Bangkok--2 Apr--TQPR
Galerie Quynh is pleased to present 8 Hearts – an exhibition of new and recent work by Vietnamese-French artist Truc-Anh.
For his third solo exhibition at the gallery, Truc-Anh tells a complex and nuanced story of transformation and awakening. The artist's practice has always been defined by his navigation of parallel terrains – the tension between personal histories and age-old wisdoms, between an egocentric need to succeed and the Buddhist philosophy of being selfless. The title of the show exemplifies these dynamics, being a reference to the video games of Truc-Anh's childhood while also alluding to metaphysical dimensions.
Inspired by a series of ritual events he experienced recently in Nepal, the artist ruminates on the theme of mortality in 8 Hearts – the exhibition an imagining of a journey through the afterlife. Seen this way, the entrance of the exhibition can be considered as a sort of threshold to cross over – between the past and the present, between one world and another. A giant sculpture of an all- seeing eye – a familiar concept in many religions symbolizing lucidity – casts its gazes at eight small drawings of the personifications of the artist's fears and dreams. The creature from the Japanese horror cinema classic Ringumakes a cameo as does the fighter Oni from the video game Street Fighter.
Truc-Anh's paintings, drawings and sculptures – whether appearing sparse and quiet, or posing as dense visual riddles – attempt to portray the continual shifts from the corporeal to the astral and back. The idea of perpetual motion shines through elements taken from the lore of both ancient mythology and modern popular culture as well as from the artist's own experiences. In particular, the symmetrical number eight – representing a perfect loop and infinity – appears in many of the works whilereferences to rebirth, healing and impermanence interspersed with images of the ego, vanity and conceit are also prevalent.
Towards the conclusion of 8 Hearts, a sculpture of Anubis, the Egyptian deity of the dead, keeps watch over a slowly spinning circle. Ancient Egyptians believed that one's passage to the afterlife could only be gained if one's heart was deemed to be worthy, true, light as a feather. And it is Anubis – suspended between two worlds – who carries out this weighing of the heart. While 8 Hearts touches on deeply personal truths experienced by the artist, it is also a wondrous journey filled with allegory relevant to our everyday existence.
ABOUT TRUC-ANH
Born in 1983 in Paris, Truc-Anh studied at École Boulle, École Superieure des Arts Appliques, Paris; ECAL, Haute École d'Art et de Design, Lausanne, Switzerland; and La Cambre, École Nationale Superieure des Arts Visuels, Brussels, Belgium. He has received awards for his work including the Prix Manganel (Lausanne, Switzerland) and Laureate of the Prix Photo Europa (France). Truc-Anh's solo exhibitions include Le Celeste du Terrestre, Galerie Sator, Paris, France; Horizon of Unreason, curated by Isabelle Le Normand and Pierre Lefort, Baert Gallery, Los Angeles, USA; The Quantic Family, Tongerlohuys Museum, Roosendaal, Netherlands; and Vacuphilia, Pacific Design Center, Los Angeles, CA. He has participated in numerous group exhibitions such as The Foliage, Vincom Center for Contemporary Art (VCCA), Hanoi, Vietnam; Technophobia, The Factory Contemporary Arts Centre, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam; Tentoonstelling: Sounds of Silence (De stem van de stilte), Museum CODA, Apeldoorn, the Netherlands; Solo Project Art Fair, Basel; Drawing Now Art Fair,
Paris; and Delhi Photo Festival, New Delhi. Truc-Anh lives and works between Ho Chi Minh City and Paris.
ABOUT GALERIE QUYNH
Recognized as Vietnam's leading contemporary art gallery, Galerie Quynh has been promoting contemporary art practice in the country for almost two decades. The gallery is known internationally for its consistently focused programming and educational initiatives. Working with a select group of emerging, mid-career and established Vietnamese artists, the gallery also exhibits the work of distinguished artists from around the world. In keeping with its mission to develop a sustainable ecosystem for the arts in Vietnam, the gallery collaborates with artists, curators, museums and art spaces locally and internationally to organize talks and lectures as well as to produce publications in English and Vietnamese. In May 2014 the gallery founded the non-profit educational initiative Sao La. Spearheaded by Ho ChiMinh City-based artists Nguyen Kim To Lan and Nguyen Duc Dat, Sao La currently comprises a young, diverse group of passionate creatives working loosely as acollective.
A new chapter began in December 2017 when the gallery moved to a 600 sqm space in Dakao, District 1. Spread over four floors, the gallery will be able to producemore ambitious programming and play an even more vital role in the cultural community. www.galeriequynh.com
Artist: Truc-Anh
Exhibition Title: 8 Hearts
Exhibition Dates: April 6 – May 12, 2018
Opening Reception: Friday, April 6, 2018, from 6:30 – 8:30pm Venue: Galerie Quynh
118 Nguyen Van Thu, Dakao, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City
Contacts: Ms. Celine Alexandre –
[email protected]
Ms. Nguyen Khanh Huyen –
[email protected]
Telephone: +84 28 3822 7218
Hours: 10 am – 7 pm, Tuesday – Saturday, and by appointment