Zhang Huan, until July 10, ProjectB Contemporary Art, Milan

Writer, 2008, Ash on Linen, 100x70cm

"Zhang Huan : Ash Paintings"
Zhang Huan, China's performance artist, sculptor and painter presents 6 paintings for the first time in Italy, at PROJECTB CONTEMPORARY ART, Milan. Zhang Huan's unconventional painting are created by using ink and charcoal along with his experiments with atypical materials such as ashes and soy sauce.

Zhang's art, to quote from the press release ; "draws on Chinese tradition the profound root of all the artist's work. They are ironic allusions which conceal deeper iconographic origins, such as the use of soy sauce, a traditional seasoning in Chinese cooking, reflecting both history and the importance of ink in the ancient graphical tradition of China.

Incense, and in particular ash, both intrinsically linked with the Buddhist religion, hold a particular fascination for the artist; they represent the recollection of hopes and dreams, and the visible sign of a spiritual rite. In his 'ash paintings', burnt incense, in its various nuances from the light shades of the finest powder to the darkest tones, is applied directly onto the canvas, increasing its intimate spirituality and evocative power."



American Flag No.7, 2008, 150x200cm



Felicity No.8, 2008, 100x150cm



Chinese Flag No.13, 2008, 150x200cm


Born in 1965, Zhang Huan lives and works in Shangai and New York. His works are present in the collections of MoMA, the Guggenheim and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Hara Museum of Contemporary Art in Tokyo, the Israel Museum in Jerusalem, S.M.A.K. Ghent in Belgium and the Centre Pompidou in Paris.

For more information go to ProjectB Contemporary Art