Abstracted Constructions of Home
The idea of home is not always based in a concrete, physical space. “Home” is often a constructed concept that takes the elements of daily life and becomes something entirely new. In abstraction we see the greatest diversity in artistic expressions: artists break away from traditional methods of representation and use media such as styrofoam, charred wood, concrete, and wool to piece together their “home” and their experiences with its transformations.
Series (2020)
Buwei
Pratt Institute, China Academy of Art
Wuhan, China
“I use different ways to paint everything I want; my art comes from all the content, shapes and lines in my experience that interest me.”
Artificial Protection (2020)
Kai Hong Cheung
University of the Arts London, Chelsea College
Hong Kong, China
*Click on the thumbnail below or here to watch the video.
Cheung has always been interested in nature, biology, and religion. When he was young, he liked to collect materials from the park and make small decorations. At a young age, he developed an interest in questions surrounding life and death when his grandmother passed away. Cheung also enjoys depicting Buddhism. He has always wanted to turn traditional Buddhist art into contemporary drawings, through which he hopes people can re-focus on and understand Buddhism from a new perspective. In addition, he cares deeply about current affairs. According to Cheung, “in recent years, I’ve noticed that society has become increasingly chaotic, but people around me are ignoring the problems and only caring about themselves.” He hopes to express societal issues and events through his art.
Artificial Protection 人为保护
2020
Video, mixed media
This video art shows that under the severe circumstances of the pandemic, home has taken on great significance. It protects your health like an umbrella.
An Unbalanced Relationship that is Abandoned 被遗弃的失衡 (2020)
Siyi Li 李思艺
Academy of Arts & Design, Tsinghua University
Sichuan, China
As a work that focuses on the theme of “home,” the inspiration comes from the unbalance experienced by traditional rural family systems under the clash of contemporary civilization. In old family traditions, many generations of the same family live together, like the entrenched roots in this work. However, this way of living is shattered by the one child policy and contemporary societal developments. Young people move to different places to seek better lives. Now, rural areas are like empty shells surrounded by cities; the only remnant is abandoned buildings, lifeless like charred roots. As such, the concrete in this work is used to represent urbanization and contemporary civilization. This work also attempts to express the struggles experienced by those who cannot adapt and integrate into contemporary society and seeks to question their future directions.
Green Cocoon 绿茧 (2020)
Wenjuan Wan 万文娟
Academy of Arts & Design, Tsinghua University
Henan, China
“How the filaments of cocoons intertwine, encircle, tear, and shatter is similar to the concept of ‘home.’ I made many different shapes of cocoons at different stages of life to represent the contradictory and complex relationship between home and life. Is ‘home’ protective or constraining? Is maturity surprising or conflicting? Touchable spheres of ‘cocoons’ made from felt, the moist and hollow inside, the strong steel wire that supports, and the vitality of the rich green… these are my thoughts on ‘home and life.’”
