Information
Type
exhibition
Category
Programme ➔ Artist Residencies ➔ First Step (2004-2014)
Date(s)
2009 Jan 15 (is beginning date)
2009 May 05 (has end date)
History
First Step exhibition showcase by artist Wen Wu. Wen Wu's practice was inspired by her interested in beauty and the constructs of beauty. Inspired by the late nineteenth century portraits of Lord Alfred Douglas, Oscar Wilde's gay lover, Wu's practice had developed from exploring the feminine ideal to portrayals of beautiful young men. The artist also developed an alter ego, a homosexual middle aged ancient Greek Male inspired by the Greek myth of Ganymede, who she transformed herself into whenever she began periods of artistic practice.
Eat, drink, man, man series of paintings reflected the link between sexual expression and the enjoyment of food, inspired by the old Chinese phrase ‘Eat, drink, man, woman’, which shows the two basic desires of a human being: eating and sex. The series of oil paintings were developed from from the unique perspective of her her alter ego to reflect the similarities between sexual expression and the intimate expression of enjoying delicious food. The exhibition featured paintings of young men centred around a painting of cooked beef being sliced with a knife. The meat, although succulent and delicious, also represented something violent and erotic. The surrounding paintings appeared homoerotic and in their ambiguity they suggested an unseen pleasure.