Exhibition Information
Diana Al-Hadid, Wang Gongxin and Lin Tianmiao: Transcendences
October 22-December 10, 2014
The Dowd Gallery is pleased to present Transcendences, an exhibition of panels, drawings and sculpture by Diana Al-Hadid and chromogenic prints by Wang Gongxin and Lin Tianmiao. Rather than alluding to any formal philosophy associated with the term “transcendence,” the show title references the power of the works to rise above and beyond the limits of chronological time and material existence.
Perhaps the first thing one notices about Diana Al-Hadid’s work is its materiality. Her panels are made from polymer gypsum, fiberglass, steel, plaster, gold leaf and pigment. Constructed from multitudes of drips, they are both solid and transparent, hovering somewhere between two and three dimensions. The drips evoke thoughts of the eternal and downward pull of gravity, and the gaps between them contribute to a look of disintegration. The overall effect is ancient and ruin-like. Pigmented apparitions, however, appear not only to fade away but also to emerge, and the materials shimmer in a way that gives them a futuristic quality. These dualities—solid/transparent, emerging/receding and ancient/futuristic—create a sense of time transcended.
Wang Gongxin and Lin Tianmiao address the subject of societal instability in China in their series of fifteen Here? or There? video still prints. Pulled from videos originally created for an installation in the 2002 Shanghai Biennale, the work focuses on life in rapidly changing Beijing and the uncertainty of the supernatural, blending what Wang refers to as the “rational” and “spirit” worlds. In the imagery, spirits inspired by traditional Chinese folklore inhabit an ancient hutong neighborhood, new construction sites, the natural landscape and other settings in the capital city. These figures are adorned in strange and elaborate costumes. One garment consists of long, pale, organ-like outgrowths. Another resembles a wedding gown and is transparent from shoulder to thigh but opaque from thigh to foot. Inside/outside and public/private contradictions contribute to a feeling of uncertainty and instability throughout the work. The figures transcend material reality, and in posing the question “Here? or There?,” the artists emphasize the duality of the two worlds traversed by the citizens of Beijing.
Images
Left: Diana Al-Hadid, Block Pontormo (detail), 2012, polymer gypsum, fiberglass, gypsum board, plaster, wood, steel, paint, 113 ½ x 69 ½ x 2 ½ in. Courtesy of the artist and Marianne Boesky Gallery, New York. © Diana Al-Hadid
Right: Wang Gongxin and Lin Tianmiao, Here? or There? (detail), 2002, set of 15 photographic prints, A.P., 36 1/2 x 29 in. each. Collection of Dowd Gallery.
Video above: Diana Al-Hadid's Suspended Reality
"New York Close Up," Art21, Published Apr 12, 2013
"New York Close Up" Created & Produced by: Wesley Miller & Nick Ravich. Editor: Mary Ann Toman. Cinematography: Nick Lindner, Amanda Long, John Marton, Wesley Miller, Nick Ravich & Andrew David Watson. Sound: Scott Fernjack, Wesley Miller & Nick Ravich. Associate Producer: Ian Forster. Production Assistant: Amanda Long & Tida Tippapart. Design: Crux Studio & Open. Artwork: Diana Al-Hadid. Additional Artwork & Music: Robert Campin, Hans Memling, Jacopo da Pantormo, Unknown Master, Wu Tang Clan. Thanks: Khouloud Al-Hadid, Marianne Boesky, Nicholas Joyce, Paul Pino, Serra Pradhan & Ted Riederer. An Art21 Workshop Production. © Art21, Inc. 2013. All rights reserved.
Video below: Lecture by Luo Xu, History Department, "Sweet Home Beijing: Then and Now," November 11, 2014
Office Information
Dowd Fine Arts Center, Room 106,
48 Graham Avenue and Prospect Terrace Cortland, NY 13045
Phone: 607-753-4216
Fax: 607-753-5934
Contact:
Scott Oldfield, Interim Director
scott.oldfield@cortland.edu
Hours:
Mon, Tue, Wed, Fri: 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m.
Thr: 10 a.m. - 7 p.m.
Walk-ins are welcome. You may also schedule a visit.
The gallery is closed when the College is not in session
