Press Release for Xu Hongfei—”Step Up”
by Galerie Ora-Ora on August 2, 2010
Galerie Ora-Ora collaborates with renowned Chinese sculptor Xu Hongfei to dispel the lethargy of the summer heat with the exhibition “Step Up—by Xu Hongfei”. Wimbledon and the World Cup may be over, but the fun and excitement of sports games will not cease, as this exclusive presentation of Xu’s latest series of sculptures will show. On the theme of sports and physical activities, Xu created a group of emphatically voluptuous women jumping, running and spinning in action. As he demonstrates how heavy masses such as bronze sculptures can defy the rules of gravity to appear light and buoyant, these artworks also break the current stereotype that fat people are inactive or lazy, and show an alternative perspective on what is healthy and fit.
About Xu Hongfei
Born in Guangdong, Xu is the current Vice Chancellor of the Guangzhou Sculpture Institute and creator of numerous public sculptures in China. In Hong Kong, his life-size sculptures have previously been displayed at Taikoo Place and Harbour City. In August 2008 during the Olympic Games in Beijing, he was the only Chinese sculptor selected by the International Olympic Committee to represent China in the “2008 Olympic Sport & Art Contest”, and the selected sculpture is collected by the International Olympic Committee Headquarter in Switzerland. In November 2009, Xu was invited by the Liannan Yao Autonomous County to transport 19 pieces of larger-than-life sculptures of chubby women to Guangdong and installed them onto the hills and fields of the ancient Yao Village in Liannan, a place of cultural and natural conservation. The exhibition was a coalescence of history, tradition, contemporary art, urban and rural cultures. Xu Hongfei’s sculptures brought about an interaction between people, artworks and nature as well as enjoyment for all. The entire project was followed and documented by various media partners and subsequently internationally distributed, creating a lot of exposure for this major art event.
Since 1990 Xu has been actively exhibiting in many places all over the world, including Hong Kong, France, Switzerland, Thailand and countless cities in China. His solo exhibition in Paris in 2008 was an invitation from the Paris Eighth District Government, who also became a collector of his work. In addition to museum and other institutions, his artworks are very popular among private collectors.
Flying¸ at Liannan Ancient Yao Village
Merry Victory¸ at Liannan Ancient Yao Village
Fun of Kid¸ at Liannan Ancient Yao Village
Xu Hongfei’s Alternative Perspective
Xu Hongfei is inspired by things, people and details from the everyday which most may take for granted and dismiss. His renowned chubby women sculptures are influenced by the joy and energy he feels from real chubby people he meets, and so his sculptures too often convey a sense of vitality and happiness. Artistically, he thinks that compared to a standard slim figure, a full figure offers more mass, more volume and more space to work with and creates a stronger visual impact and tension. This exhibition showcases chubby women in sports such as tennis, rope skipping, cycling or in a game of circling. These are very ordinary activities, but Xu demonstrates that they can appear extraordinary when performed by chubby women. The figures are dynamic and the artworks are full of humour. Xu Hongfei is an artist who has the ability to discover the unusual in the banality of our everyday surrounding.
Today’s trend is to be slim; to be big is not often appreciated and is negatively labeled as lethargic, inactive or slow. However, by depicting the sporty and peppy side of chubby people, Xu’s art breaks this stereotype and challenges the values and connotations we hold today towards our bodies.
The Positive Impact of Xu Hongfei’s Art on Society
Xu is an artist who always wants to share the fun and witty things he finds in life. His artworks convey his carefree attitude, wisdom and sincerity. With this series of work and his activeness in pursuing public art to bring art to a wider audience, Xu Hongfei is one of today’s few sculptors whose work not only nourishes our lives with joy, but shows us different angles from which to experience life, bringing a sense of optimism to society.
Exhibition Details
Opening Reception (Wine Tasting): 30 Jul (Friday) 6-8.30pm
Exhibition Period: 31 Jul – 18 Aug
About Galerie Ora-Ora
Galerie Ora-Ora is a research-based Asian Contemporary fine art gallery specializing in sculptures, New Ink works and the discovery of emerging talents. Privileged with exclusive representation of artists, we strive to share high quality artworks with art lovers for appreciation, investment and collection. Based in Hong Kong, we are also an international platform for local artistic talents. With Ora-Ora meaning “from one era to another” or “eternity”, we believe that good quality art survives through generations. We believe that art has no frontiers and should be experienced by anyone in the world. Art is a lifestyle.
Catching the Moon
Xu Hongfei Selected Biography
Xu Hongfei was born in 1963 in Yangjiang, Guangdong. He had expressed an interest in art at a young age. Throughout his education he took on substantial artistic training and eventually entered the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts to specialise in sculpture. Within a few years he was actively involved in numerous public sculpture projects in different parts of China. In 1995 he opened his own studio to concentrate on his personal creative production. His remarkable technical skills allowed him to be artistically experimental and stylistically flexible. His unconventional view on the aesthetic of the female form was discerned two years later when he began making sculptures of plump women. Xu has exhibited in France, Hong Kong, China and Thailand; and he is currently the Vice President of Guangzhou Sculpture Academy and Member of Guangzhou Culture and History Society. His work is collected by private as well as corporate collectors such as the China Military Museum and the International Olympic Committee Headquarter in Switzerland.
