The gallery will be presenting works by the following artists:

Li Tianbing explores fiction and reality haunted by selected childhood memories in a suffocating society and charged political setting. Using photographs as a medium to illustrate his reflections on the past and his multicultural experiences, Li layers the present using oil painting in a timeless duality. The artist lives and works in both Beijing and Paris, France.

Shirin Neshat was born in Qazvin, Iran, and moved to the United States in 1974. Neshat is well known for her work in film and photography. She has been awarded the First International Award at the 48th Venice Biennale, the Hiroshima Freedom Prize, and the Lillian Gish Prize. The artist currently lives and works in New York.

Qiu Jie, the solitary artist who calls himself “the man who comes from other mountains” grew up in China before moving to Switzerland in 1989. His intricate autobiographical work combines the realism of references to both the Chinese and Western cultures. Qiu Jie’s style could be described as ‘political pop’; his imagery confronts the history of Chinese society with that of contemporary Western popular culture. The artist lives and works in Geneva, Switzerland.

Inspired by a multicultural upbringing in both Argentina and France, Reinoso is an artist, designer and researcher. He plays with sculpture and hones his craftsmanship using wood, slate, brass, marble and steel. Reinoso focuses his search on the entity, its transference, and the unconscious, using space and time as an environment. Pablo Reinoso lives and works in Paris.

Seher Shah’s work is formed by the intersection between drawing and architecture. Shah uses public and private spaces for a narrative interior dialogue of memory and nostalgia. Her detailed drawings and prints merge diverse iconographies, architectural, historical, personal and political. Born in 1975 in Karachi, Pakistan, Seher Shah grew up in Belgium, the U.K, and New York City. Seher Shah currently lives and works in Brooklyn, New York.

Doug & Mike Starn’s inspiration begins with the following philosophy “The only thing that is consistent is change”. The mutation of time brings an array of interconnections on every level of Man. The Starns use unified material in sculptures, photography, and installations as a way to convey the transformation of life whether physical or psychological.

Thukral and Tagra have been working collaboratively since 2004. Their inspiration begins with the reality of old values mixed with their ideas on modern times in the Punjabi culture of Northern India. These versatile artists play on the refined symbolism between advertising, branding, and domestic retail through painting, sculpture, installations and video. The artists live and work in New Delhi, India.

The notion of exile, dislocation and personal recognition are at the center of Hema Upadhyay’s artistic exploration. Using photography, collage, sculptural installations and painting to express her torn identity, she constantly seeks to belong, whether literal or metaphorical. The artist’s autobiographical works on creation and destruction pertain to a dichotomy of senses, in a home of its own. The artist lives and works in Mumbai, India.

French sculptor, Bernar Venet, is known for creating abstract pieces that make reference to the language of mathematical concepts and scientific theories, transposing them into a form of Art. Having had studied at the Villa Thiole in Nice, France in 1958, and taught at La Sorbonne in Paris in 1976, Venet is one of the most prominent names in Conceptual Art. The artist has been widely collected and commissioned all over the world.

Born in 1942, Manolo Valdés is a Spanish painter and sculptor. His large scale paintings, sculptures and mixed media works are an open dialogue in reference to the masters of Art History. Valdés’ bronze sculptures which are inspired particularly by Velazquez, are especially prominent. Valdés’ expressive style is characterized by the incorporation of various materials in his artworks, paying attention to the surface texture and the use of tactile materials. In his paintings, oil is applied in thick layers and other materials such as twine, jute canvas, bitumen, and linseed oil, adhesives of all kinds and a wide range of natural pigments are incorporated.

Fabienne Verdier uses space to capture the intrinsic forces of life in a perfect stroke. It is a complete dialogue through the chosen spiritual elements transcending to the material world that drives her creations. Ten years in China working with masters in traditional ink painting and a lifetime of inspiration through the icons of art history, have led the artist’s innate East-West spirit to be driven by the quest of oneness with the universe. The artist lives and works in France.

Image: © Li Tianbing, Art Plural Gallery