Group Exhibition
SONATA FORM # 2023
2023.07.22 - 09.16
TRIUMPH GALLERY is pleased to present a group exhibition, SONATA FORM # 2023, which includes three artists: Fang Lijun (b.1963, China), Ji Dachun (b.1968, China) and Lu Hao (b.1969, China), from the 22nd July untill the 16th September, 2023. This exhibition will present more than 20 works by the three artists at different periods.
Centered around the structure of the gallery hall in 798 Art Zone, SONATA FORM is a curatorial sector launched by TRIUMPH GALLERY in summer 2023.SONATA FORM, also referred to as the "sonata-allegro form," represents a compositional framework prevalent in both classical and contemporary music, characterized by its tripartite movement structure and progressive development. This particular musical form aligns harmoniously with the architectural layout of the gallery hall of TRIUMPH GALLERY. And the form is also resonates with the gallery's aspirations to redefine the notion of “a gallery exhibition."
As a curatorial sector, SONATA FORM aims to delve into the realm of "non-narrative curation," investigating how the static frame of the gallery space, akin to a Bauhausian spatial arrangement, can be employed to craft a dynamic interplay and rhythm through the presentation and placement of artworks. This approach, in turn, seeks to reestablish the focus of the exhibition on the artists and their works.
Centered around the structure of the gallery hall in 798 Art Zone, SONATA FORM is a curatorial sector launched by TRIUMPH GALLERY in summer 2023.SONATA FORM, also referred to as the "sonata-allegro form," represents a compositional framework prevalent in both classical and contemporary music, characterized by its tripartite movement structure and progressive development. This particular musical form aligns harmoniously with the architectural layout of the gallery hall of TRIUMPH GALLERY. And the form is also resonates with the gallery's aspirations to redefine the notion of “a gallery exhibition."
As a curatorial sector, SONATA FORM aims to delve into the realm of "non-narrative curation," investigating how the static frame of the gallery space, akin to a Bauhausian spatial arrangement, can be employed to craft a dynamic interplay and rhythm through the presentation and placement of artworks. This approach, in turn, seeks to reestablish the focus of the exhibition on the artists and their works.
Fang Lijun
Fang Lijun (b. 1963, Handan, Hebei) graduated from the Central Academy of Fine Arts, Printmaking Department in 1989. In July of the same year, he resided in the Yuanmingyuan area, becoming a key advocate of the "Yuanmingyuan Artists' Village." In 1993, he established the Songzhuang studio, contributing to the formation of the "Songzhuang Artists' Village." In 2014, he founded the "Archive of Contemporary Art of China," systematically organizing the development of Chinese contemporary art. Since 2004, Fang Lijun has been appointed as a guest professor and graduate mentor at more than twenty institutions, including the Central Academy of Fine Arts, Sichuan Academy of Fine Arts, Jingdezhen Ceramic University, Xi’an Academy of Fine Arts, Wuhan University, and Hubei Academy of Fine Arts.
Fang Lijun’s solo exhibitions have been held in major art institutions worldwide, including the Ashmolean Museum Oxford, Ludwig Museum, Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, The Japan Foundation, Civic Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art, and Musée Ariana, et cetera. Domestic retrospectives have been mounted at the Shanghai Art Museum, Hong Kong Arts Centre, Macau Museum of Art, Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Hunan Provincial Museum, United Art Museum, Minsheng Art Museum, and He Art Museum, among other significant venues. Additionally, he has been consistently invited by mainstream international exhibitions, such as the Venice Biennale, Gwangju Biennale, São Paulo Art Biennial, and Shanghai Biennale.
Fang's works are permanently collected by international museums, in particular the Museum of Modern Art, Centre Pompidou, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Seattle Art Museum, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Queensland Art Gallery, Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art, Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, and Fukuoka Asian Art Museum. Within China, his works are held by the National Art Museum of China, Contemporary Academy of Fine Arts Art Museum, He Xiangning Art Museum, and Guangdong Museum of Art.
Furthermore, through his artistic career, Fang Lijun has published over 50 monographs, including Fang Lijun: Chronological Notes, Fang Lijun: Works Catalogue, Fang Lijun: Cliff in the Clouds, Fang Lijun: Forbidden Zone, Fang Lijun Prints, and Surviving Like a Stray Dog. In 1993, his work Series Two No. 2 appeared on the cover of The New York Times.
Fang Lijun’s solo exhibitions have been held in major art institutions worldwide, including the Ashmolean Museum Oxford, Ludwig Museum, Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, The Japan Foundation, Civic Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art, and Musée Ariana, et cetera. Domestic retrospectives have been mounted at the Shanghai Art Museum, Hong Kong Arts Centre, Macau Museum of Art, Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Hunan Provincial Museum, United Art Museum, Minsheng Art Museum, and He Art Museum, among other significant venues. Additionally, he has been consistently invited by mainstream international exhibitions, such as the Venice Biennale, Gwangju Biennale, São Paulo Art Biennial, and Shanghai Biennale.
Fang's works are permanently collected by international museums, in particular the Museum of Modern Art, Centre Pompidou, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Seattle Art Museum, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Queensland Art Gallery, Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art, Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, and Fukuoka Asian Art Museum. Within China, his works are held by the National Art Museum of China, Contemporary Academy of Fine Arts Art Museum, He Xiangning Art Museum, and Guangdong Museum of Art.
Furthermore, through his artistic career, Fang Lijun has published over 50 monographs, including Fang Lijun: Chronological Notes, Fang Lijun: Works Catalogue, Fang Lijun: Cliff in the Clouds, Fang Lijun: Forbidden Zone, Fang Lijun Prints, and Surviving Like a Stray Dog. In 1993, his work Series Two No. 2 appeared on the cover of The New York Times.
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Ji Dachun
Ji Dachun was born in 1968 in Nantong, Jiangsu, China. He graduated from Central Academy of Fine Arts, Oil Painting Department, Beijing, China in 1993. As one of the most representative Chinese contemporary artists, Ji Dachun is widely noticed for his distinctive personal style. His paintings are witty, humorous, ethereal and tranquil, and full of romantic poetry and Zen. In particular, his choice and persistence in easel painting, in an environment where installations, images, pictures, and multimedia methods are becoming more popular, it highlights its unique expressive charm and profound significance.
After having produced many of his now-widely recognized figurative paintings from his early career, Ji Dachun (b. 1968) begins to gravitate towards acrylic, a medium that is comparatively lighter and less saturated than oil paint. Initially he was obsessed with the viscous pictorial effect of acrylic, and later on there were his serial explorations of the themes of “Black” and “White”. Throughout this entire process, he has experimented with Payne’s gray—which he considered an unstable pigment color—in terms of how it presents different shades of transparencies, textures, and tonal layers on the canvas. He experimented so as to grasp the relationship between the subject of paint, the residue, and the image. Through this project, Ji Dachun endeavors to grasp his own position within the coordination of (art) history and reality and comes up with his own rationales to experiment with—or deconstruct—paint in a perhaps attempt to approximate the boundaries of finite things.
Ji has held solo exhibitions at LudwigMuseum (Koblenz,Germany), MACRO Museo d‘Arte Contemporanea Roma (Rome, Italy), Ullens Center for Contemporary Art (Beijing, China), Kunstmuseum Bern (Bern, Switzerland), Posco Museum (Seoul, South Korea) and other art institutions. His works have been exhibited in the 56th Venice Biennial, 2012 Gwangju Biennale Special Exhibition, The First Triennial of Chinese Arts, 2001 Chengdu Biennale, 2000 Shanghai Biennale, the 1st China Oil Painting Biennale and the 2nd 2ed Annual China Oil Painting Exhibition.
After having produced many of his now-widely recognized figurative paintings from his early career, Ji Dachun (b. 1968) begins to gravitate towards acrylic, a medium that is comparatively lighter and less saturated than oil paint. Initially he was obsessed with the viscous pictorial effect of acrylic, and later on there were his serial explorations of the themes of “Black” and “White”. Throughout this entire process, he has experimented with Payne’s gray—which he considered an unstable pigment color—in terms of how it presents different shades of transparencies, textures, and tonal layers on the canvas. He experimented so as to grasp the relationship between the subject of paint, the residue, and the image. Through this project, Ji Dachun endeavors to grasp his own position within the coordination of (art) history and reality and comes up with his own rationales to experiment with—or deconstruct—paint in a perhaps attempt to approximate the boundaries of finite things.
Ji has held solo exhibitions at LudwigMuseum (Koblenz,Germany), MACRO Museo d‘Arte Contemporanea Roma (Rome, Italy), Ullens Center for Contemporary Art (Beijing, China), Kunstmuseum Bern (Bern, Switzerland), Posco Museum (Seoul, South Korea) and other art institutions. His works have been exhibited in the 56th Venice Biennial, 2012 Gwangju Biennale Special Exhibition, The First Triennial of Chinese Arts, 2001 Chengdu Biennale, 2000 Shanghai Biennale, the 1st China Oil Painting Biennale and the 2nd 2ed Annual China Oil Painting Exhibition.
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Lu Hao
Lu Hao was born in Beijing in 1969, graduated from the Central Academy of Fine Arts in 1992. He served as the curator for the Chinese Pavilion at the 53rd Venice International Art Biennale and also became the exclusive designer for a limited edition Ferrari sports car in 2009, he held the position of foreign art consultant for the Paris City Government from 2009 to 2013. Currently lives and works in Beijing.
Lu Hao's artistic practice contains various mediums, including sculpture, photography, installation art, ink painting, and oil painting. His creations are rooted in Chinese forms and culture, exploring themes related to urban architecture, living environments, and lifestyles, while providing keen insights into the changing landscape of Chinese society. Since the 1990s, Lu Hao has participated in many international exhibitions, including the Documenta Kassel, Busan Biennale, São Paulo Biennial, Shanghai Biennale, Istanbul Biennial, Lyon Biennale, and Venice Biennale, etc., among other influential international exhibitions, and his works have been collected by renowned domestic and international art museums, art institutions and important collectors.
Lu Hao's artistic practice contains various mediums, including sculpture, photography, installation art, ink painting, and oil painting. His creations are rooted in Chinese forms and culture, exploring themes related to urban architecture, living environments, and lifestyles, while providing keen insights into the changing landscape of Chinese society. Since the 1990s, Lu Hao has participated in many international exhibitions, including the Documenta Kassel, Busan Biennale, São Paulo Biennial, Shanghai Biennale, Istanbul Biennial, Lyon Biennale, and Venice Biennale, etc., among other influential international exhibitions, and his works have been collected by renowned domestic and international art museums, art institutions and important collectors.
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