Exhibition, Performance
Tianzhuo Chen
The Shepherd
Plunge into a celebration that blurs the lines between art, religion, and subculture!
Trailblazing Chinese millennial artist Tianzhuo Chen is a master in crossing and combining genres and media, freely mixing fields like performance, film, design, fashion and electronic music. Chen’s performances often mutate into independent video works, which in turn create new performative settings in combination with objects, paintings and spaces. For this year’s festival, his new exhibition draws on multiple older works such as ISHVARA and An Atypical Brain Damage while the installation in the main room is dedicated to his recent movie The Dust. The Shepherd transforms a sprawling gallery into a festive space where mystical religious ritual meets rave. The title of the exhibition is based on the figure of the shepherd, which is used in many religions as a metaphor for the search for lost souls and thus as a starting point for spiritual transformation. On the opening weekend, Chen also creates two three-hour-long live music and DJ performances, sure to guide the audience to a higher state of entrancement.
Artists:
10.2 (Sat) ☞ Eartaker, Prettybwoy, VMO (a.k.a. Violent Magic Orchestra)
10.3 (Sun) ☞ Mars89, VMO (a.k.a. Violent Magic Orchestra), ¥ØU$UK€ ¥UK1MAT$U
*10.1(Fri) 16:00–20:00
The special preview of the exhibition for Nuit Blanche Kyoto
Age limit and other information:
• No admission for performances audiences aged 12 and under.
• The exhibition is closed to the general public on October 2nd and 3rd due to preparations for the performances. Ticket holders to the performances may view the exhibition at the venue once doors open at 15:30.
• Please note the performance is standing only and there are no seats. Social distancing between audience members and measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19 will be followed.
Tianzhuo Chen
China
Born in 1985, Chen graduated with a degree in Graphic Design from Central Saint Martins and a master’s degree in Fine Art from Chelsea College of Art in London before returning to China in 2012. After a string of exhibitions in China, Chen’s first overseas exhibition took place at the Palais de Tokyo in Paris in 2015. Chen produces visual art as well as performance work. His objects, performances and video works use colorful, grotesque and kitsch imagery, with direct references to Asian spiritualism, LGBT iconographies, Butoh dance, voguing and club culture, touching upon themes from consumerism to transcendence and forging a connection between a collapse of moral attitudes and beliefs that surround us. Chen’s work interweaves precisely scripted stories, thoughts and political statements with ritualized happenings of self-empowerment related to contemporary club and counterculture.
☞ Exhibition
Artistic Direction, Concept: Tianzhuo Chen
Lighting: Akihiko Tanida
Technical Adviser: Masaya Natsume
Coordination: Kyoto City University of Arts Art Gallery@KCUA
(Mitsuhiro Kishimoto, Mizuho Fujita)
☞ Performance
Direction: Tianzhuo Chen
Stage Manager: Yuhi Kobayashi
Lighting: Akihiko Tanida
Sound: Bunsho Nishikawa, Ryo Yoshida
Technical Adviser: Masaya Natsume
Coordination: Tsubasa Shimizu (KANKARA Inc.)
Organized and produced by Kyoto Experiment, Kyoto City University of Arts Art Gallery @KCUA
Production Management: partner in crime
Supported by The Agency for Cultural Affairs Government of Japan
through the Japan Arts Council and National Arts Council
Presented by Kyoto Experiment, Kyoto City University of Arts
Participating program in Nuit Blanche KYOTO 2021
