Chinese artist Qiu Jie works at the confluence of many styles and subjects, as a result of his unusual training. The Shanghai Light Industry College and the city’s School of Decorative Arts gave him a grounding in realism which is still very much evident in his current practice, and of equal influence was his time studying for a degree in multimedia at Geneva’s School of Fine Arts.
East meets West in Qiu’s painstaking pencil drawings, which are montages comprised of the artist’s reinterpretations of existing images. For example, models posing from a magazine will be woven into unlikely surroundings, and in moments of surrealism, be warped through the substitution of an animal head. Although his drawings frequently tease both Western and Eastern politics, Qiu insists he is not making political statements, or critiquing communism, but rather just having fun with contradicting aesthetics. “It is a game, and I create a play,” he says. Art Plural Gallery in Singapore is hosting a solo exhibition of Qui Jie’s work, running from 13 September to 26 October.
Qiu Jie
Da Zi Bao
Courtesy, Art Plural Gallery
Qiu Jie
The New Long March
Courtesy, Art Plural Gallery
Qiu Jie
Three Guns Underwear
Courtesy, Art Plural Gallery
Qiu Jie
A Sitting Woman
Courtesy, Art Plural Gallery
Qiu Jie
Shanghai Bund
Courtesy, Art Plural Gallery
