ARTIST 艺术家
EXHIBITION 展览
SUPPORT 支持
Chase
Wang Min
In the symbolic spectrum of Western literature, the exhibition unfolds in forms of hunting forests, wild moors and jungles: the medieval hunting woods are perpetually veiled in mist; on Thomas Hardy’s Egdon Heath, as Tess’s flocks battle against tempests, humans contend with nature under primeval laws of survival. Deep within Joseph Conrad’s African jungle, as Marlow’s steamship sails upstream against the current, the heart of darkness throbs amid miasma.The cyclic game between hunter and prey in the hunting ground mirrors humanity’s eternal existential predicament.
Li Zhan’s obsession with wood as an organic medium originates from his perception of force. He defines sculpture as “a confrontation of force with the object”— a confrontation that encompasses not merely the physical act of carving, but also a profound dialogue with the essence of the material itself.The fibrous texture of wood constitutes an innate rule of creation: to defy its natural grain risks ruining the form; to respect it achieves the harmony of man and nature. This reverence and dialogue with material echoes Henry Moore’s deconstruction of natural forms, and resonates with the minimalist aesthetics of classical Chinese wood carving marked by “a few incisions telling all”. The inherent limitations of wood function like rigorous rules of a game, and the stricter the rules, the more compelling the game. In sculptural art, "force" does not merely refer to visual weightiness, but to the mechanical dynamics — the relational motion — inherent in the creative process. When the acting subject and the receptive object form a confrontational structure marked by a tangible resistance, a unique **textural friction** emerges.This aesthetic quality stems from the continuous mechanical interplay between tool and material. In overcoming the material’s resistance, the movement of the hand bursts with explosive power while maintaining precise rhythmic control. The dynamic balance forged by such contradictory motion within the flow of time endows the forms with complex layers: fullness, shrinkage, expansion and withered austerity.Notably, these formal features are never mere outcomes of physical manipulation, but the crystallization of bodily action and aesthetic consciousness. Within confrontational movement, creation abides by mechanical laws, while deliberate aesthetic judgment freezes this dynamic interplay momentarily into a poetics of vision.
Li Zhan breaks the homogenized order of traditional sculpture. By employing hollowed-out, sheet-like and linear elements, he constructs an open space **where air wanders freely**, rendering his works *entities that stir and reshape space. Drawing on the vertical centripetal gravity of medieval Gothic wood carving and integrating the blank-leaving aesthetics of Eastern gardens, he transforms sculpture into a dynamic trajectory of pursuit.
His spatial philosophy points directly to the integration of architecture and bodily perception: *A sculptor ought to be a sensitive observer of space*. Scale and space exist in perpetual flux; all is relative. A form must be either sufficiently monumental or intimately minute, with right and wrong holding validity only within specific relational contexts.Such dialectics permeates Li Zhan’s spatial practice. Four rabbits of varying scales engage in a silent dialogue through volumetric contrast. His precise command of being "sufficiently monumental or intimately minute" allows his works to retain the restrained subtlety of traditional wood carving while embracing the confrontational expression of modern sculpture.As Gothic vertical tension enters a dialogue with Eastern blank-leaving aesthetics in spatial narration, the principles of disparate cultural systems collide, embodying a reconstruction of space. Sculpture ought to accentuate and endow meaning to space, rather than remaining a mere object.This ethos underpins all his creative endeavors. In visual language, he juxtaposes the minimalist lines of Chu-style wood carving with Henry Moore’s organic forms, forging a unique individual visual grammar. His dual absorption of historical heritage and natural vitality converges into the gene pool of his creation. He emphasizes that sculptural thinking must break free from the two-dimensional plane and master the “grammar of form” through long-term cultivation. This notion resonates cross-culturally with the Bauhaus philosophy of material practice, both upholding the balance between intuition and technique.Rejecting preliminary sketches in favor of impromptu creation, Li Zhan forges a new sculptural ethic from the interplay of premeditation and wood’s spontaneous feedback. His creative process, where each cut breeds the next, makes the artwork a joint inscription by the artist and the material.Rooted in the tensions between confrontation and symbiosis, premeditation and improvisation, history and nature, his practice essentially constructs a dynamic equilibrium. When the artist intervenes actively in the material (an active state), the physical feedback of wood (a passive state) inevitably recedes; conversely, as the material’s uncontrollability intensifies (the proportion of passive factors rises), the initiative of creation is constrained.
This dynamic balance in the creative process lies at the core of sculptural thinking — the ebb and flow of active and passive states mirrors the dialectic between conscious control and intuitive perception of the mind. Together, they imbue sculpture with a profound sense of weight: laying bare the intrinsic essence of creation while implying the philosophical proposition of humanity’s eternal dialogue with nature.In this exhibition, Li Zhan’s creative narrative stands as the ultimate metaphor of the hunting ground: creation itself is an endless hunt. The wildness of material tames to be shaped; the chaos of space orders to be structured. It is a process of seeking dynamic balance between the inner and outer worlds, with the specter of history whispering perpetually within every carved trace.It is akin to an eternal hunting game with material: the grain of wood fiber sets both constraints and inspiration. The archetypal law of the hunting ground manifests in contemporary form, crystallizing into a new grammar of sculpture.
猎场
文/王敏
Wang Min
In the symbolic spectrum of Western literature, the exhibition unfolds in forms of hunting forests, wild moors and jungles: the medieval hunting woods are perpetually veiled in mist; on Thomas Hardy’s Egdon Heath, as Tess’s flocks battle against tempests, humans contend with nature under primeval laws of survival. Deep within Joseph Conrad’s African jungle, as Marlow’s steamship sails upstream against the current, the heart of darkness throbs amid miasma.The cyclic game between hunter and prey in the hunting ground mirrors humanity’s eternal existential predicament.
Li Zhan’s obsession with wood as an organic medium originates from his perception of force. He defines sculpture as “a confrontation of force with the object”— a confrontation that encompasses not merely the physical act of carving, but also a profound dialogue with the essence of the material itself.The fibrous texture of wood constitutes an innate rule of creation: to defy its natural grain risks ruining the form; to respect it achieves the harmony of man and nature. This reverence and dialogue with material echoes Henry Moore’s deconstruction of natural forms, and resonates with the minimalist aesthetics of classical Chinese wood carving marked by “a few incisions telling all”. The inherent limitations of wood function like rigorous rules of a game, and the stricter the rules, the more compelling the game. In sculptural art, "force" does not merely refer to visual weightiness, but to the mechanical dynamics — the relational motion — inherent in the creative process. When the acting subject and the receptive object form a confrontational structure marked by a tangible resistance, a unique **textural friction** emerges.This aesthetic quality stems from the continuous mechanical interplay between tool and material. In overcoming the material’s resistance, the movement of the hand bursts with explosive power while maintaining precise rhythmic control. The dynamic balance forged by such contradictory motion within the flow of time endows the forms with complex layers: fullness, shrinkage, expansion and withered austerity.Notably, these formal features are never mere outcomes of physical manipulation, but the crystallization of bodily action and aesthetic consciousness. Within confrontational movement, creation abides by mechanical laws, while deliberate aesthetic judgment freezes this dynamic interplay momentarily into a poetics of vision.
Li Zhan breaks the homogenized order of traditional sculpture. By employing hollowed-out, sheet-like and linear elements, he constructs an open space **where air wanders freely**, rendering his works *entities that stir and reshape space. Drawing on the vertical centripetal gravity of medieval Gothic wood carving and integrating the blank-leaving aesthetics of Eastern gardens, he transforms sculpture into a dynamic trajectory of pursuit.
His spatial philosophy points directly to the integration of architecture and bodily perception: *A sculptor ought to be a sensitive observer of space*. Scale and space exist in perpetual flux; all is relative. A form must be either sufficiently monumental or intimately minute, with right and wrong holding validity only within specific relational contexts.Such dialectics permeates Li Zhan’s spatial practice. Four rabbits of varying scales engage in a silent dialogue through volumetric contrast. His precise command of being "sufficiently monumental or intimately minute" allows his works to retain the restrained subtlety of traditional wood carving while embracing the confrontational expression of modern sculpture.As Gothic vertical tension enters a dialogue with Eastern blank-leaving aesthetics in spatial narration, the principles of disparate cultural systems collide, embodying a reconstruction of space. Sculpture ought to accentuate and endow meaning to space, rather than remaining a mere object.This ethos underpins all his creative endeavors. In visual language, he juxtaposes the minimalist lines of Chu-style wood carving with Henry Moore’s organic forms, forging a unique individual visual grammar. His dual absorption of historical heritage and natural vitality converges into the gene pool of his creation. He emphasizes that sculptural thinking must break free from the two-dimensional plane and master the “grammar of form” through long-term cultivation. This notion resonates cross-culturally with the Bauhaus philosophy of material practice, both upholding the balance between intuition and technique.Rejecting preliminary sketches in favor of impromptu creation, Li Zhan forges a new sculptural ethic from the interplay of premeditation and wood’s spontaneous feedback. His creative process, where each cut breeds the next, makes the artwork a joint inscription by the artist and the material.Rooted in the tensions between confrontation and symbiosis, premeditation and improvisation, history and nature, his practice essentially constructs a dynamic equilibrium. When the artist intervenes actively in the material (an active state), the physical feedback of wood (a passive state) inevitably recedes; conversely, as the material’s uncontrollability intensifies (the proportion of passive factors rises), the initiative of creation is constrained.
This dynamic balance in the creative process lies at the core of sculptural thinking — the ebb and flow of active and passive states mirrors the dialectic between conscious control and intuitive perception of the mind. Together, they imbue sculpture with a profound sense of weight: laying bare the intrinsic essence of creation while implying the philosophical proposition of humanity’s eternal dialogue with nature.In this exhibition, Li Zhan’s creative narrative stands as the ultimate metaphor of the hunting ground: creation itself is an endless hunt. The wildness of material tames to be shaped; the chaos of space orders to be structured. It is a process of seeking dynamic balance between the inner and outer worlds, with the specter of history whispering perpetually within every carved trace.It is akin to an eternal hunting game with material: the grain of wood fiber sets both constraints and inspiration. The archetypal law of the hunting ground manifests in contemporary form, crystallizing into a new grammar of sculpture.
猎场
文/王敏
欧美⽂学的意象谱系中，“猎场”以狩猎林、荒原、丛林等样态铺陈开来：中世纪的狩猎林永远笼罩着迷雾；托⻢斯·哈代笔下的爱敦荒原，苔丝的⽺群与暴⻛⾬搏⽃时，⼈们在原始⽣存法则下与⾃然⻆⼒；约瑟夫·康拉德的⾮洲丛林深处，⻢洛的汽船逆流⽽上时，⿊暗的⼼脏在瘴⽓中搏动。猎场中狩猎者与猎物的循环博弈——恰似⼈类永恒的⽣存困境。
李展对“⽊”这⼀有机媒介的痴迷，始于对“⼒”的感知。他将雕塑定义为“与对象进⾏⼒的对抗”，这种对抗既包含物理层⾯的雕刻⾏为，更指向其与材料本质的深层对话。⽊材的纤维特性成为了天然的创作规则——“违背其特性，造型可能失败；尊重其特性，则能成就天⼈合⼀”。这种对材料的敬畏与对话，呼应了亨利·摩尔对⾃然形态的解构，也暗合了中国古典⽊雕“寥寥⼏⼑”的极简美学。⽊材的短板即是限制，如同严苛的游戏规则，⽽规则越严苛的游戏越刺激。在雕塑艺术中，“⼒”并⾮单纯指向视觉化的“分量感”，⽽是指向雕塑创作过程中的⼒学机制——运动关系。当施⼒主体与受⼒客体形成“如有物拒之”的对抗性结构时，便产⽣了独特的“涩感”。这种美学特质源于⼑具与材料间持续的⼒学互动——在突破材料阻⼒的过程中，⼿部运动轨迹既包含爆发⼒的迸发，⼜保持着对节奏的精准控制，这种⽭盾性运动在绵延的时空中形成的动态平衡，使造型呈现出饱满、萎缩、膨胀、⼲瘪等复杂形态。值得玩味的是，这些造型特征并⾮单纯物理作⽤的结果，⽽是身体⾏为与审美意识的双重结晶——在对抗性运动中既遵循⼒学规律，⼜通过⾃觉的审美判断将这种动态关系短暂地凝固为⼀种视觉诗学。
李展在雕塑创作中打破传统雕塑的均质化秩序，以镂空、⽚状、线状等元素构建“空⽓可以⾃由游⾛”的开放空间，使作品成为“搅动空间的存在”。他借鉴中世纪哥特式⽊雕的垂直向⼼引⼒，融合东⽅园林的留⽩美学，将雕塑转化为“动态的追逐轨迹”。其空间观念直指建筑与⼈体感知的融合：“雕塑家应当成为空间的敏感者。”尺度和空间都在⼀种变动的关系中，⼀切都只是相对的，它必须⾜够⼤或⾜够⼩，对错在特定关系中成⽴并存。李展的空间实践中时刻体现着如此的辩证观念，四只尺⼨各异的兔⼦，通过体量对比形成尺度对话。这种对“⾜够⼤或⾜够⼩”的精准把控，使作品既保持传统⽊雕的克制美学，⼜获得现代雕塑的冲突性表达。当哥特式垂直张力与东方留白美学在空间叙事中达成对话，不同⽂化体系的法则在此碰撞，体现出对空间的重构，雕塑应该凸显空间，使其有意义，且雕塑不应只是“物件”。这⼀理念贯穿于他的创作实践：在视觉语⾔构建上，他将楚式⽊雕的简约线条与亨利·摩尔式的有机形态并置，形成了个体独特的视觉语法。对历史与⾃然的双向汲取，集结成为李展创作的“基因库”。他强调雕塑思维需“跳出⼆维平⾯”，通过⻓期训练“形体的语法”，这⼀理念与包豪斯“材料实践”形成跨⽂化呼应，均强调直觉与技术的平衡。
李展摒弃草稿的即兴创作法，将预判与⽊材反馈的博弈熔铸为新的雕塑伦理。其“笔笔相⽣”的创作过程，使作品成为艺术家与材料共同书写的结果。这种在对抗与共⽣、预判与即兴、历史与⾃然的张⼒中形成的创作实践，本质上构建了⼀种动态平衡：当艺术家主动介⼊材料时（主动情状），⽊材的物理反馈（被动情状）必然相应减弱；反之，当材料的不可控性增强时（被动因素⽐例上升），创作的主动性就会受到抑制。
这种创作过程中的动态平衡，本质上构成了雕塑思维的核⼼命题——主动与被动情状的此消彼⻓，恰似心灵中主动控制力与被动感知力的辩证关系，在动态平衡中共同赋予雕塑“厚重感”——既直指本⼼的创作本质，⼜暗含⼈类与⾃然永恒对话的哲学命题。
本次展览中，李展的创作叙事即猎场的终极隐喻：创作本身便是永⽆⽌境的狩猎，材料的野性需驯服，空间的混沌需梳理，这是内外世界在动态中寻求平衡的过程，⽽历史的幽灵始终在刻痕中低语。恰似⼀场与材料的狩猎游戏——材料纤维的⾛向既是限制，亦是灵感；猎场法则在当代的显形，凝结为新的雕塑语法。
文/王敏