Au Cœur de la Brume

Au Cœur de la Brume, a solo presentation of paintings by renown artist Leng Hong, inspired by the mysteries of the water state when it evaporates with the sun over Venice. The artist’s work often inspired by the poetry of the Tang Dynasty (6-8th BC) is echoed in the sensations of the  vapours off the lagoon in its essence, the works in mixed media compositions invite us to drift through the gallery in the state of contemplation. Born in Shanghai, Leng Hong renders atmospheric scenes in which time, historic reference and poetic sensations quietly dissolve into one another.

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A metaphor to interpret Leng Hong’s recent work might be: he is a believer who does not go to church. Without discipline and rituals, he uses his inner path to express his beliefs. About the image construction, all the conventional elements and methods seem to be abandoned, lines and ink strokes give way to the light and shadow.

You can say that his recent works are not landscape paintings or even Chinese paintings. Ink and color painting seem inappropriate to describe his work. His style is difficult to define by simple methods. As a cross-border artist, his connection with traditional culture is more on the spiritual level. This is the inheritance of cultural genetics. Looking at his paintings, the audience can’t distinguish the skills that went into making the image.

The artist’s feelings about the world and life are a kind of breath, because the only thing that Leng Hong cares about is the artistic conception.

The modeling created by Leng Hong is between realistic and abstract, the objects from his painting are not intended to represent reality. For the artist, all techniques and production processes transform the material world into poetry. Real space construction is replaced by an assortment of imagery.

The purpose of repeated smearing is not to highlight skill, but to place the image properly. Even accidental strokes can be shown as an inevitable result. He uses symbolic semi-abstract scenes to block the impulse of the audience to recognize reality. Leng Hong does not try to shorten the distance with the audience. The rhythm of colors and strokes make up a musical sense of the picture, allowing the audience to listen to the sound of the painting. The work returns to poetry in a way that transcends the technique of expression from traditional Chinese painting. At the same time, the works are inspiring the audience by providing images beyond the common-sense experience and guiding them ultimately into the realm of the artist.

Written by Shi Zhongping

Shanghai Academy of Fine Arts, 2016