Two-thirds through my Swatch Art Peace Hotel residency, and I find myself caught…
Two-thirds through my Swatch Art Peace Hotel residency, and I find myself caught between thoughts: "I have a month ahead of me in Shanghai" and "I ONLY have a month left!" Time has a curious way of expanding and contracting when you're immersed in creative exploration.
These past two months have been transformative for my practice. My "Dialogue" project exploring the tension between Shanghai's urban density and natural sanctuaries has evolved in unexpected ways, incorporating traditional shanshui principles with contemporary environmental themes. The exhibitions at Art House Shanghai and Fujian Province Museum ("Thresholds") have pushed me to refine my "digital sediments" methodology while receiving valuable feedback from a new audience.
Beyond my established practice, this residency has been fertile ground for experimentation. I've ventured into experimenting with and potential collaborations with ceramicists, fashion designers, and jewelry makers—cross-disciplinary explorations that would have been impossible without the freedom and resources provided by the Swatch Art Peace Hotel program.
The Shanghai Photo Fair offered invaluable connections with galleries and collectors, while late-night conversations with fellow residents like Fred Van de Walle, Ye Fan, and Shin Yatagai have sparked unexpected collaborations and fresh perspectives on my work.
My final month promises to be equally rich: I'll be visiting my friend Ye Fan's studio in Hangzhou, checking in on my "Thresholds" exhibition, and traveling to Hefei to explore the legendary Yellow Mountain (Huangshan) with a brilliant photographer I met at the Beijing Future Art Festival. All while continuing to develop my core Shanghai project.
I'm profoundly grateful to Swatch for this extraordinary opportunity and to my fellow residents who've created such a vibrant creative ecosystem. The residency may be two-thirds complete, but I suspect its impact on my practice is just beginning.
