Exhibitions and Events

For the third time, Schoeni Art Gallery will be presenting Nuibi, an exhibition dedicated to artists of the generation born in the 1980's. Nuibi is a label that Nicole Schoeni launched to explore artistic creation in China among young artists of similar age but with different levels of establishment, different focuses and media. Aside from unveiling emerging talents and bringing to Hong Kong already established young artists, Nuibi is an opportunity to appreciate the visual culture this generation of artists, the same one s the gallery director herself, refer to and partake in, regardless of market or stage of their career.

This generation is the offspring of China's one child policy, this age group is referred to as the China's 'Me' generation and consists of individuals who have been heavily influenced by the internet, social networks, blogs, smart phones, comics, video games, digitalisation, and globalisation. The term 'nuibi', a Beijing youth slang word, refers to this new cultural context the artists grew up into. Indeed, their common denominator and difference with their elder is the focus of their work, which is their own personal lenses and often experience. This much-anticipated exhibition is the sequel to the ground-breaking Niubi Newbie Kids in 2008 and Niubi Newbie Kids II in 2009, which notably featured such acclaimed artists as Chen Fei and Zhou Jinhua along with some recent graduates such as Fu Yingying and Zheng Jiang, who distinguished themselves as the top students in Liu Xiaodong's class.

This year Generation Me: Lost in Transition – Niubi Newbie Project explores life passages and the questions they raise to the individual. Through their works, the three artists convey different experiences and stances. Liu Guangguang illustrates the growing pains of adolescence and of becoming an adult, mentally and physically. The deer's antlers, appearances of maturation, are developed to cope with lingering insecurities, confusion and fear. Zhang Qiang dwells on the meaning of labour for an artist. A student coming from the countryside and having experienced farming labour, books replaced tools as an access to a "better life", only for the artist to find himself faced with the reality and difficulty of how to "build" ones artistic career, which his academic training did not cover. Han Yajuan depicts the materialistic ideal of the society she lives in through the feminine glance. Her characters' identity is expressed through brand names, attributes of social success, their activities often reflecting professional success. Their eyes are closed though, a comment on the pursuit of consumerism and its emptiness.

Through their works, each artist expresses with raw originality and youthful energy his or her unique experiences, feelings, aspirations, and frustrations, having in common to live in a urban setting and having chosen a profession with challenges in a society undergoing rapid changes.

Born in 1980 in Qingdao, Shandong Province, Han Yajuan trained at the China Academy of Art in Hangzhou and at the Oil Painting Department of the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing, from which she obtained her B.A. and M.F.A. in 2002 and 2008, respectively. Works to be showcased in the exhibition include her latest pieces from 2011, paintings such asJamais vu, and Regimented Chic from her first ever series of sculptures. Her sharp and elegant female characters rendered in anime aesthetics illustrate her translation of the ideal life for young ladies of her generation. Empowered by work, independent and free from gender discrimination, they express their individuality and build confidence through personal fashion choices. Han Yajuan currently lives and works in Beijing.

Born in 1986 in Gansu Province, Liu Guangguang trained at the Visual Communication Design Department of Lu Xun Academy of Fine Arts in Liaoning Province, graduating in 2009. Works to be showcased include Hiding in a Corner Series No. 2 and Rainbow and Deer. His oil paintings depict a deer in different stages of maturity, hence the presence or absence of antlers, in unnatural and chaotic urban settings. His works symbolise the pain and melancholy of growing up in today’s confusing modern world. Liu Guangguang currently lives and works in Beijing.

Born in 1982 in Handan, Hebei Province, Zhang Qiang was trained at the Hebei Normal University from which he graduated in 2006. The exhibition will feature his installation pieces including his Labour Series, which is the artist’s personal reflection on the concept of “labour” and how his childhood experiences of physical labour in the fields compare to the present day labour with a job in the city. As the artist asks: why must everyone have a job after growing up? This is perhaps one question that everyone asks themselves at least once in a life time but will never have the perfect answer to. Zhang Qiang currently lives and works in Beijing.