Reconstructed Realities

Born in 1942 in Changsha, Gu Gan is considered the forefather of the modern calligraphy movement, and he was the founder of the Modernist School of Chinese Calligraphy. Influenced by Modern European artists, especially Kandinsky, Klee and Miró, Gu Gan came to believe that there were a number of ways in which Chinese calligraphy could be revitalized, and by the late 1970s he began to adopt a more radical approach to calligraphy.  

 

Gu started experimenting with changes in the outer shape of individual characters by elongating or widening them into new forms. He would blend multiple characters, reconstructing them into a new form, or took the characters apart, spreading their constituent elements across his compositions. In addition, he would write each of these elements in a different script. The result has been an ongoing series of multi-layered works where the title reveals the theme, and that thematic word or phrase becomes an integral part of the composition. Our exhibition will include several works from the 1990s, and a stunning, rare piece executed in deep red and orange hues from 2003 called Red Autumn.

 

Trained in traditional Chinese ink painting, Lee Chun-Yi nevertheless eschews the brush, and instead reconstructs traditional imagery through the use of hand-carved seals. Lee’s passion for Chinese seals and ink rubbing led to this revolutionary technique, in which he carves sticks of soft woods, or sometimes cork, to become small seals. By controlling the pressure applied on paper and the amount of ink or pigment on the stamp, images can be composed one tile at a time, with nuances within the work expressed through repetitive stamping at various levels of strength. Featured in this exhibition are mist-laden mountain-scapes from Lee’s Heart Sutra Landscape series, along with two pieces from his new Blossoms series, showcasing his recent foray into color through the use of Japanese mineral pigments. 

 

Lee’s artworks, whether colorful flowers or landscapes reminiscent of the Northern Song style, disintegrate into tiny tiles at close look. According to the artist, this grid configuration can be interpreted as a metaphor for the current disunity of his homeland China. In artistic terms, the shift between a macroscopically realist image to a microscopically abstract image, that is, as one draws closer to Lee’s canvases, allows the audience to visualize the interdependency between singularity and variations. 

 

Wucius Wong’s work also employs grid-like structures, but in a completely different manner. Renowned for his analytical prowess, Wong adeptly transforms his serene natural landscapes into striking geometric compositions. His artistic process involves a detailed deconstruction of conventional landscape motifs, unveiling the intricate geometric frameworks that lie hidden beneath their surface. 

Upon viewing his work, it quickly becomes apparent that Wong's landscapes are not mere representations of nature; they are compositions where the natural world is reimagined through a lens of geometric abstraction. A good example of this is Distant Thoughts 23, where mountains and rivers are transformed into a series of shapes and lines, aligning with a rigorous, almost mathematical, aesthetic. Wong’s topological sublimation of nature reveals an inner structure to his compositions; this approach is a departure from traditional Chinese landscape painting, where nature is often depicted as a harmonious, organic representation. In his work Purification 15, a river flows along the crevices of stark, geometric forms, highlighting a tension between the fluid and the structured, the organic and the constructed. Wong's water-themed paintings often explore these dualities, balancing them in a way that is both visually striking and emotionally resonant. 

 

Reconstructed Realities will run from March 6th to April 26th, 2025. Please join us for the opening reception March 6th, from 6 to 8 pm. Additionally, there will be a special reception for Asia Week New York on March 13 from 4 to 8pm.