ESLITE GALLERY holds Benrei HUANG’s solo exhibition “Dreams for Sale” from December 25th dreams as well as others. These include: soaking up in a Milky Way bath while reaching for the stars; gliding on a glowing golden boat; waiting for an angel to visit; redemption; and expired youth. HUANG invites the audience to wonder, if they were able to buy a dream one day, what would it be? In addition to paintings, HUANG has also handcrafted Nini wool sculptures through needle felt. Each work is infused with the artist’s love and dedication to her subject. There will also be three meter high Nini sculptures greeting visitors at the Xinyi and Songyen eslite branch stores, adding a festive atmosphere for the city of Taipei.
A recurrent subject in Benrei HUANG’s work, Rabbit Nini’s exterior appears to be warm and fragile, and she plays both the protagonist and supporting role. The whole canvas – sky, earth, night sky, or sea, etc. – represents an initiative to conduct a narrative. When Nini leaps into the scene, Benrei HUANG defines her through a painting language of symbols, colors, and shapes … and organizes these elements into a visual story full of content. Through Nini, HUANG Benrei freely expresses the inner thoughts of humankind - sometimes touched, sometimes worried, sometimes insightful about life.
All of the small and large works may look easy to create, but for Benrei HUANG, it is always an endless battle. As an artist, she feels as if her mind is constantly “walking on thin ice.” As she completes her works one by one, she often feels as if she is looking back on past versions of Nini that with her eyes, “Nini hasn’t changed, but you cannot always stay the same….”
In this exhibition, audiences are offered a glimpse into the recent contemplations of Benrei HUANG and her continuous endeavor in bringing something fresh and new into her work.
*image (left)
© Benrei Huang
courtesy of the artist and Eslite Gallery