Landing

Xiaorong Pan

Jul 26, 2014 ~ Aug 25

“Landing” refers to the act of airplanes reaching the land safely after flying from a certain elevation, the exact moment. For long, PAN Xiaorong has been exploring materials and spaces outside of painting, attempting to break through the basic structures. In 2013, the project NO PROJECT he did at am art space was to detect the subtle connection between the viewers and the art piece. This summer, he smashes the stereotype of art being high up in the air, and brings it down to the earth again.

After “Point Zero”，“Carving As Painting”，“The Rule of the Game”，“Material Sense”, PAN Xiaorong is carrying out his first art project of 2014 here in Mustard Seed Space, which is an effort to depict “landing”, a momentary condition.

Regarded as “the second generation of experimenter on Chinese rational painting”, PAN Xiaorong has always been working within the frame of reason and logic. He employs simple tools and material like knives, cardboard and ink to cut and to describe in a calm and pure way, outlining the massive truth that is behind the simple lines. This time, he goes across the boundary – getting rid of the graphic language and turning to treat space as the medium again, though it seems to be pretty risky.

The plain but artistic language employed by PAN Xiaorong eliminates the distance between the audience and the artwork, encouraging an equal interaction: he invites people to enter the gallery, to view from the wall to the floor, from up to down. This brings different warmth. Usage of bamboo and sand as the main media reminds people of their daily life experience. PAN comes back to the ground this time, where is a bit hotter than warm, a bit closer to the earth than his previous calmness. What PAN consists and extends freely in his work does impress us.

This modest piece of work does not set any limit for viewing – the audience could always get closer. And it will not be completed without the footprints of the viewers – their involvement has also become part of it. In such circumstances, all the elitist discussion of “art” sounds inappropriate. This piece of work is to extend the topic of “art” to a wider range. Meanwhile, how the audience is going to react and what they are thinking about when facing such a “fragile” art piece are also themes that PAN Xiaorong is eager to find out through the piece.