Li Wan: Always Open Halfway Through
Gordon Snelgrove Gallery • Saskatoon • Dec 2018
Artist Biography:
Li Wan is a public art artist and sculptor from Wuha n, China. Li works as an art teacher at the Hubei Institute of Fine Arts as one of the most significant Chinese art academies. Li Wan has been commissioned with numerous public art projects in China and overseas.
Curatorial Concept
Li Wan is the very first visiting scholar been invited to the Department of Art and Art History at the University of Saskatchewan for a year-long residency under the planning of Kyuubi Culture. As a young Chinese artist born in the 80s, Wan's artistic creation process and relentless working ethics have inspired and invigorated Saskatoon's artist community. The entire exhibition maintains a consistent elegance. The subtle yet tenacious energy radiate from these artworks reflected the growth and transformation of 80s Chinese female artists. The exhibition consists of 6 pieces of artwork: Love at First Sight, Neverland, Yuan Yang, Flow, Recycle, and Prairie Harvest Project.
Kyuubi Culture has selected Gordon Snelgrove Gallery of this Exhibition. The Gallery situates inside Murray Building, which is the primary facility for the undergraduate students of the Art and Art History Department at U of S. This feature allows the artist to have plenty of opportunities to interact with students throughout her exhibition. The exhibition title Always Open Halfway Through comes from Polish poem Love at First Sight by Wislawa Szymborska: "Every beginning is only a sequel, after all, and the book of events is always open halfway through." These six art pieces are the embodiment of Wan's entire year's hard works. They are the conclusion for Wan's observation on Canadian culture, and the representation of her "Never Landing" lifestyle as a contemporary artist.
Gallery Space:
The Gordon Snelgrove Gallery is located in the Murray Building alongside the Department of Art and Art History and is both a teaching facility and public gallery. It provides a venue for new work by artists and curators both within the department and operates as a site of direct exchange with the local arts ecology.
The gallery was named in honour of Gordon Snelgrove (1898–1966), a painter, faculty member and possibly the first art historian in Canada to receive a PhD in his discipline. The gallery also maintains and displays works by graduating students from the Department of Art and Art History Collection.
