Flowing Books

Temporality
2018.11.9-2019.3.10
Group Exhibition

Byoungho Kim
Li Binyuan
Michal Martychowiec Sakarin Krue-On
Takahiro Iwasaki
Yang Jian
Zhou Wendou

OCAT Nanjing Qixia Public Art Project is a long-term public art project for the exhibition area of OCAT Nanjing, aiming at creating a top-notch public art landscape of China by integrating the socio-cultural ecosystem of Nanjing with the architectural layout of OCT Qixia Project—a cultural and tourist holiday resort real estate project to be constructed in sync with the Qixia Public Art Project. As part of the efforts to build new landmarks of urban culture, this public art project is also dedicated to bringing pure and cutting-edge contemporary art into Nanjing.

Traditionally known as the Ancient Capital for Six Dynasties, Nanjing has bestowed our project with abundant classical resources and topics. To make the best use of them and to guard against the narrow-minded and empty regional nostalgia, we will unroll our discussions in a holistic cultural context by addressing multiple dimension of the city including literature, philosophy, history, architecture and choreography while unifying senses with sensibilities. The cross-disciplinary collaborations of our project will never let our guard down against the abuses of supplanting personal experiences with knowledge system of any kind, sustaining an in-depth differentiation of the connections and contrasts between the roles of artists and the traditional literati and contemporary intellectuals.

Each edition of OCAT Nanjing Qixia Public Art Project features a particular subject and form. Every year internationally-renowned artists from China and other countries will be selected to make public art in the designated area of the OCT Project in Qixia District, where their works will blend seamlessly into the geographical, recreational and residential space of the area in an effort to transform this area into a first-rate outdoor art museum.

The first project is curated by Mr. Zhu Zhu, the well-known art critic and curator. He has proposed a three-year public art proposal called Temporality—Qixia Public Art Project, OCAT Nanjing. Temporality emphasizes the creative understandings and expressions on “Now and Here”, reexamining the historic heritage, traditional values and modernization through artistic practices.

Floating Books is the first themed exhibition for this ambitious art project. It features water, a natural vehicle for image composition, combination and disintegration. It is water that holds the key to our interpretation of time, memories, life, circumstances, ethics and wisdom. As the French poet Paul Claudel suggested, “everything the heart desires can always be reduced to a water figure”. As a key regional element and symbol of Chinese history and culture, water will be the fundamental topic for the dialogues among artists.