de Sarthe Gallery is pleased to announce Zhou Wendou’s first solo show in Hong Kong from 22 March – 23 April. The presentation titled ADHD, after the Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, is a strong single piece installation. A chrome sphere, resides in a fountain of ink, as windshield wipers move repetitively trying to remove the continuous flow of ink over the sphere. This Sisyphean task mirrors the chronic repetition of the actions of man. Whether wasteful and harmful for the environment or simply maddening for the protagonist, human life, contemporarily as well as historically, is a repetition of behaviors, often frantic. The work, as well as Zhou Wendou’s practice, seeks to raise questions, and challenge the contemporary condition. The relation between the visual experience of the work, some obvious references it conveys and a title that adds significance to it invite reflection. Repetitiveness and lack of attention, a clocked mechanical movement and hyperactivity or impulsivity should be at odds. However, while stigmatized medically within the context of the individual, this pattern of behavior has been adopted by Human society at large. Zhou Wendou invites the audience to reflect on the consequences of a culture diagnosed with ADHD .
In the context of this psychological analogy, the artist along with a psychologist hosted a participatory performance on March 24th. Visitors took part in filled out a questionnaire designed by the artist. Through an analysis of the boxes ticked, the psychologist gave his diagnosis. The participants received their diagnosis signed by the artist as a record of the performance.
About the artist
Zhou Wendou was born in 1970 in Beijing. In 1998, he went to Spain to study painting. Over the course of the ten years he spent learning and developing his artistic career in Spain, his creation underwent a natural evolution from painting, to installation and photography to eventually focusing exclusively on installation. After returning to China in 2008, the perspective gained from Spain was recontextualised in response to the Chinese landscape. Characterised by humorous banter and distinctly clean execution, Zhou Wendou balances form and content perfectly. The discourse speaks of contemporary issues, that may be heightened in China, but are almost always global. His works raises awareness. The execution is not exaggerated nor visually violent, and the audience is always is invited to engage in a dialogue with the artworks.
About the exhibition
Date: 22 March – 23 April
Venue: de Sarthe Gallery
Address: 8/F Club Lusitano building, 16 Ice House Street, Central Hong Kong (also entrance on Duddell Street off Queen's Road)
Tel: +852 21678896
Courtesy of the artist and de Sarthe Gallery.
