From Hen to Egg

As a colloquial metaphor, “From Hen to Egg” alludes to the inherent nature of art: it is destined to be created. Just as “a hen can lay eggs without a rooster,” art continues to sprout new shoots in surprising forms within the context of any era. The various sections of the exhibition resemble the artist’s “eggs,” concealing a cycle of creation and transformation, from which new vitality and energy will burst forth.

Through a cross-contextual reorganization of distinctive visual symbols, the “Shan Shui — Beverage” series expands XU ZHEN®’s attempt to transform civilizational experience with contemporary concepts. In paintings from this series, an ancient Greek pillar, as a symbol of human civilization, are planted onto Chinese scholars’ rock. While isomorphically displacing themselves with straws, such pillars defamiliarize and tease whatever it is they insert into, rendering it both out of place and abreast of the times. The artist renders the everyday action of “sucking” as a metaphor for the interactive relations within humans’ cognition of civilization in the post-globalization era: for instance, a search for a future out of history, the conjuring of illusion by Eastern and Western civilizations of each other, and, not least, a symbolization of the uncertainty and dynamism of contemporary realities.

The “Enlightenment” series consists of Zen paintings based on Zen Buddhism. Zen paintings are known for their playful yet profound nature. The artist selects Buddhism-related cartoons from global news media and depicts them in the style of Zen painting. The fusion of cartoon content with a globalization perspective and the centuries-old tradition of Zen painting creates a fascinating interplay.