Jia Aili's Hibernation <2>

After handling so many international big names' solo exhibition in doART Bejing, finally it comes to our young Chinese artist Jia Aili's solo. Been supporting Seoul team for a long time, it is time for us to manage a project totally independently. So many ideas and suggestions spring up. The time when I knew that I was supposed to be the project manager, I was quite afraid that I would ruin this project. Since ideas of the artist change so quickly with the suggestions from his gallery friends, artist friends and media friends.

According to my comprehension of the artist and his works, I did write some concept sketch seriously for the project. Anyhow, it is abandoned and not disclosed to the public for the project. Things change so much. But I think the sketch could help to understand how things change.

Here goes the Sketch.

Part One

This is not an exhibition. At least, it is not an ordinary exhibition. What you think it is makes a difference.

on the field of hopes 164x265cm oil on canvas 2007

For an ordinary exhibition, a lot of preparation work will be done beforehand. However it seems that all the efforts are made solely for one day, or even a few hours of the opening ceremony, which makes the exhibition itself looks so empty and flimsy. Hence this time we would not hold the exhibition in that way. It's like a project. We make an announcement of this project to public when we take the first shovel. In the exhibition hall, all works and painting kits will be open to public. At the same time, JAL will keep working on the canvas displayed on the wall, which enables the whole project much more substantial and fully-developed. Although the large work will not be finished even till the end of this exhibition, we have to declare an end to this exhibition in terms of time. But it is undoubted that the exhibition as well as the whole project will be prolonged and extended in terms of academic sense. After all, we cannot easily declare an end to anything in life, not to mention a piece of art work.

Part Two

A Boy on The Tree 72.5x117cm Oil on canvas 2008

Being Ready at Any Time 80x120cm Oil on Canvas 2008

JAL has some kind of youth complex. The outstanding figure in most of his works is a junior who is always wearing a mask, as shown by his works like "A Boy In The Tree", "Ready at Any Time", "On The Field of Hopes" etc. Props in his works such as "red scarf" and 'armband of the leader of young pioneers" also express his nostalgia of the youth. "Dragonfly Web"and "Wooden Chairs in Primary School" often come onto the top of his tongue. He must have such a special feeling and memory of that period that he would never let them slip out of his mind. The youth must be the happiest time in his life. As he grows up, he becomes more keenly aware of the significance and invaluableness of that period of life. Maybe we can also interpret the mask in his works as a shield to keep himself far away from the adults' world, which is full of lust, avarice, deception and corruption. He would prefer to stay in that pure and innocent period of life and never step into the adults' world where he will never feel free and comfortable. However, it is impossible. What he can do is to express all his youth memories, no matter sweet or bitter, on the canvas. In this sense, the mask is just a method to achieve spiritual victory or self-salvation.

This time, he will paint a large canvas painting, 600cm by 1200cm. As he says, he would like to depict a gang of young boys and girls around his age. It is about youth, not only about himself, but also about you and me, about everyone who has ever had a wonderful and memorable period of life called youth. We have no idea yet whether the figures in this painting will be masked or not. Let's wait and see.

All rights of the images above reserved to the artist and the associated gallery and collector.