HONG KONG.- Ora-Ora is presenting the first solo exhibition "，" of contemporary artist Szelit Cheung from August 19 to September 19, 2020. The exhibition showcases Cheung’s ingenuity on the theme of “void”. In Zen Buddhism, it is believed that all things come from Śūnyatā (emptiness or void). For Cheung, “void” is not a concept, but something that can be understood through experience.
"，" features 14 works from different periods of the artist’s ongoing exploration of this theme. The exhibition is curated to provide a glance into the artist's studio, allowing the audience to accompany Cheung on his artistic journey. Cheung is able to provide new meaning to inconspicuous moments and objects within his delicate presentation, offering the audience another perspective to approaching their daily lives.
The essence of void and the relationships between subjects are crucial elements in understanding Cheung’s work. His work explores the relationship between space and presence, employing chiaroscuro and hues in a minimal setting, to reflect on the interactions between one's self and environment. Conjointly with the use of forms, his depiction tackles the connection of objects in space and temporality at large. Capturing the moment in time just like in Baroque, rather than inciting drama, Cheung’s work radiates tranquility and represents the transitional period of happenings.
Curator and art critic Nicolas Bourriaud originated and highlighted the fine art practice of Relational Aesthetics, insisting that art should not only be an outlet for artists but be socially engaged to bolster relationships among individuals. Szelit Cheung’s work echoes this particular function of art. Cheung’s paintings invite audiences to contemplate their relationship with the artwork and society.
The same ideology manifests in Dead Water. The inspiration for the work stems from the artist’s admiration of a lake in Japan. Staring blatantly into the stillness of the water, Cheung studied and recreated the exquisite interplay of foliage and the depth of the lake, arousing our own apprehension of how one interrelates with our environment.
Whereas Pine documents, literally, the macroscopic perspective of needles interlocking, creating an illusion of a kaleidoscope which dissects the intricacy of relationships. This illusion is similar to the bonds we have as humans, seemingly alone yet with an irrefutable interdependence.
Szelit Cheung’s work amplifies that faint evidence. He reconstructs the pictorial plane into an ideal reality and presents it through “void”, as both a prelude and epilogue. The artist once commented, "To me, 'void' is a transitional state between the moment of looking at the emptiness and the moment before reckoning and feeling it". Through appreciating Cheung’s philosophy, we can embrace greater self-awareness and savour the slightest insignificances of life.
Szelit Cheung is a Hong Kong-based artist, engaged in a cross-disciplinary practice including painting, drawings and photography. His current practice resembles the essence of void, explores the connection between presence and emptiness by utilizing simple forms, light and colors as a means to echo and amplify the intangible yet powerful feelings and expressions.
After graduating from The Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology University (RMIT) in 2012, he works sorely as an artist and continue pursuing his passion for art. His work has been widely exhibition in different places, Include America, France, Taiwan, China, Hong Kong... He has held solo exhibitions that include Substance, Delicate, Something in Between (Yiri Arts, Taiwan, 2017) and Stand II (am space, Hong Kong, 2015). Group exhibitions include Architectural Representation in Chinese Contemporary Art (One Thousand Museum, Miami, America, 2019), Charming Tastes and Fragrance: Literature and Visual Arts Exhibition (Pao Galleries, Hong Kong Art Centre, Hong Kong, 2018), Has-been-there (Pearl Lam Galleries Hong Kong SOHO, Hong Kong, 2017) and Critical Point (Crane Gallery, Taiwan, 2015).
