the tree in his homeland, Huang Cen Ling (黄岑嶺) , a village by the lake in Hunan province; the herbal tea that his sister brew for him; an aerolite that floats in Tong Lau; the mirage of Eileen Chang (張愛玲),a legendary female Chinese author, etc. His paintings will lead you to search between the reality and an surrealist world.
Plum blossom, pavilion, stone, and lake are the essential elements in Kwong’s painting, the forms of them represent his inner state during his creations. By observing motion through stillness, his works show the interaction between human and nature. He uses the eternity of stone, in contrast to the constant changing of water flow. Walking through the mystery mist created by Kwong Man Chun, you will be immersed into the emotional boundless cosmos.
Huang Cen Ling and Tenement House- Bruce Lee
Huang Cen Ling and Tenement House- Eileen Chang
City God Pavilion
The Fish Supper
Full Moon on Ngong Ping
Snowy Bamboo and Along the River of Kyoto
Peach blossom in the Enlightening Mist
Story of Nostalgia
Sourness, Sweetness and a bit of Bitterness
The Literati’s Aerolith
Ikebana
Walk Back To Your Heart
On Chrysanthemum Herbal Tea
On Gardenia Herbal Tea
On Chrysanthemum Herbal Tea II
On Roselle Tea
No Play No Gain
Swallows carry your wish
Kwong Man Chun (b.1989, China) graduated from the Academy of Visual Arts, Hong Kong Baptist University in 2013. Distilling his studies of Chinese aesthetics, Kwong Man Chun found his own artistic language that fuses various elements of perspective, ambience, mirroring and weather as his devices to examine metaphysical issues in his works. Kwong had also been to Hokkaido and Beijing to participate in artist in residency programmes. He is also active in participating in different art projects, including Art is on Cow Project (FilmAid Asia, Hong Kong, 2017), Art Bridge Project (Hotel Stage, Hong Kong, 2015). His works have also been featured in exhibitions held by various art institutions, including Dear Me, (Contemporary by Angela Li, Hong Kong, 2022), 藝象萬千 - 渝港青年藝術交流展 (Chongqing Art Gallery, Chongqing, 2020), F.F. (Tenjinyama Art Studio, Sapporo, 2018), The Aerial Actor (Wave Farm, New York, 2018), 6 Hong Kong Artists (Niagara Gallery, Melbourne, 2018), Journey (Sagra Gallery, Melbourne, 2017) etc. In 2009, Kwong was also nominated in the second-round selection of Hong Kong Contemporary Art Biennial Award.
