Listen to the Quiet Night Snow - Wang Wu
Listen to the Quiet Night Snow - Wang Wu
By Wang Wu
The title of this exhibition "Listen to the Quiet Night Snow" comes from a wood engraving I completed this year. The picture depicts a person having tea alone in a thatched cottage on a cold, snowy night. When my heart is quiet, I can hear very subtle sounds, yet, when I create, I often can't hear anything.
Creation and publication, for me, is the organization of learning. It shows my focus on art history, and the process I moving between different systems and digging for nourishment. I feel the importance of being an art apprentice frequently.
Because of the study of folk art, I have gone into the fields many times. I received and admired the bold and simple beauty of peasant artists' handwriting. This led me to start adding strokes on my works a few years ago. Recently, the application of paper cutting has been added. Because of my deep cultural identity with traditional calligraphy and painting, I have always regarded knife technique as an extension of brush and ink. Copying characters as the basic daily lesson. The rich background of calligraphy and painting transformed into my creation, and there is a continuous combination of shī táng, inscription and engraving.
The socialist context of engraving in the West is inseparable from realism in the nineteenth century. This historical feeling makes me always believe in the meaning of sketching and realism. It is also the reason why I insist on doing portraits and still lifes. Of course, the impact is more than above. Just want to share the enrichment of being an apprentice.