BRATTLEBORO — Two remarkable new exhibits of Chinese contemporary art and photography will be on display at the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center (BMAC) beginning Saturday, March 16.
Featuring the work of renowned photographer Liu Bolin and 20 other contemporary Chinese artists, the new exhibits invite visitors to take a deep exploration of contemporary Chinese artistic expression.
Museum visitors will also have the opportunity to contribute their own creations to a related interactive exhibit in the museum's family-friendly Ticket Gallery.
Four of the museum's six galleries will be dedicated to “Hot Pot: A Taste of Contemporary Chinese Art.” This exhibit features the work of 20 contemporary Chinese artists, ranging from painting and photography to sculpture and metalwork. Collectively, their work addresses three central themes: image and identity, environment and politics, and reinterpreting artistic traditions.
An integral part of Chinese culture for more than 1,000 years, hot pot is a communal dish of broth, meat, vegetables, and other ingredients, each of which retains its distinctive flavor and texture.
“Here at BMAC, the hot pot meal serves as a metaphor for the art of China today in all its complexity and variety, for Chinese artists' experiences and perceptions of the world, and for their individual and collective memories,” says BMAC Chief Curator Mara Williams. “Just as people gather around a hot pot to eat and socialize, our 'Hot Pot' encourages viewers to experience and savor, as a community, the contemporary art of China.”
Alongside “Hot Pot” is a major exhibit of the work of performance artist and photographer Liu Bolin. “The Invisible Man” features 14 large photographs from Liu's “Hiding in the City” and “Hiding in New York” series. In addition to their political and metaphorical commentary on Chinese government and culture, Liu's stunning photographs address and challenge notions of identity - for the viewer, artist, and subject.
“Camouflaged in a particular setting then photographed by his assistants, Liu employs concealment as a method for addressing activeness/passivity, identity, and appearance,” says BMAC Curatorial Intern Elissa Watters. “The concealed individual in Liu's photographs often looks directly at the viewer from the center of the scene. Fixed in position, the individual is a distinct part of the space he inhabits, and the works raise the question of what it means that the hidden figure's gaze is the artist's own.”
In keeping with BMAC's efforts to make contemporary art accessible to a diverse audience and people of all ages, the museum's interactive Ticket Gallery offers visitors a hands-on activity inspired by Liu Bolin's use of camouflage in his artwork. Examining the role of camouflage in nature, from the perspective of both predator and prey, participants will create creatures in an attempt to hide them within different habitats represented on the gallery's painted walls.
In connection with the new exhibits and supported by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, BMAC has organized 15 educational and engaging events, ranging from hands-on activities for kids to kung-fu demonstrations, films, and lectures by experts on Chinese culture and environmental policies.