Highlight #20: Contemporary Aesthetics

The World Art Spot to be Worth Looking at now: Taipei, Humlebaek, and Berlin

Taiwan, Taipei <IN THE NAME OF ART-HONG KONG CONTEMPORARY ART EXHIBITION>

15 August ~ 11 October 2015_Museum of Contemporary Art Taipei

This exhibition provides a special opportunity introducing contemporary art in Hong Kong. Hong Kong art has been gaining international acclaims as it encompasses diverse culture, connecting two opposite areas of East and West, local and international, and ancient and present. Under the theme of 'betweenness' and 'everydayness,' the exhibition examines the current state of Hong Kong contemporary art and where it is heading towards.

Since the exhibition is held outside of Hong Kong, visitors can explore Hongkongnese artists and their works with objective perspective, unaffected from patriotic sentiments. Hong Kong and Taiwan also shares similarity in terms of origin and cultural environment, which makes it perfect venue for the exhibition. 13 distinctive installation works by 8 artists raise questions on multiple topics, from political and social issues to culture and art, inviting visitors to the enchanting world of contemporary art in Hong Kong. Being the center of Asian art market and bridging the East and West, Hong Kong art is calling for the art lovers and general public to come visit.

Jeffa Lam Collective <Singing Under the moon for Today and Tomorrow>
Kingsley Ng, Stephanie Cheung <Etudes for the Everyday>

2013-2015 Installation: 103 etudes, Wooden Frame 400×20cm
Stanley Wong <Impermanence(anothermountainman)>

2009 Installation 209.5×79×74cm(2 pcs)

Denmark, Humlebæk <LUCIAN FREUD>

3 September ~ 29 November 2015_Louisiana Museum of Modern Art

In part of Louisiana on paper series, the exhibition presents Lucian Freud and his drawings to the public. In this exhibition, Freud is viewed as a graphic artist, vividly drawing figures of men and women using pen and pencil. He stylizes the models using simple and bold lines to resemble fleshly creatures. Every detail are captured, even the wrinkles on the neck and scars on the arm are delicately marked. He is unafraid to show unattractive side of human being. Instead of beautifying his subjects, he is drawn to the realistic forms, which are often unappealing and even grotesque.

Among the massive amount of works Freud produced, the exhibition presents selective drawings that epitomize his distinctive style of expression. They capture the essence of his artistic aim and desire, which are to show very innate and humane side of people. Freud masterfully describes the face and body in terms of shape and structure, especially men and women in nudes. As Freud stated “I’m very much prided myself on my drawing," his drawings are absolutely integral to his paintings. For those who would like to trace Freud's artistic career and oeuvre, the exhibition offers extensive collection of preliminary sketches and drawings.

<Woman with Arm Tattoo>

1996 Etching on paper 59.6×81.6cm Louisiana Museum of Modern Art Donation: Ny Carlsbergfondet

Germany, BERLIN <CINDY SHERMAN: WORK FROM THE OLBRICHT COLLECTION>

16 September 2015 ~ 10 April 2016_ME COLLECTORS ROOM BERLIN

American artist Cindy Sherman, now 61, has created an unmistakable and seminal body of work that broke new ground in photography. New exhibition will be on the occasion of Berlin Art Week, featuring her 65 photographs. Including works from almost all periods of her career, the collection provides a remarkable overview of the entire body of work. Variously casting herself as an ingénue at the sink in black-and-white of the 1950s, a gold-blonde ‘Maria Lactans’ with a vacant expression and plastic breast, or an aging upper-class beauty wearing far too much jewelry and much too much makeup, she is a master of masquerade.

Throughout her career she has simultaneously acted as her own actress and photographer, subject and object. And yet her portraits do not represent actual personalities. Instead they paraphrase social and cultural stereotypes with the aim of deconstructing them through the prism of cinema, classical painting, or advertising. In all her series, Sherman presents us with a subtle analysis of contemporary cultural tropes, draws attention to the power of symbolism and the struggle of the individual against collective stereotype. ■ with ARTINPOST