From Su Shi to Bada Shanren, recreates the popular iconology of classical Chinese painting in a highly original rendition. The act of painting on bamboo and other objects was inspired by the work of Su Shi, literary titan and painter from the Northern Song Dynasty, who broke new grounds in many literary and artistic genres of his time. The drive to subvert runs through the series, as the photographic captures of painted bamboo and objects closely resemble classical Chinese painting. Such blurring of reality and illusion alludes to the art of Bada Shanren (Eight Great Mountain Man), master painter from the late Ming and early Qing Dynasty, where all notions of the real are distorted in a surreal universe.

The series marks anothermountainman’s attempt to revive and extend the traditions of classical Chinese art in contemporary rendering. Using photography as the medium, anothermountainman creates a dialogue that transcends time and opens up new interpretations of classical iconology. The work blurs the distinction between photography and painting, and touches on certain questions that lie at the heart of photography.

About anothermountainman:

anothermountainman (a.k.a. Stanley Wong) was born in Hong Kong in 1960. He came to international attention with his redwhiteblue series, which he presented at the 51st Venice Biennale in 2005, representing Hong Kong. In 2012, he was awarded the Hong Kong Arts Development Awards 2011: Award for Best Artist (Visual Arts) and the Hong Kong Contemporary Art Awards 2012.

Image: © anothermountainman, Blindspot Gallery