Resonance
Art Beatus Vancouver, November 6th to December 31, 1998

Vancouver, B.C. -- During Robert Rauschenberg's groundbreaking exhibition at the National Gallery in Beijing in 1985, both Qin and her husband Zhu were fortunate to meet with the American artist. As a result of this rare encounter, a brief yet intense cross-cultural dialogue on contemporary art took place in a private Beijing apartment. Zhu and Qin were invited by the DAAD Artist Programme of Berlin to further their art practice in 1988, both artists have since made Berlin their permanent home.

Resonance investigates the spiritual element of new works by two Berlin-based installation artists Qin Yufen & Zhu Jinshi, whose works reflect the teachings of Chinese classical text, particularly the writings on Zen and Tao.

For Resonance, Qin creates a tranquil yet aesthetic environment for viewers to reveal themselves through the work. Through the use of a paper wall with hidden speakers that amplify sounds of different frequencies, the viewers are encouraged to experience a seemingly mundane yet highly tactile situation. Qin explains her work as "an unpainted picture or a poem without language. For [her], the installation is an empty space. Those who put themselves into relation with it can induce it to speak." Qin has shown internationally, including the 1995 Istanbul Biennale and a recent show entitled Echolot at the Museum Fridericianum in Kassel.

Zhu, on the other hand, uses his installation to redefine the exhibition space. He layers thousands sheets of xuan paper together and creates four large scale semi-circular columns to physically confront the viewers, and to further challenge our physical reading of the exhibition space as a whole. In the fall of 1997, Zhu completed an installation entitled 'Tao of Rice Paper 1' located in the Rotunda of the Vancouver Art Gallery. This well received project was the most ambitious installation project ever undertaken by the Vancouver Art Gallery. Zhu recently opened another exhibition at the Walter Philips Gallery at the Banff Centre.

A discussion with the artists will be hosted on Nov 7 at 3pm at Art Beatus located on the upper plaza at M1-888 Nelson Street.

Art Beatus, with galleries in Vancouver, Canada and Hong Kong, focuses on international contemporary Chinese art. The Vancouver gallery is on the upper plaza at 888 Nelson Street.

For further information, please contact:

Canada: tel: (1) 604.688.2633, fax: (1) 604.688.2685