DOUBLETHINK: KATA LEGRADY AND WANG LUYAN
Kata Legrady Pineapple (Multicolor) 2008 C-Print on diasec 221 x 180 x 2.8 cm Bringing together new and recent paintings, photographs, sculptures and installations by Hungarian artist Kata Legrady and Mainland Chinese artist Wang Luyan, Doublethink playfully exposes the paradoxes of a world defined by unchecked consumption and an ongoing cycle of vengeance and violence. Taken from George Orwell’s dystopian novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, the exhibition’s title describes a mental maneuver in which contradictions are neutralized through self-deception and willed forgetting. Doublethink marks the first time that Legrady and Wang are presenting their work to Hong Kong audiences.
Kata Legrady and Wang Luyan have more in common than one might initially assume. As artists who came of age immersed in the powerful propaganda of Communist Hungary and China’s Cultural Revolution, respectively, Legrady and Wang share an aptitude for manipulating iconic forms and an abiding distrust for overreaching ideologies. Like all children educated under the Soviet model, they both wore the red neckerchiefs of the Young Pioneers—a mandatory, Communist-themed youth club that, for Legrady, also meant firearms training and marksmanship competitions. Throughout their educations, Legrady and Wang were encouraged to focus their talents on “objective” pursuits, excelling in mathematics and geometry, skills that are now reflected in their careful draftsmanship. Both engaged in additional training that requires exactitude: Legrady studying voice as a operatic soprano, Wang becoming a mechanical engineer who was also involved in the experimental and activist art practices of China’s late 1970s and 1980s. Today, both artists can recall a common set of references that, once unquestionable, crumbled in the late 1980s with the “fall” of the Soviet Bloc and wholesale transformation of Mainland China. The revolutionary countries of their youths now exist only in memory.
Wang Luyan Caged Freedom 2009 acrylic on canvas 200 x 400 cm With her large-scale photographs of flower-encrusted bullets and candy-coated landmines, Kata Legrady links terms usually considered antagonistic. Beauty and violence, childhood games and warfare, conspicuous consumption and mass destruction are just three of the uneasily aligned dyads that emerge through her striking juxtapositions. Handguns are covered in a rainbow of colorful treats, or wrapped in bank notes to suggest that capital can be a deadly weapon. While Legrady unites contradictory elements in her creations, Wang Luyan’s work draws from the visual language of engineering and design to reveal the paradoxes we live by and the relativism of our value systems. Throughout Wang’s oeuvre, there are no victors: every action simultaneously triggers its opposite. In W Birdcage OnOff D12-01 (2012), a caged bird is trapped by an elaborate system of pulleys, assuring that any attempt to free it is immediately neutralized by countervailing forces.
Pairing the allure of luxury with the tragedy of mass casualties, Legrady coats what appears to be a bomb—its shape echoing “Little Boy,” the atomic bomb American forces dropped on Hiroshima in 1945—in a glossy pink lacquer inspired by a designer lipstick shade to create Chanel 217 (pink bomb), 2011. In Wang’s works, war never brings the promised stability, while religion begets bloodshed rather than peace. Reminiscent of Picabia’s machinist paintings (c. 1915–1922), Wang’s exacting paintings of wristwatches, such W Global Watch (2011), reflect the inseparability of national forces caught in the checkmate of posturing and reciprocal aggression. Such works demonstrate what Wang calls “gear logic”—sets of interlocking power relations in which the geopolitical maneuvers of one country necessitates the repositioning of all others. This stalemate condition is generalized in sculptures such as Wang’s Sawing or Being Sawed? D13-01 (2013).
Neither artist condones violence, celebrates guns or seeks to minimize the consequences of living in world made dangerous by the technologies of war. No good can ever come of Wang’s oversized W Fire at Both Ends Automatic Handgun D13–02 (2013). Like all of the firearms in Wang’s works, it has been redesigned to shoot in both directions when the trigger is pulled, assuring mutual destruction. Legrady’s Government Balancoir “Pink Dollar” (2012), an enormous handgun emblazoned with a US dollar bill and outfitted with a custom-made Hermès saddle, invites us to ride our consumer obsessions toward a fatal end. Throughout the exhibition, both Legrady and Wang transform weapons and a variety of symbols into artistic material in order to reveal the doublethink that perpetuates the bloodshed around us.
Kata Legrady Government Balancoir "Pink Dollar" 2012 Synthetic resin, laminated, original saddle (Hermès) 152 x 237 x 37 cm
About the Artists Kata Legrady trained as a lyric opera singer at the Pécs Music Conservatory and studied drama at the Gor Nagy Maria Drama School, participating in various musical and film projects before launching her career in the visual arts. Since 2010, she has been making and exhibiting her work throughout Europe and beyond. Legrady has been featured in several group exhibitions, including Le Cabinet de Curiosités de Thomas Erber (Browns, London, 2011 and Andreas Murkudis, Berlin, 2012); Le Luxe, mode d'emploi, (Passage de Retz, Paris, 2012); Hybride 2 (Ancien Hôpital Général, Douai. 2013) and the upcoming Caravana Negra (La Bocca, Buenos Aires, 2013). Recent solo exhibitions include Bombs & Candies and Masks & Guns (Galerie Rabouan Moussion, Paris 2010 and 2011); Kata Legrady (Galerie Pari Nadimi, Toronto, 2011); Kata Legrady (Fondazione Mudima, Milano 2011); Bombs and Candies – dulce et decorum (Denkerei Bazon Brock, Berlin 2012); Bombs and Candies (Kulturstiftung Marienmünster, 2013). In 2014, her work will be presented in solo exhibitions at ZKM Center for Art and Media (Karlsruhe) and the Käthe-Kollwitz-Museum (Berlin). To compliment the Hong Kong Arts Centre exhibition, Legrady and Wang have a concurrent exhibition on view at Pékin Fine Arts (Hong Kong).
Wang Luyan has been a key figure in the development of contemporary Chinese art since the late 1970s, when the movement began. He exhibited with the Stars group in Beijing in 1979 and participated in the historic China / Avant-garde exhibition at the National Art Museum of China in 1989. With Chen Shaoping and Gu Dexin, Wang also co-founded the New Measurement Group, an experimental collective active from 1988 to 1995. His work has been included in many important international exhibitions, including the Second Asia Pacific Triennial (Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane, 1996); Inside Out: New Chinese Art (Asia Society and P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center, New York, 1998); the First Guangzhou Triennial (2002); Hyper-Design, the Sixth Shanghai Biennale (2006); ’85 New Wave: The Birth of Chinese Contemporary Art (Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing, 2007) and the Busan Biennale (2008 and 2010). Recent solo exhibitions include Sawing or Being Sawed (Arario Beijing, 2007); Wang Luyan: The Other Side of Totality (JoyArt, Beijing, 2008); Wang Luyan (Total Museum, Seoul, Korea, 2010), Wang Luyan (Galerie RX, Paris, 2011) and Diagramming Allegory (Parkview Green, Beijing, 2013). To compliment the Hong Kong Arts
Wang Luyan W D13-05 2013 acrylic on canvas 20.4 x 28.5 x 8 cm
Kata Legrady Chanel 217 (pink bomb) 2011 Synthetic resin and wood, Chanel 217-colored lacquer, mounted 221 x 180 x 2.8 cm
About the Curator David Spalding is an American curator, critic and editor based in Beijing. He has organized solo exhibitions with artists ranging from Mona Hatoum and Feng Mengbo to Navin Rawanchaikul and Lawrence Weiner, as well as numerous group exhibitions and related public programs. Previously, he was curator at the Ullens Center for Contemporary Art. A prolific writer whose art criticism was honored with an award from the Andy Warhol Foundation | Creative Capital, Spalding’s work appears regularly in exhibition catalogues, monographs and periodicals that include Artforum and Frieze. He has served as a contributing editor for Art Papers, Contemporary and Flash Art International magazines and was the founding editor-in-chief of ARTINFO China. His latest booklength project, King of Kowloon: The Art of Tsang Tsou-choi is forthcoming from Damiani Press (2013). Spalding sits on the Academic Advisory Board of the Asia Art Archive (Hong Kong) and is a member of San Francisco Camerawork’s Curatorial Advisory Committee.
Wang Luyan W Isometric Exchange Syringe 180:180 ml 2010 Acrylic on Canvas 300 x 200 cm
Kata Legrady Bullet series 2012 C - Print, on diasec 300 x 100 x 2.8 cm
Wang Luyan Global Watch series 2012 Acrylic on Canvas 150 x 150 cm
"Doublethink" Kata Legrady and Wang Luyan Opening Reception Hong Kong Arts Centre Oct 24, 2013
"Doublethink" Kata Legrady and Wang Luyan Hong Kong Arts Centre Oct 24 - Nov 11, 2013
"Doublethink" Kata Legrady and Wang Luyan Hong Kong Arts Centre Oct 24 - Nov 11, 2013
Doublethink: Kata Legrady and Wang Luyan Works List
Doublethink: Kata Legrady and Wang Luyan Works List
Kata Legrady Mickey and Minnie 2012 Electronic revolving music box. Aluminum and synthetic resin, lacquered; push-button operation 225 x 202.5 x 202.5 cm
Kata Legrady Pineapple (multicolor) 2008 C-print on diasec 234 x 193 x 9 cm (framed)
Kata Legrady Chanel 217 (pink bomb) 2011 Synthetic resin and wood, Chanel 217-colored lacquer, mounted on platform with plexiglas 185 x 500 x 136 cm (with platform)
Kata Legrady Government Balancoir “Pink Dollar” 2012 Synthetic resin, lacquered metal, original saddle by Hermès 153 x 237 x 37 cm
Kata Legrady Government "Blue Saddle" 2012 Synthetic resin, laminated, original mini-saddle by Hermès 162 x 140 x 85 cm (with pedestal)
Kata Legrady Cheval à bascule 2011 lacquered beechwood 80 x 124 x 39 cm Platform dimensions: 30 x 150 x 70 cm
8
Government "Blue Saddle" 2012 Synthetic resin, laminated, original mini-saddle by Hermès 162 x 140 x 85 cm (with pedestal)
Kata Legrady Cheval à bascule 2011 lacquered beechwood 80 x 124 x 39 cm Platform dimensions: 30 x 150 x 70 cm
Doublethink: Kata Legrady and Wang Luyan Works List
Kata Legrady Skull "Flower" 1 2013 C-print on diasec 184 x 150 x 2.8 cm
Kata Legrady Bullet "Flower" (multicolor) 2012 C-print on diasec 300 x 100 x 2.8 cm
Kata Legrady Bullet "Flower" (apricot) 2012 C-print on diasec 300 x 100 x 2.8 cm
Kata Legrady Bullet "Pink Heart" 2012 C-print on diasec 300 x 100 x 2.8 cm
Kata Legrady Bullet "Stars and Stripes" 2012 C-print on diasec 300 x 100 x 2.8 cm
Kata Legrady Mickey, Pearl Harbor 8 2013 C-print on diasec 174 x 125 x 2.8 cm 9
Kata Legrady Bullet "Stars and Stripes" 2012 C-print on diasec 300 x 100 x 2.8 cm
Doublethink: Kata Legrady and Wang Luyan Works List
Kata Legrady Mickey, Pearl Harbor 8 2013 C-print on diasec 174 x 125 x 2.8 cm
Kata Legrady Mickey, Pearl Harbor 9 2011 C-print on diasec 174 x 125 x 2.8 cm
2
Kata Legrady Mine (yellow) 2013 C-print on diasec 150 x 150 x 2.8 cm
Kata Legrady Government 10 Hong Kong Dollars 2013 C-print on diasec 180 x 300 x 2.8 cm
Kata Legrady Government 100 Renminbi 2013 C-print on diasec 180 x 300 x 2.8 cm
10
Doublethink: Kata Legrady and Wang Luyan Works List Wang Luyan W Global Watch D12-01 2012 acrylic on canvas 150 x 150 cm
Wang Luyan W Libya Watch D11-01 2011 acrylic on canvas 150 x 150 cm
Wang Luyan W Global Watch D12-03 2012 acrylic on canvas 150 x 150 cm
Wang Luyan W Time Zones Watch D12-03 2012 acrylic on canvas 150 x 150 cm
Wang Luyan Caged Freedom 2009 acrylic on canvas 200 x 400 cm
Wang Luyan W Caged Freedom D11-01 2011 acrylic on canvas 80 x 300 cm
4 11
Doublethink: Kata Legrady and Wang Luyan Works List Wang Luyan W Birdcage OnOff D12-01 2012 acrylic on canvas 250 x 300 cm
Wang Luyan W Double Standards Syringe 80:100ml 2010 acrylic on canvas 300 x 200 cm
Wang Luyan W Non-Isometric Exchange Syringe 135:135ml 2010 acrylic on canvas 300 x 200 cm
Wang Luyan W Isometric Exchange Syringe 180:180ml 2010 acrylic on canvas 300 x 200 cm
Wang Luyan W Inner Circle Syringe 135:135ml 2010 acrylic on canvas 300 x 200 cm
Wang Luyan Sawing or Being Sawed? D13-01 2013 Steel 173 x 78 x 70 cm
5 12
Doublethink: Kata Legrady and Wang Luyan Works List Wang Luyan W Fire at Both Ends Automatic Handgun D13-02 2013 Brushed stainless steel c. 136 x 220 x 45 cm (with built-in platform)
Wang Luyan Symmetry of Violence 2008 acrylic on canvas 200 x 200 cm
Wang Luyan W Fire at Both Ends Automatic Handgun 2013 installation (30 paintings, all acrylic on canvas, various sizes) Overall dimensions variable
6 13