Yao Jui-chung solo exhibition - every form is an illusion

DURATION: 2024-06-14 ~ 2024-06-30
OPENING: 0000-00-00 00:00-AM
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Curator : Gloria Demichelis
The exhibition "Every Form Is an Illusion" invites reflection on the divergent cosmologies that shape perceptions of our common world, while illuminating the endurance of memory and identity through archival practice. Taking inspiration from Buddhism's illusory nature of reality, the exhibition explores the intricate interplay between archives, perception, memory, and identity. The series invites visitors explore of the essence of the artworks from the individual element to the series on its own, witness of the artist's spiritual and physical journey. Featuring a painting and three distinct collections of Yao's photographic memories, including never-before-seen pieces, the exhibition offers a glimpse into his deep exploration of the human condition, tradition, and culture. Furthermore, a display of the artist's collection of Taiwanese lucky charms will offer an insight into the length of his research, travels and how religion influenced his life.
According to the Mahayana Buddhist sutra Śūraṅgama Sūtra Buddhism, reality is considered illusory, not in the sense that it is something that doesn’t exist, but rather to the extent that human perceptions and preconditions make it hard to see the true nature of the real existence of things. “Illusion” in Buddhism also refers to the state of the emptiness of the intrinsic existence of things, and in our case, how the state of an entity is dependent on our perception of it. Recognizing these teachings of how diverse backgrounds and experiences shape our perception of reality, I will invite viewers to delve into these elements from a singular to a part of a bigger archive, and to appreciate the different cultural aspects unveiled through Yao Jui-Chung's artworks.
The exhibition underlines the methodology of the artist in researching and collecting photos found on the way through his non-stop physical and spiritual journey around Taiwan and Asia. During this pilgrimage around ruins and forgotten places, from the top of mountains to the deep search for hell, he created a priceless archive of thousands of photos linked to the human condition, tradition, culture and Taiwanese identity. Three different collections of these memories, some of which have never been displayed in public before, will be displayed in the exhibition to show how his archive contextualizes different types of targeted research and modalities of sharing. A painting, part of a recent series Invidia, will furthermore investigate how his research on taking from symbology from the past from different cultures and how he re-contextualizes in a contemporary means. In addition, a personal collection of his protective talismans gathered from Taiwanese temples will be displayed. A collection that grew over the years and many also travelled along with the artist on his journey will offer an insight into the length of his research, travels and how religion influenced his life.
The exhibition will invite everyone to be part of this journey, to discover something unusual, re-discover something familiar under a new lens, and bring home a new consciousness about the perception of things.