GUO Hongwei was born in 1982 in Sichuan, China and now lives and works in Beijing. Since from other Chinese artists in his generation for his fascination and skilful experimentation with the behavior of his media. Since 2005, he has been focusing mainly on reproducing his childhood photographs on canvas, and in the last year or so, he started using the same treatment to extract normal objects from everyday life; placing them within a minimalist bare background. Using oil, he avoids the conventions of heavy layering; applying and di Born in Chengdu, China in 1982 and now based in Beijing, GUO Hongwei is fast gaining recognition in the contemporary art world. He stands out among his peers in his choice of subject matter and handling of his medium, both of which are unconventional for a young contemporary artist of his generation, and which reflect his keen sense of observation. The themes of his work can be highly personal in nature – based on his own childhood photographs – or highly mundane or cliche? – based on everyday objects around him. Be it oil or watercolour on canvas or paper, GUO allows the fluidity of his medium to leave marks and traces that define or diffuse boundaries. His unique technique requires a delicate balance between control and the lack of it, calculated effects and chance; which to the artist, mirrors the fragility and indefiniteness of life.
Education
- 2004 Bachelor of Fine Arts, Sichuan Fine Arts Institute, China
Solo Exhibitions
- 2007 “Dissolving Memories”, Connoisseur Art Gallery and 82 Republic, Hong Kong
- 2008 “Dissolving Memories”, Connoisseur Art Gallery, Singapore
- 2009 “Things – Recent Works by Guo Hongwei”, Beijing, China
- 2010 “Things – Recent Works by Guo Hongwei”, New York, USA
- “Standing in My Own Shadow”, Connoisseur Contemporary, Hong Kong
Participated Exibition
2002
- The Exhibition Celebrating the Grand Opening of the Chongqing Museum of Art Chongqing Museum of Art, Chongqing, China
- The 3rd China Oil Painting Exhibition in conjunction with Chongqing Oil Painting Exhibition
- Chongqing Museum of Art, Chongqing, China
2003
- “Seven Sichuan Generals”, Beijing, China
2005
- “Archaeology of the Future”, The 2nd Triennial of Chinese Art, Nanjing, China
2006
- “Seven Sichuan Generals”, Beijing, China
- “Dialogue 10+10”, Shanghai Zendai Museum of Modern Art, Shanghai, China
- “Substitute”, Group Exhibition, Beijing, China
- "Magic 8", Group Exhibition, 82 Republic, Hong Kong
2007
- “Youth in Water”, Jiuchang Liquor Factory Art Complex, Beijing, China
- “REFRESH - Emerging Chinese Artists”, Shanghai Zendai Museum of Modern Art, Shanghai, and Beijing, China
- “Today Documents”, Beijing Today Museum, Beijing, China
- “Youth in Water”, Beijing, China
- Group Exhibition of Young Contemporary Chinese Artists by 82 Republic, Art Taipei 2007, Taipei, Taiwan
2008
- “Blog It: New Wave of New Wave”, Beijing, China and New York, USA
- “Dream or Reality?”, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- ”Another Lonely Planet Revisited”, Beijing, China
- Opening Exhibition of Connoisseur Contemporary, Connoisseur Contemporary, Hong Kong
- “82 Republic Group Exhibition”, 82 Republic and Connoisseur Contemporary, Hong Kong
- ShContemporary 2008, The Asia Pacific Contemporary Art Fair, Shanghai, China
- KIAF 2008, Korea International Art Fair, Seoul, Korea
- “82 Republic – The Birth of a New Generation”, parallel event of Singapore Biennale 2008, Connoisseur Art Gallery, Singapore
2009
- “VIVA! New Art. New Visions”, Connoisseur Contemporary and Connoisseur Art Gallery, Hong Kong
- Art Chicago, Illinois, USA
- Art Hong Kong 2009, Hong Kong
- Scope Basel, Basel, Switzerland
- Paper! Paper! New York, USA
- “Tree”, James Cohen Gallery, Shanghai, China
- "New Trends: Fifteen Contemporary Chinese Artists", Pacific Heritage Museum, California, USA
2010
- "82 Republic New Year Show", Connoisseur Contemporary and Connoisseur Art Gallery, Hong Kong
- Scope Basel, Basel, Switzerland
Press
2008
- "About Guo Hongwei", Fine Arts Literature February issue, China
2009
- “About Guo Hongwei”, Fine Arts Literature February issue, China
- “Small Size Personal Memoirs”, TimeOut Beijing, China
2010
- “Guo Hongwei Painting Exhibition in the City”, Times New York, USA
- “Guo Hongwei Painting Exhibition in the City”, World Journal, USA
Public Collections
"White Rabbit", Contemporary Chinese Art Collection;
"DSL Collection"
Private Collections
Australia, China, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Italy, Korea, The Netherlands, Philippines, Singapore, Sweden, United Kingdom, United States
Publication
2008
- “Guo Hongwei 2009”, Paperback catalogue, Chambers Fine Art, Beijing, China
2010
- “Connoisseur Contemporary Volume II”, Paperback catalogue, Connoisseur Contemporary, Hong
Kong