Liu Jianhua

The series of works included in this exhibition underscore the artist’s increasingly philosophical approach toward form and abstraction that has characterized his practice over the last decade. Full distillations of form resulted in the Blank Paper series, thin sheets of white porcelain hung on the wall. Uncannily realistic in their mimicry of pristine sheets of paper, the works demand more than a perfunctory glance to see they are made of porcelain. However, in the process of discovering the sculptures’ true medium, assessments and assumptions are reevaluated and the viewer is able to reconsider the form of objects free from preconceptions of their function. Though the works allow for revelations, they offer the viewer no grand narratives, rather inviting people to make their own impressions.

Other highlights of the exhibition include Trace, a series of wall-bound black porcelain ink drops, which are inspired by wo lou hen, a calligraphy stroke that can be translated to “traces from a leaking roof.” The sculptures play off of both wo lou hen’s figurative inspiration and calligraphic origins by returning the brushstrokes back to their architectural context, while transforming the walls of the gallery into immense sheets of paper at the artist’s disposal. This transformation is made complete by the lustrous black porcelain Liu expertly employs—in his hands the material appears viscous and weighty, threatening to drip down the walls. Trace ultimately led to the final series on view, Square, an installation comprised of gold-glazed porcelain pools resting on top of steel sheets, which was most recently shown in Viva Arte Viva at the 57th Venice Biennale (2017). Liu further flexes his unsurpassed dexterity with porcelain by seemingly turning fragile material into delicate liquid pools of precious metal. Though the works are undeniably sumptuous, they present a clean cogent aesthetic with a strong eye for form and material that has defined Liu Jianhua’s recent work.