Guan Wei was born in 1957, in Beijing, a descendant of Manchu nobility under the Qing Dynasty.
He graduated in 1986 from the Department of Fine Arts at Beijing's Capital University. He first visited Australia in early 1989 to undertake a two-month residency at the Tasmanian School of Art. He returned home to witness the atrocities of Tiananmen Square.
The Tasmanian School of Art invited Guan Wei back to Australia in 1990 and he applied for permanent residence under the Distinguished Talent Scheme. In 1993 he was granted Australian residency. During these early years in Australia his paintings underwent obvious stylistic changes. His colour palette began to reflect the strong colours of Australia, his forms became increasingly graphic and simplified. Australian animals and western icons were incorporated into his search for a unique visual language that would combine his Chinese cultural background with his new home.
His themes evolved to include colonisation, migration and the plight of refugees. He stated in 2005 "The longer I live in Australia the more involved I become. I sometimes think what if I had gone to Europe or to America instead? I can't imagine what my work would be like because my work is really about what is happening here. Or if I was still in China my work would be totally different. For some artists they would be doing the same things but I am very sensitive to the culture and the responsibilities to this land and these people."
Since 2008 Guan Wei spends his time between Beijing and Sydney, living and working in both cities, and his artworks continue to address what are now seen as international themes: migration, refugee plight, identity, environmental and social issues, politics and rapidly changing global economies. His artworks are laced with wisdom, humour and beauty. They draw upon what can now be seen as his 'trademark' set of symbolic forms: plump pale figures, floating clouds, oceans, Chinese landscape painting motifs, maps, isobar patterns and sea serpents; that are then interlaced with his current themes.
In this exhibition he is showing three bodies of work from 2013 to 2016: Reflection, Beyond the Horizon, and Untitled. The paintings in Reflection "superimpose, reflect and mix the history and reality, culture and society of the country in which I found myself, together with my personal imagination and my home country's history, travelling through time." [Artist statement]
Guan Wei has won many awards and commissions, including the 2015 Arthur Guy Memorial Painting Prize and the 2013 entrance mural at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney. He has held many solo exhibitions [this is his 67th] and has been included in numerous group exhibitions. His artworks, including paintings, sculptures and installations, are held in multiple public, corporate and private collections in Australia and overseas.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
- TURNER GALLERIES | showcasing contemporary art
at 470 WILLIAM STREET NORTHBRIDGE WESTERN AUSTRALIA 6003 - TURNER GALLERIES HAS NOW CLOSED.
This website is an archived record of the exhibitions and artwork shown at the gallery. - Turner Galleries acknowledges the Whadjuk Nyoongar people as the Traditional Owners of the lands and waters where Turner Galleries is situated, and pay our respect to Elders past, present and emerging.
- Website © 2000-2024 TURNER GALLERIES. All images are © the artists and are not to be used without permission.
- This is a millapede project.
