MINE PROJECT is pleased to present an online exhibition “In and Out.” Six young Chinese artists from different regions and timezone—Paris, Los Angeles, Beijing, and Hubei, bring the “out” geographically to the “in” of Hong Kong at this very moment, establishing connections between each other by abstractness.

“In and Out” presents the internal and external relationship between the artists and their works. In the post-pandemic era, they transform their perceptions about the outer social phenomena through their inner reflections onto the canvases, formulate a creative process from “in” to “out” and narrate the multiplicity of “in and out.” The participating artists are: Owen Fu, Gong Bin, Tong Kunniao, Wang Zhiyuan, Xie Lei, and Yang Bodu.

About the Artists

Owen Fu (b. 1988, Guilin, China) is an artist whose artworks are derived from his observation of the world which contains the double entendre nature with art historical and contemporary reference, sincerity and humour, quirkiness, and poeticism. Of all the elements that make a painterly vision, for Owen its line that dominates. His paintings put the viewer into a state of flow, moving effortlessly through and across his intuitive use of line, structure, and faux-naïveté.

Owen Fu received his MFA from Art Center College of Design in 2018, following his bachelor study in Philosophy at Stony Brook 2010-2013 and art practice at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago 2013-2016. The artist currently lives and works in Los Angeles.

Gong Bin (b. 1992, Yiyang, China) uses painting to provide an escape from reality, bringing psychological healing. He is best known to depict objects that only exist in his imagination. His experience and knowledge in printmaking can be traced to his work.

Gong Bin received his BFA in Illustration from the Hubei Institute of Fine Arts in 2014.

The artist currently lives and works in Hunan, China.

Tong Kunniao (b. 1990, Changsha, China) works across installation, performance, video, sculpture, and painting. He is adept at using “excess products” generated by the modern world—a perpetual waste-making factory, and “leftovers” that have been found in resale shops, the flea markets, or on the streets. He concerned about how the complex social structure has determined our social status and eaten up our individual identities. By decomposing ready-made objects and reassembling them in tandem or keeping them perfectly in balance, Tong aims to demonstrate the individual consciousness (the free spirit) behind the objects as well as the multiplicity and fragility of the system. In an era when commodity fetishism and symbol consumption are prevalent, and information is overloaded, Tong’s work extends beyond formal boundaries of reconstruction and presents it in a quirky and seemly absurd manner.

Tong Kunniao received his BFA from No.3 Studio, Department of Sculpture at the Central Academy of Fine Arts in 2015. In 2016, he went to graduate school and dropped out in the same year.

The artist currently lives and works in Beijing.

Wang Zhiyuan (b. 1990, Hebei, China) focuses on paintings. His practice explores how he interacts physically and consciously with the painting and responds to the constantly changing images. The painting itself is the inspiration, reference and content of his practice.

Wang Zhiyuan’s notable exhibitions and residencies include the upcoming group exhibition at OCAT, Xi’An; “I have nothing to say and I am saying it”, OCT Boxes Art Museum, Foshan, China (2019); Lucid Art Foundation Residency, Inverness, CA (2016). Wang Zhiyuan received his MFA from San Francisco Art Institute in 2015 and his BFA from the Public Art Institute at China Academy of Art in 2013.

The artist currently lives and works in Beijing.

Xie Lei (b. 1983, Anhui, China) often produces monochromatic works in a dark palette of mixed colours. He can perhaps be best described as a symbolist painter. Ancient rituals, traditional Chinese imagery, or Western mythology form the subjects of many paintings- they are bathed in a suggestive and sometimes mysterious atmosphere reminiscent of ancient folktale and primeval epochs.

His work is included in public and private collections, such as Musée d’Art Contemporain du Val-de-Marne (MAC VAL) and Burger Collection. Xie Lei received his PhD (practice-based) in visual arts in 2016 from the École normal supérieure and the École nationale supérieure des beaux-arts in Paris, and his BA from China Central Academy of Fine Arts in 2006.

The artist currently lives and works in Paris.

Yang Bodu (b. 1986, Tianjin, China)  creates artwork that was described as departing from the “art scene” mentality that renders contemporary art both exciting and problematic, and transports viewers to an isolated environment where viewing artwork is a private activity in an entirely public space. Examining the relationship between artworks and the places in which they are exhibited as well as the impact this has on audience engagement, her work exudes a cool sense of introspection.

Yang was featured in The Artsy Vanguard 2021. She won the Fellowship Trust Prize at PAFA’s Annual Student Exhibition in 2012 and was the recipient of the Justine Cretella Memorial Scholarship in 2011. Yang Bodu received her MFA from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA) in 2012, and her BFA from Tianjin Academy of Art in 2008.

The artist currently lives and works in Beijing.