Artist Statement
2
Artist Statement
2
Artist Statement
2
LIN ZHU
LIN ZHU
LIN ZHU
My work is to explore the relationship between people and plants with plants as the carrier. In my life, there has always been the shadow of plants, such as the garden in my childhood memory home, I will collect plants mixed with books, as well as the education of Chinese culture from childhood and so on. I started to formally create plants in 2014, mainly focusing on painting. After coming to London, I subjectively began to have a variety of media attempts. I tried to make some new breakthroughs and attempts in materials, and I began to be more interested in using collage and sculpture to express this theme. In the first unit, I made some small collages and models about the garden. In my opinion, people can't leave the city, but they need a spiritual sustenance. The garden of the city becomes the habitat of the spirit.
I will be in unit 2, I will be specific to the relationship between people and plants in the indoor environment. The relationship between human beings and family plants is a relationship of dependence and care. Plants can arouse a kind of sympathy. In terms of materials, I chose cloth collage. As described by Magdalena Abakanowicz, a Polish Artist: "fabric is our covering and our attire. Made with our hands, it is a record of our souls.". This kind of temperature is also what I like to convey to the audience. People and plants are interdependent, and plants can comfort people's hearts.
My work is to explore the relationship between people and plants with plants as the carrier. In my life, there has always been the shadow of plants, such as the garden in my childhood memory home, I will collect plants mixed with books, as well as the education of Chinese culture from childhood and so on. I started to formally create plants in 2014, mainly focusing on painting. After coming to London, I subjectively began to have a variety of media attempts. I tried to make some new breakthroughs and attempts in materials, and I began to be more interested in using collage and sculpture to express this theme. In the first unit, I made some small collages and models about the garden. In my opinion, people can't leave the city, but they need a spiritual sustenance. The garden of the city becomes the habitat of the spirit.
I will be in unit 2, I will be specific to the relationship between people and plants in the indoor environment. The relationship between human beings and family plants is a relationship of dependence and care. Plants can arouse a kind of sympathy. In terms of materials, I chose cloth collage. As described by Magdalena Abakanowicz, a Polish Artist: "fabric is our covering and our attire. Made with our hands, it is a record of our souls.". This kind of temperature is also what I like to convey to the audience. People and plants are interdependent, and plants can comfort people's hearts.
My work is to explore the relationship between people and plants with plants as the carrier. In my life, there has always been the shadow of plants, such as the garden in my childhood memory home, I will collect plants mixed with books, as well as the education of Chinese culture from childhood and so on. I started to formally create plants in 2014, mainly focusing on painting. After coming to London, I subjectively began to have a variety of media attempts. I tried to make some new breakthroughs and attempts in materials, and I began to be more interested in using collage and sculpture to express this theme. In the first unit, I made some small collages and models about the garden. In my opinion, people can't leave the city, but they need a spiritual sustenance. The garden of the city becomes the habitat of the spirit.
I will be in unit 2, I will be specific to the relationship between people and plants in the indoor environment. The relationship between human beings and family plants is a relationship of dependence and care. Plants can arouse a kind of sympathy. In terms of materials, I chose cloth collage. As described by Magdalena Abakanowicz, a Polish Artist: "fabric is our covering and our attire. Made with our hands, it is a record of our souls.". This kind of temperature is also what I like to convey to the audience. People and plants are interdependent, and plants can comfort people's hearts.
Artist Statement
Artist Statement
Artist Statement
My work is to explore the relationship between people and plants with plants as the carrier. In my life, there has always been the shadow of plants, such as the garden in my childhood memory home, I will collect plants mixed with books, as well as the education of Chinese culture from childhood and so on. I started to formally create plants in 2014, mainly focusing on painting. After coming to London, I subjectively began to have a variety of media attempts. I tried to make some new breakthroughs and attempts in materials, and I began to be more interested in using collage and sculpture to express this theme. In the first unit, I made some small collages and models about the garden. In my opinion, people can't leave the city, but they need a spiritual sustenance. The garden of the city becomes the habitat of the spirit.
I will be in unit 2, I will be specific to the relationship between people and plants in the indoor environment. The relationship between human beings and family plants is a relationship of dependence and care. Plants can arouse a kind of sympathy. In terms of materials, I chose cloth collage. As described by Magdalena Abakanowicz, a Polish Artist: "fabric is our covering and our attire. Made with our hands, it is a record of our souls.". This kind of temperature is also what I like to convey to the audience. People and plants are interdependent, and plants can comfort people's hearts.
My work is to explore the relationship between people and plants with plants as the carrier. In my life, there has always been the shadow of plants, such as the garden in my childhood memory home, I will collect plants mixed with books, as well as the education of Chinese culture from childhood and so on. I started to formally create plants in 2014, mainly focusing on painting. After coming to London, I subjectively began to have a variety of media attempts. I tried to make some new breakthroughs and attempts in materials, and I began to be more interested in using collage and sculpture to express this theme. In the first unit, I made some small collages and models about the garden. In my opinion, people can't leave the city, but they need a spiritual sustenance. The garden of the city becomes the habitat of the spirit.
I will be in unit 2, I will be specific to the relationship between people and plants in the indoor environment. The relationship between human beings and family plants is a relationship of dependence and care. Plants can arouse a kind of sympathy. In terms of materials, I chose cloth collage. As described by Magdalena Abakanowicz, a Polish Artist: "fabric is our covering and our attire. Made with our hands, it is a record of our souls.". This kind of temperature is also what I like to convey to the audience. People and plants are interdependent, and plants can comfort people's hearts.
My work is to explore the relationship between people and plants with plants as the carrier. In my life, there has always been the shadow of plants, such as the garden in my childhood memory home, I will collect plants mixed with books, as well as the education of Chinese culture from childhood and so on. I started to formally create plants in 2014, mainly focusing on painting. After coming to London, I subjectively began to have a variety of media attempts. I tried to make some new breakthroughs and attempts in materials, and I began to be more interested in using collage and sculpture to express this theme. In the first unit, I made some small collages and models about the garden. In my opinion, people can't leave the city, but they need a spiritual sustenance. The garden of the city becomes the habitat of the spirit.
I will be in unit 2, I will be specific to the relationship between people and plants in the indoor environment. The relationship between human beings and family plants is a relationship of dependence and care. Plants can arouse a kind of sympathy. In terms of materials, I chose cloth collage. As described by Magdalena Abakanowicz, a Polish Artist: "fabric is our covering and our attire. Made with our hands, it is a record of our souls.". This kind of temperature is also what I like to convey to the audience. People and plants are interdependent, and plants can comfort people's hearts.
Education
·MA-Fine Arts: Painting,UAL : Camberwell College of Arts, UK
·MA-Oil Painting,Capital Normal University, China
·BA-Art&Design,Beijing University of Technology, China
work Experience
Art Teacher, Chen Jinglun Middle School, Beijing
exhibitions
Solo
Personal Exhibition of Zhu Lin`s Oil Painting, Joy City of Chaoyang , Beijing, China, 2017
“Colorful World” , Song Yang Art Gallery, Beijing, China, 2016
Zhu Lin photography exhibition, Beijing University of technology, Beijing, China, 2011
Group
“Distance to No. 2 Ganjiang West Road”: International Art Exhibition, Suzhou, China, 2019
“Back to The Perceptual” Cross-year Exhibition of Contemporary Art, Hangzhou, China, 2018
“Focus on China”: French Exhibition of Contemporary Artworks, France, Mar 2017
“Blooming space”: Invitational Exhibition, Ishikawa Gallery, Japan, 2017
Beijing Summer Exhibition 17, Enlai Art Gallery, Beijing, China, 2017
“Under the reality”: Young Joint Exhibition, Times Fangyuan Gallery, Beijing, China, 2017
“Hi Art” :New Art Fair, Liang Maqiao Residence, Beijing, China, 2017
Publication
Two Worlds: Diary of mobile phone photography, Jiangsu Phoenix Publisher, 2018
Awards
The Sixth Diary Painting of Chaoyang District, The First Prize, 2018
23rd National Calligraphy Painting Competition, The First Prize, 2018
Outstanding Student Scholarship at Beijing Capital Normal University, The First Class, 2015
Outstanding Student Scholarship at Beijing University of technology, The First Class, 2011
Education
·MA-Fine Arts: Painting,UAL : Camberwell College of Arts, UK
·MA-Oil Painting,Capital Normal University, China
·BA-Art&Design,Beijing University of Technology, China
work Experience
Art Teacher, Chen Jinglun Middle School, Beijing
exhibitions
Solo
Personal Exhibition of Zhu Lin`s Oil Painting, Joy City of Chaoyang , Beijing, China, 2017
“Colorful World” , Song Yang Art Gallery, Beijing, China, 2016
Zhu Lin photography exhibition, Beijing University of technology, Beijing, China, 2011
Group
“Distance to No. 2 Ganjiang West Road”: International Art Exhibition, Suzhou, China, 2019
“Back to The Perceptual” Cross-year Exhibition of Contemporary Art, Hangzhou, China, 2018
“Focus on China”: French Exhibition of Contemporary Artworks, France, Mar 2017
“Blooming space”: Invitational Exhibition, Ishikawa Gallery, Japan, 2017
Beijing Summer Exhibition 17, Enlai Art Gallery, Beijing, China, 2017
“Under the reality”: Young Joint Exhibition, Times Fangyuan Gallery, Beijing, China, 2017
“Hi Art” :New Art Fair, Liang Maqiao Residence, Beijing, China, 2017
Publication
Two Worlds: Diary of mobile phone photography, Jiangsu Phoenix Publisher, 2018
Awards
The Sixth Diary Painting of Chaoyang District, The First Prize, 2018
23rd National Calligraphy Painting Competition, The First Prize, 2018
Outstanding Student Scholarship at Beijing Capital Normal University, The First Class, 2015
Outstanding Student Scholarship at Beijing University of technology, The First Class, 2011
Education
·MA-Fine Arts: Painting,UAL : Camberwell College of Arts, UK
·MA-Oil Painting,Capital Normal University, China
·BA-Art&Design,Beijing University of Technology, China
work Experience
Art Teacher, Chen Jinglun Middle School, Beijing
exhibitions
Solo
Personal Exhibition of Zhu Lin`s Oil Painting, Joy City of Chaoyang , Beijing, China, 2017
“Colorful World” , Song Yang Art Gallery, Beijing, China, 2016
Zhu Lin photography exhibition, Beijing University of technology, Beijing, China, 2011
Group
“Distance to No. 2 Ganjiang West Road”: International Art Exhibition, Suzhou, China, 2019
“Back to The Perceptual” Cross-year Exhibition of Contemporary Art, Hangzhou, China, 2018
“Focus on China”: French Exhibition of Contemporary Artworks, France, Mar 2017
“Blooming space”: Invitational Exhibition, Ishikawa Gallery, Japan, 2017
Beijing Summer Exhibition 17, Enlai Art Gallery, Beijing, China, 2017
“Under the reality”: Young Joint Exhibition, Times Fangyuan Gallery, Beijing, China, 2017
“Hi Art” :New Art Fair, Liang Maqiao Residence, Beijing, China, 2017
Publication
Two Worlds: Diary of mobile phone photography, Jiangsu Phoenix Publisher, 2018
Awards
The Sixth Diary Painting of Chaoyang District, The First Prize, 2018
23rd National Calligraphy Painting Competition, The First Prize, 2018
Outstanding Student Scholarship at Beijing Capital Normal University, The First Class, 2015
Outstanding Student Scholarship at Beijing University of technology, The First Class, 2011
UNIT 2
Garden: the relationship between plants and humans
Although plants are very common in our daily life, Francis Hallé (2002), a plant economist, believes that "most people know nothing about plants and despise or ignore them." Everyone's experience is different. I always have a special feeling for plants. In my childhood memory, my mother planted many plants in the yard of my hometown. In every season, there will be flowers of different plants, roses in spring, jujubes in summer, Sweet-scented osmanthus in autumn and plum blossom in winter. The smell and shape of these plants make up my memory of my childhood. (Cathrine Degnen，2009) “when a particular plant is associated with a particular event in one's life, each plant has its own story. ” It makes people feel more intimate with plants than other things. Then, I began to think gradually, why do plants attract me so much? They are also living creatures on the earth. What's the connection between plants and people? At first, I went to Kew Garden to take photos and sketch. However, I don't think it can explain the relationship between people and plants that I want to know more about.
Last term, I went to the Conservatory in Barbican Art Center, which is a botanical garden in the center of the city. In the cold winter, especially in the tropical plant area, people seem to travel through the summer. To my surprise, the garden in the center of the city is not big, but it is full of people. I began to think about why botanical gardens are so popular? Do people depend on plants to some extent? According to Giovanni Aloi (2019), “a garden is essentially a kind of Utopia.” People control plants and show them what they think are beautiful according to their own wishes. At the same time, the garden can also have a range of functions and purposes for people. They are a place for conservation (Vernon Heywood, 2011), education and leisure (He He and Jin Chen, 2012). Therefore, to some extent, it can be understood that the garden is a kind of returning to the original state. The garden allows people to retreat from the noise, pollution, and chaos of big cities and return to nature. So, I think the plant is a subject that attracts me to explore more.
Then I referred to the works of some artists on the subject of plants, such as Judy Chicago, Anya Gallaccio, Jacques Nimki, Michael Landy, Joana Vasconcelos, etc. Among them, Jacques Nimki's works mainly focus on weeds and flowers to explore how people can observe their surroundings and themselves in a specific environment. His work Florilegium created an indoor weeds garden. He moved the weeds that are easy to be ignored from the outside to an abandoned factory in the center of the room. People seemed to walk in nature. In such a specific exhibition environment, we will start to think about the meaning of these plants.
Jacques Nimki– Florilegium, 2007, installation
I then experienced by creating my own garden series, which is very similar to what Nimki's works want to convey. I put plant sculptures on the ground where people can walk and interact with these mini plants. These cactus plants are made of soft materials. When you touch them, you will find that they lose their own characteristics. They are no longer spiky, they are not a symbol of danger, which makes it possible for people to recognize these plants again.
Lin Zhu– Garden, 2019, installation
Among the numerous works of art, Nam June Paik’s TV garden touched me a lot. He places the televisions alongside live plants and envisions a future landscape where technology is an integral part of the natural world. In this garden, there are people and plants living together, and their relationship is harmonious rather than conflicting. This is an ideal world for the future. Moreover, I also like the exhibition form of this work. The audience seems to walk in a garden full of TV and has a very intuitive experience.
Nam June Paik – TV Garden, 1974, video installation
In the exploration of materials, I personally prefer collage, because its effect is as interesting as surrealistic painting. “Collage is a medium that connects the past and the present,” and sometimes even let you see the future (Richard Brayton, 2004) Collage is the power that comes out of using unexpected materials, placing one material with another to create “a visual resonance for the audience.” (Norman Laliberte and Alex Mogelon, 1972) Among them, one of my favorite collage artists is Fred Tomaselli, whose works have a brilliant psychedelic effect. He thinks that his works are like cocktails under chemical reaction, which are perceived by vision and transmitted to the brain. (2009). In this work of Millennium Phone Bloom, we can see that his parts are very rich when we look closely. He used pictures of plants and partial pictures of people to collage the whole picture.
Fred Tomaselli – Millennium Phone Bloom, 2005, on wood panel
It is very enlightening for me, in my collage series, I use the magazines and newspapers that I usually collect as materials, and then cut out the parts and colours I need, and rearrange them. I used parts of the human body to collage the shape of plants, because I want to show a symbiotic relationship between people and plants.
Lin Zhu– Humans And Plants, 2019, on the paper
In conclusion, in the previous term, I used a variety of materials, from screen painting to collage to sculpture. I am trying to find a new perspective to explain the relationship between people and plants, and try to let the audience rethink the plant we are used to in our daily life. In the next unit 2, I will focus on the sense of participation in the work, so that the audience can not only watch, but also interact with the work.
References
Aloi, G. (2019). Why look at plants? : the botanical emergence in contemporary art. Leiden : Brill, p.103.
Brereton, R. and Roberts, C. (2004). Cut & paste : 21st-century collage. London: Laurence King Publishing.
Degnen, Catherine 2009 “On Vegetable Love: Gardening, Plants, and People in the North of England.” Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute 15, no. 1: 151–67. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9655.2008.01535.x.
Hallé,F.2002.In Praise of Plants. Portland, OR:Timber Press.
He, H., & Chen, J. (2012) ‘Educational and enjoyment benefits of visitor education centers at botanical gardens’, Biological Conservation, 149(1), pp. 103-112.
Heywood, V. H. (2011) ‘The role of botanic gardens as resource and introduction centres in the face of global change’, Biodiversity and Conservation, 20(2), pp. 221-239.
Laliberté, N. and Mogelon, A. (1972). Collage, montage, assemblage : history and contemporary techniques. New York ; Van Nostrand Reinhold.
Tomselli, F. (2009). Fred Tomaselli. London: White Cube.
Bibliography
Alfrey, N., Daniels, S. and Postle, M. (2004). Art of the garden, 1800 to the present day. New York, NY: Harry N. Abrams.
Blossfeldt, K. (1985). Art forms in the plant world : 120 full-page photographs. New York: Dover Publications.
Brereton, R. and Roberts, C. (2004). Cut & paste : 21st-century collage. London: Laurence King Publishing.
Bois, Y.A., Buchloh, B.H.D., Foster, H., Krauss, R., and Joselit, D., (2016) Art Since 1900: Modernism, Antimodernism, Postmodernism (Third Edition. London: Thames and Hudson
Challoner, J. (2014). The cell : a visual tour of the building block of life. Lewes : Ivy Press.
Freedberg, D. (2010). Eye of the Lynx. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Journal.culanth.org. (2020). View of Taking Love Seriously in Human-Plant Relations in Mozambique: Toward an Anthropology of Affective Encounters | Cultural Anthropology. [online] Available at: https://journal.culanth.org/index.php/ca/article/view/ca31.2.05/361 [Accessed 5 Jan. 2020].
Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe,The Metamorphosis of plants,London:MIT press,2009
Huseby, B. (2014). Weeds & aliens : an unnatural history of plants. [Oslo] : Torpedo Press.
Ikon-gallery.org. (2020). Ikon Florilegium. [online] Available at: https://www.ikon-gallery.org/event/florilegium/ [Accessed 8 Jan. 2020].
Kabat, A. (2015). WULF, Andrea. The invention of nature: the adventures of Alexander von Humboldt, the lost hero of science. London: John Murray,.
Loengard, J., O'Keeffe, G. and Schirmer, L. (n.d.). Georgia O'Keeffe/John Loengard.
Prinz, J. (2012). Beyond human nature. New York: W.W. Norton.
Townsend, C (2007) New Art from London London: Thames and Hudson
A provocative survey of what's happening at the heart of recent contemporary visual culture in Britain.
Vasconcelos, J. (2015). Joana Vasconcelos - material world. London: Thames and Hudson.
Williams, G., (2014) How To Write About Contemporary Art. London: Thames and Hudson
YouTube. (2020). Portuguese Artist Joana Vasconcelos | euromaxx. [online] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RNOS9qMyHsw [Accessed 9 Jan. 2020].
YouTube. (2020). jacques nimki fabrica installation 2004. [online] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lF2Qb8kSFLE [Accessed 9 Jan. 2020].
Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe,The Metamorphosis of plants,London:MIT press,2009
