By Kaimei Wang
Every year when the sun travels to the 60 degrees celestial longitude, between 20th and 22nd of May, the summer crops in northern China are becoming plumper; in southern China, farmers start to transplant rice seedings into the rain-filled paddy fields. Nature with its many splendid small things are growing prosperously. According to the ancient 24 Solar Terms, we are entering “xiao man” : the beginning of the fullness of grain.
We open this exhibition concurrent with the beginning of “xiao man” , to reflect on the primary connection between art-making and nature’s omnipresence. The ancient 24 solar terms summaries the changing law of natural phenomena through close observation of nature. In the Chinese ancient belief, humans are only one of the inhabitants of the planet along with animals, plants and other species coexisting under the same sky and following the same rules. Art making began with images of the natural world. Today, more than ever, we need art to enlighten us the multiple relationships, between man and nature, nature and technology and between expression and reality.
The artworks shown in the exhibition are mainly based on the collection of Andrew and Ling Ling. Associated initially by their relative small scale, works in the exhibition were selected to present the process of art-making, the engagement of artists’ hand and mind, the objective thingness and the subjective consciousness embodied in them.
In the Solar Terms, “xiao man” marks the beginning of the busiest season in the fields for the farmers. In the post pandemic world many artists are now emerging from a long period of isolated production. The present exhibition seeks to present some of the bounty of this labor.
策展人：王凯梅
每年5月20-22日之间，太阳到达黄经60度，在中国内地的北方地区，夏熟作物籽粒开始饱满，期待雨水浇灌；而在南方地区，田地沟壑开始蓄水，为水稻插秧做准备。大自然在生长发育，万物趋向完满，此时的节气故名为：小满。
这个小满当日开启的艺术展览，以节气之名，回响艺术产生的时间和空间，艺术创作的思想和劳作，以及艺术成为展示和收藏的成果。参加本次展览的作品，以Andrew&Lingling的收藏为基础，除了它们具有一个体量较小的共性之外，另一个将它们牵连在一起的线索是这些作品以不同方式连接大自然生长变化的共性。在事业成就的中年艺术家中，我们选了代表他们构思大作品之前的草图或小稿，从艺术家的个人思考和实验，打开图像在艺术家头脑中生成和发展的序曲。这里，曾樊志的草稿，张恩利的纸本，丁乙的小稿，杨振中的摄影实验等艺术家的作品都体现了这方面的质量。在青年艺术家群体中，小作品不仅是一种方法，也是他们更加成熟的创作风格的形成过程。这里，张如怡的雕塑，刘任的蛋壳画，韩家泉画的海边风景，钟乐星画的身体拿捏等等艺术家的作品，都看得到艺术家个人发展的微妙进程。
就如节气反映的是中国古人对天地时空的细腻感受，与自然合拍的天人相印，这层艺术与天地自然相濡以沫的模拟关系从艺术起源之时就是你中有我，我中有你的。今天，在思考人世纪的地球当前的处境与未来的愿景之时，艺术帮助我们以平等共生的态度，重新开拓人与人，人与自然、非自然、人与技术、身体、表达和交流的多重路径。
“小满乍来，蚕妇煮茧，治车缫丝，昼夜操作。” 小满节气开启了农业社会繁忙劳作的一年，也预示着艺术耕耘者们不息的开拓使命。经历过疫情时代的隔离和孤立的艺术家们，这里展示的也是他们持续不断，劳作经营的一部分成果。