Dirty Substance

Wang Jianwei’s solo exhibition “Dirty Substance” will be on display at Long March Space from September 19 to November 1, 2015. As a comprehensive display of the artist’s “rehearsals,” the exhibition is a true record of the artist’s work over the past two to three years, but also a continuation of his constant skepticism of what is already there, presenting a meaningful change. This exhibition, as a comprehensive display of the artist’s “rehearsals”, is not only a true record of the artist’s work in the past two to three years, but also a continuation of his constant skepticism towards the existing things, showing meaningful changes. The “Dirty Substance”, i.e. “unclean” things, are questions about “clean” things; questions about what is known and what is right, about things in the course of time, waiting to be “cleaned”. The question of what is known, of what is right, is about how things in the course of time are waiting to be “cleaned” – to be identified and recognized. “Dirty Substance” emphasizes the state of things in limbo, which are in the process of being created and cannot be ‘cleanly’ stripped away by the rules and standards of the present, or, in other words, cannot be fully absorbed by the present. As the artist puts it, “any object, or event, is always related to an open-ended choice that maintains the wholeness of what it is or what it is not, regardless of whether it is consistent or not, i.e., the reality of an oxymoron itself”. How is this process of paradoxical integrity rehearsed and how is it presented? For this reason, the exhibition site will synchronize the artist’s thinking about this “deadlock” and its form, while the works themselves, using a variety of media such as installation, sculpture, painting, performance, etc. to practice the artist’s exploration.

In the afternoon of September 19th, during the opening ceremony of “Dirty Substance”, the group “Crystalline”, founded by the artist, will present a new kind of theater practice on the spot. The “Crystalline” group is an open-ended group composed of irregular members who work in the form of discussions, readings, talks, performances, and interactions with the audience, which is a new and comprehensive way of doing things. Due to the uncertainty of time, space, and topic, the group’s work can be extended and changed in different environments like “crystals”. This exhibition is the first time the group has been presented to the public. In the afternoon of the same day, a new book compiled by Lu Mingjun, the academic critic of the exhibition, will also be released to the public, encompassing Wang Jianwei’s own thoughts on the stages of his work in the last few years, as well as Lu Mingjun’s textual contributions after in-depth discussions with him.