展览预告｜陈问村个展：造句 Make a Sentence

造句

Make a Sentence

2023.12.24 - 2024.1.28

开幕 Opening:

2023.12.24 14:00 - 18:00

艺术家 Artist:

陈问村

Wencun Chen

策展人 Curator:

付若瑄

Roxane Fu

南柯画廊将于12月24日带来艺术家陈问村的个展项目《造句》（Make a sentence）。展览将呈现艺术家近年来在其艺术创作中的探索过程，这些作品关注对于 文字力量 的尝试，亦体现了艺术家延伸创作与表达的边界的过程。

Nan Ke Gallery will present Wencun Chen's solo exhibition Make a Sentence on 24th December 2023.The exhibition will feature a range of works from Wencun's artistic explorations, which focus on experimenting with the power of words and demonstrate the artist's process of expanding the boundaries of creativity and expression.

陈问村 Wencun Chen

要一起喝一杯吗？ Fancy a Cuppa?, 2023

金属板，油彩，UV印刷

Metal plate, oil colour, UV printing

100w x 32.5h cm

© Courtesy of the artist

在陈问村的作品中，文字的元素反复出现在不同艺术媒介的各个角落。这些字词往往是零散而架空的，以 “掠影”（Glimpses） 的形式驻留在观者的视线中，仿佛在飞驰的汽车上不断经过路边的标语，由文本落在视网膜的瞬间留下强烈却含混的片段性印象。“语言”被拆解成由单个字词构成的基本组分，继而被重组，形成新的艺术表达的语言体系。艺术家借助文字这一会使人“不受控地去理解”的元素，以强势的姿态占领性地传递给观者的艺术内涵。

In Wencun's works, the element of words repeatedly appears in various corners of different art media. These words are often fragmented, residing in the viewer's vision in the form of "glimpses" , as if passing by roadside slogans in a speeding car, leaving a strong but ambiguous fragmentary impression of the moment when the words fall on the retina. The "language" is disassembled into basic components consisting of individual words, which are then reorganised to form a new language system of artistic expression. With the help of words, an element that can be "uncontrollably understood", the artist takes a strong stance and occupies the viewer with his artistic connotations.

陈问村 Wencun Chen

E是Engine的E

E is for engine, 2023

布面油画 Oil on canvas

180w x 120h cm

© Courtesy of the artist

对艺术家而言，创作是他“诉说”的方式。有时候文字仿佛谜语，帮助他在具象化的、追求“意义”的现实世界通过抽象和模糊创造可供休憩或探索的空隙，获得抽离的表达空间。在尝试的过程中，陈问村逐渐构筑起自己的艺术语言体系。他将打散的片段性字词通过这个体系整合，试图使其成为 “make sense” 的完整景观。其中一半是带有与生俱来的意义的字词，另一半则是绘画、影像等不同形态的艺术语言。

For the artist, creation is his way of "speaking". Sometimes words are like riddles, helping him to create gaps for rest or exploration through abstraction and ambiguity in the figurative real world in pursuit of "meaning", and to obtain a space for abstract expression. In the process of experimentation, Wencun gradually constructed his artistic language system. He integrates fragmented words through this system, trying to make them into a complete landscape of "make sense". Half of them are words with innate meanings, and the other half are different forms of artistic language, such as painting and video.

陈问村 Wencun Chen

什么 What, 2020

石墨，丝网印刷，帆布，固体油彩，喷漆，布面丙烯

Graphite, screen print, canvas, solid oil, spray paint, acrylic

180w x 230h cm

© Courtesy of the artist

然而， “make sense”也并不是艺术家所追求的标准答案。进一步拆解这一短语， “sense” 不仅仅可以指代“道理”和“意义”，也可以代表 “感官” ，而这正是艺术家所追求的：用艺术的语言造句时， “理解”就不仅仅局限于对文字的阅读理解，而是一种多感官的交互，联动意识与直觉的共情。

However, "make sense" is not the standard answer that the artist is looking for. To further dismantle the phrase, "sense" can refer not only to "reason" and "meaning", but also to "sensation". This is exactly what the artist seeks: when using the language of art to create a sentence, "understanding" is not limited to the reading of words. Rather, it is a multi-sensory interaction, an empathy that links consciousness and intuition.

陈问村 Wencun Chen

说明 Manual,2023

布面油画，石墨，丝网印刷

Oil on canvas, graphite, screen printed

120w x 180h cm

© Courtesy of the artist

像组成语言的字符一样，艺术家始终关注如同分子一样构建物质的“基本单位”。在早期作品《比尔布雷克斯》（Bill Bricks）中，艺术家在油纸上印制了未经切割的半透明纸币图样，并使用来自破裂旧仓库门的木板封印在墙面上。重复的纸币作为基本单位，仿佛重复诉说的词句，令人联想到《闪灵》中著名的‘All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy’的重复书写，一种压抑下的僵化行为和其中暗涌的、即将爆发的宣泄。人对于财富的渴望在作品中被具象化，而其对精神的影响或摧残也借由语言体系变得显然。

Like the characters that make up language, the artist has always focused on the "basic units" that build matter like molecules. In an early work, Bill Bricks, the artist printed uncut, translucent banknote patterns on oiled paper and sealed them on the wall with wooden planks from a broken old warehouse door. The repetition of the banknotes as a basic unit, as if repeating words, recalls the famous repetition of 'All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy' in The Shining, an act of repressed rigidity and its undercurrent of impending catharsis. The human desire for wealth is visualised in the work, and its effect or destruction on the spirit becomes apparent through the language system.

陈问村 Wencun Chen

比尔布雷克斯 Bill Bricks,2018

石板印刷，无框

Lithography, unframed

90w x 60h cm

© Courtesy of the artist

在其后的创作中，艺术家对于组装的兴趣一直延续，而表现形式也从简单的重复扩展到了不同零件的组装，这似乎呼应了艺术家语言体系和用语能力的扩张。在作品《运作》（How to get a work done）中，陈问村借用了宜家（Ikea）这一经典品牌和其代表的蓝色，并延用了宜家家具需要自己组装的核心特征。整体的物件被拆解成功能分明的零件，并被赋予了近似管理学概念中的流程功能，将社会体系中的程序变得如同组装家具一样可视。作品企图展现的完整信息也如同句子般，由零件的画作单词组成拼接，徐徐展开，如对话般向观者传输。

In subsequent works, the artist's interest in assembly has continued, and the forms of expression have expanded from simple repetition to the assembly of different parts, seemingly echoing the expansion of the artist's linguistic system and ability to use language. In how to get a work done, Wencun borrows from the classic Ikea brand and its representative blue color, and extends the core feature of Ikea furniture that requires self-assembly.

The whole object is disassembled into functional parts and given the function of a process as if it were a management concept, making the procedures of the social system as visible as the assembly of furniture. The complete message that the work attempts to present is also like a sentence, composed of the words of the paintings of the parts, which unfolds and is transmitted to the viewer like a dialogue.

陈问村作品 《运作》（How to get a work done） 局部照片， 图片由艺术家提供 。 Photos of Wencun Chen 's work How to get a work done (part), image courtesy of the ar tist.

对陈问村而言，大学老师的身份使他在创作中一直保持着学习、进展的蓬勃状态。在他看来，这个时代中的我们处于一个充满可能性的“过程”里。新的技术、艺术语言不断涌现，填补着纯语言的空白，也给艺术家以更自如地表达的机会。

维特根斯坦“语言游戏学”的理论主张语言是在游戏般的交互中习得的。语言在使用中被每个使用者赋予了各自所理解的意义，而并没有“本质主义”的绝对意义。对于陈问村而言，创造自己的艺术语言系统也是如此。它在艺术实践中更新、扩张并迭代，而每一件艺术品的产生也就如同“造句”，重点在于创造的过程。在艺术创作中，不断地学习和充盈自己的语言库，将作品像饱含信息的语句一样创造出来，与观者交流并聆听回声。

For Wencun, his position as a university teacher keeps him in a vigorous state of learning and progress in his creative endeavors. In his view, we are in a "process" full of possibilities in this era. New technologies and artistic languages are constantly emerging, filling in the gaps of pure language and giving artists the opportunity to express themselves more freely.

Wittgenstein 's theory of "linguistic play" asserts that language is learned through play-like interactions. Language is used by each user to give meaning to his or her own understanding, and there is no "essentialist" absolute meaning. For Chen Wencun, creating his own artistic language system is the same. It renews, expands, and iterates in the course of artistic practice, and the creation of each work of art is like the "making of a sentence," with an emphasis on the process of creation. In the process of art creation, one constantly learns and fills up one's own language bank, creating works like informative statements, communicating with the viewer, and listening to the echoes.

陈问村 Wencun Chen

娱乐 Entertain,2022

布面油画，石墨，服装标签

Oil on canvas, graphite, garment labels

120w x 70h cm

© Courtesy of the artist

在展览《造句》中，语言和艺术表达是同源的，都具备创造交流的力量和生机。这种力量建构在字、词和短句的基础之上，又由创造性的艺术表达所补全。陈问村的作品不断叩问着二维的边界，以对话般的精神力量寻求多维性的、感官的体验和回应。在这里，粗糙或精炼，含混或直白，都成为了仿佛语言学习一般的螺旋上升过程，吸引人走进，对话；或者阅读，旁观。

In the exhibition "Make a Sentence", language and artistic expression are homologous, both possessing the power and vitality to create communication. This power is built on the foundation of words, phrases, and short sentences, and is complemented by creative artistic expression. Chen Wenchun's works constantly question the boundaries of two-dimensionality, seeking multi-dimensional, sensory experiences and responses with the power of dialogue-like spirituality. Here, roughness or refinement, ambiguity or straightforwardness, all become a spiral process as if learning a language, attracting people to walk in and dialogue; or read and observe.

文/付若瑄

Text by Roxane Fu

艺术家Artist

陈问村Wencun Chen

陈问村

个人简述

陈问村1991年生于杭州，本科毕业于中央美术学院版画系，研究生先后毕业于伦敦艺术大学切尔⻄艺术学院，英国皇家艺术学院。现任教于中国美术学院。陈问村的艺术创作是自我求索式的，关注人的共通之处而非差异，在他多样的作品形式中可 以看到他对身份，语言，文字，集体经验等命题的关注。其创作涉及绘画，装置，影像，实验音乐等多个领域，观察和回 应是他保持艺术鲜活的方式。

教育

2010-2014 中央美术学院，版画系，获学士学位2015-2016 伦敦艺术大学切尔⻄艺术学院，纯艺术专业，获硕士学位

2016-2018 英国皇家艺术学院，版画系，获硕士学位

展览

2023 绘画之上：还原与无限，瑀空间，上海

2023 激悦与隐蔽的私密地带，BROWNIE Project，上海

2023 皮钦光谱：一种文化的非线性可能，PSA，上海
2023 进化：奇点，南柯画廊，上海

2022 改造未来—第八届多伦青年美术大展，多伦现代美术馆，上海

2022 “辣条”时代:年轻力观察，年代美术馆，温州

2021 #TGIF Thank God It's Fungible，BROWNIE Project， 上海

2021 迷失，眼泪与时间 Fears，Tears，Years，廿號Space，上海

2020 “视觉编码-第五届青年艺术联展”，德中文化交流基金会，Kommunale Galerie, 柏林

2020 出梅ll—当代杭州2020，金彩画廊，杭州

2019 “时间开始了-乌镇当代艺术邀请展”，乌镇，中国

2018 研究生毕业展，英国皇家艺术学院，伦敦2017 “无界” 留英中国青年艺术家群展，约瑟夫-圣⻢丁画廊， 巴黎

2017 “繁茂” 群展，店街画廊，伦敦2017 “模糊边界” , Fitzrovia画廊， 伦敦2017 “研讨:来临的群体” 展览，地宫画廊，伦敦

2017 “对话-伦敦” 中国留学生成果汇报展，中国驻英大使馆，伦敦

2017“平行存在”群展，布鲁姆斯伯里画廊,伦敦 “过程”群展，皇家艺术学院，伦敦

2016 切尔⻄艺术学院硕士毕业展，伦敦

2016 切尔⻄艺术学院中期展，伦敦2016 “逆向” 研究生群展— 三角空间，切尔⻄艺术学院，伦敦

2014 中央美术学院版画系毕业作品展，北京，作品刊登于《流动艺术》6月刊

2013 “对话”都灵—上海当代艺术作品展，意大利都灵，中国驻意大利大使馆文化部

2013 中央美术学院版画系四工作室“传统文化考察”作品展，北京

2012 中央美术学院版画系 “思维转换”作品成果展，北京

2012《牙》系列 作品展示，上海外滩18号

2012 中央美术学院版画系“印刷文化”考察课程汇报展，北京

2011 作品“对话” 获“跳动的脉搏” 作品评奖三等奖，中央美术学院，北京

2011 “足迹·青春”—庆祝建党九十周年学生主题创作展览，中央美术学院，北京

2010 “十二象”艺术沙龙第三次成果展，杭州

2009 “十二象”艺术沙龙第二次成果展，杭州

Chen Wencun

Born in Hangzhou, China, 1991

Wencun Chen currently teaches at the China Academy of Art. Chen Wencun's art is self-seeking, focusing on commonalities rather than differences, and his attention to propositions such as identity, language, text and collective experience can be seen in his diverse forms. His work involves painting, installation, video and experimental music, and observation and response are his ways of keeping his art alive.

Education

2010-2014 Printmaking, China Central Academy of Fine Arts

2015-2016 MA Fine Art, Chelsea College of Arts

2016-2018 MA Contemporary Art Practice, Royal College of Art

Exhibition

2023 Beyond Painting: Restoration and Infinity, ASTRA ART, Shanghai

2023 The Secret Realm of Thrills and Concealment, BROWNIE Project, Shanghai

2023 Pidgin Spectrum: Nonlinear Narratives of Multiculture, PSA, Shanghai
2023 Evolution: Singularity, Nan Ke Gallery, Shanghai

2022 SHAPE THE FUTURE / The Eighth Shanghai Duo-lun Youth Art Exhibition, Shanghai

2022 Spicy Gluten and Youth Power: A Generational Insight, Epoch Art Museum, Wenzhou

2021 #TGIF-Thank God It’s Fungible, BROWNIE Project, Shanghai

2021 "Fears, Tears, Years", 20SPACE, Shanghai

2020 Out of the rainy season ll—Contemporary Hangzhou

2020 Jincai Gallery, Hangzhou

2020 "Vision code-33 Young Art from China", GeKA, Kommunale Galerie Berlin

2019 "Now is the Time" — 2019 Wuzhen Contemporary Art Exhibition, Wuzhen, China

2018 MA Print Degree Show, Royal College of Art, London

2017 "Briser les Frontières" exhibition, Galerie Joseph Saint Martin, Paris

2017 "Flourishing Growth" group exhibition, Store Street Gallery, London

2017 "Hazy Boundaries" group exhibition, Fitzrovia Gallery, London

2017 "Symposium: The Coming Community" Exhibition, The Crypt Gallery, London

2017 "Dialogue - London" Exhibition, Education section, Embassy of The People's Republic of China

2017 "Parallel Existence" Group exhibition, Bloomsbury Gallery, London

2017 "Work In Progress" Exhibition, Royal College of Art

2016 MA Fine Art Degree Show, Chelsea College of Art

2016 MA Fine Art Interim Show, Chelsea College of Art

2016 MA Fine Art “Counter Practice” Exhibition in Triangle Space, Chelsea College of Art

2014 Degree Show, China Central Academy of Fine Arts, Beijing

2013 "Dialogue" with Turin – Shanghai Contemporary Works of Art Exhibition, Turin, Italy, Ministry of Culture of Chinese Embassy in Italy

2013 "Traditional Cultural Study" Works Exhibition of the Four Studio of Engraving Department of China Central Academy of Fine Arts, CAFA, Beijing

2012 "Paradigm Shift" Works Exhibition of Engraving Department of China Central Academy of Fine Arts, CAFA, Beijing

2012 Works Exhibition of "Ya" Series, Shanghai Bund

2012 Engraving "Print Culture" Study Course Report Exhibition, CAFA, Beijing

2011 "Footprint • Youth" – Student Creation Exhibition with the Theme of Celebrating the 90th Anniversary of Party Founding, CAFA, Beijing

2010 The 3rd annual Exhibition of "Shi-Er Xiang" Art Salon in Hang Zhou

2009 The 2nd annual Exhibition of "Shi-Er Xiang" Art Salon in Hang Zhou

策展人Curator

付若瑄Roxane Fu

付若瑄（Roxane Fu）是南柯画廊的驻馆策展人。她毕业于爱丁堡大学，获电影，展览与策展专业硕士学位。毕业后任职于伦敦日本画廊，负责文献研究和策展工作。继而在Royal Academy of Arts工作，同期在进行“链的故事”（Tale of the Chain）独立策展项目。

策展方面，她追求基于作品的热忱和真实，并努力以完整而清晰的叙事贯穿展览，帮助艺术家和观者在轻松安全的环境进行真诚的对话。在策展实践中，她喜爱以仿佛小说的故事线整合展品，把展览看作三维的文学，诚实地传递和表达艺术家最为真挚的想法。

Roxane Fu currently serves as the Curator-in-Residence at Nan Ke Gallery. She graduated from the University of Edinburgh with an MA in Film, Exhibition, and Curation. After completing her studies, she worked at the Japan Gallery in London, where she was responsible for documentary research and curatorial tasks. Following that experience, she joined the Royal Academy of Arts and contributed to the independent curatorial project 'Tale of the Chain.'

In her curatorial practice, Roxane Fu endeavors to amplify the passion and authenticity inherent in artworks. She is dedicated to constructing a comprehensive and coherent narrative within exhibitions, fostering genuine dialogues between artists and viewers within a relaxed and secure environment. Roxane's approach involves integrating exhibits into a storyline, akin to crafting a novel, transforming exhibitions into three-dimensional literature. Her goal is to faithfully convey and articulate the artist's most sincere ideas.

作品垂询请邮件至

Please email for inquiries about the artwork.：

info@nankegallery.com