Senies of Work ~ 3 .Utensil & Anti-Utensil
“All art (after Duchamp) is conceptual (in nature) because art only exists conceptually.”─ Joseph Kosuth
NO.1501~1507 not a tool 2015 beech wood Set of seven
NO.1805 not a tool 2018 Xiao Nanmu 33x7x10cm
NO.1805 not a tool 2018 Xiao Nanmu 33x7x10cm
NO.1806 not a tool 2018 Xiao Nanmu 41x10x16cm
1.Unreadable book and anti-object, creativity is actually driven by artistic concepts. On a broad overview of Ping-Cheng LIANG’s complete series of works, we will come to realize that he is an artist who actually practicing thoughts. After the “Gravity Release” series, LIANG comes up with an innovative concept “Inverted Aesthetics”.
NO.1503 square table 2015 camphor wood 50x50x45cm
Tofu 2016 Xiao Nanmu 30x30x15cm
2.The concept “Inverted Aesthetics” is developed when LIANG observing people making utensils when the functionality comes first then the aesthetics. However, along with development of times and progress, the old ones are replaced by the more advanced new ones and gradually lose its practical functions. However, it is at this moment that its potential beauty suddenly emerged. Thinking reversely, LIANG deprived the practical aspect of utensils and remade their brand-new figures with beauty.
big black hawk 2014 camphor wood 185x76x55cm
blackhawk 2010 camphor wood 173x55x53cm
3.Following this concept, LIANG has created various objects without its original functions such as unreadable books and un-sittable chairs. In the aspect of making art, each of LIANG’s wooden sculptures remains the texture of carving and chiseling marks which indicate the artist’s actual practice of carving wood. Up to date, all kinds of challenges he has gone through make him realized the importance of “following the carving rhythm and flow”.
fertile triangle 2006 Camphor & cypress 135x80x70cm
saddle 2006 Xiao Nanmu 110x60x60cm
blessing utensil 2011 beech wood 25x10x9cm
4.At the beginning of the 20th century, Duchamp’s “ready-made” concept exploded like Pandora’s box. LIANG had been somehow influenced by this trend and began to be interested practical objects like spoons, forks and all kinds of daily necessities. Following the concept of “Inverted Aesthetics”, he deprived these necessities with its functionalities but visually kept a kind of ambiguous features, such as the concave contour of a spoon to intrigue viewers and to make artworks more interesting and more innovative.
