Chen Wei

Focusing on the screen-dominated nature of contemporary life, the exhibition 'Sweet Dreams' by artist Chen Wei is presented in a theatrical format that draws the viewers into a fragmented time-space of interweaving virtuality and reality.

“This is a theatre of dreams and insomnia, where we are engulfed within the time of the system, trapped between screens and pondering over digital information.”

Chen Wei

ABOUT THE EXHIBITION

In an era of information overload, what constitutes the notion of a true 'sweet dream'? Is it a fleeting escape from reality, or a reexamination of our relationship with the world? The exhibition showcases a set of new artworks by the artist created for this ocassion. It provides a platform for reflection, prompts viewers to delve into the complex relationships between the Internet, sleep, and daily life. By exploring these themes, the artist simulates the dilemmas of contemporary urban life, inviting the viewers to rethink how to establish one’s own sense of time and the integrity of an individual in a technology-driven society.

As a mid-career artist active on today's international art stage, the artist's creative journey began initially focusing on the creation and performance of experimental music and sound art, before transitioning to video and installation art. This multidimensional creative experience has shaped the artist's visual expression in broader perspectives. Through photography, video, installation, and sound pieces, Sweet Dreams constructs an immersive audiovisual environment that facilitates an understanding of the extensive impacts of digital life. Within this space, the viewer transcends the role of a mere spectator, becoming an active participant confronted with the pervasive presence of blue light and digital information, perceiving how technology deeply shapes our emotions and behaviors. Through this immersive experience, the artist encourages viewers to reflect how technology and time shape us in modern life, and how to navigate a system, such as ASMR.

Sweet Dreams reflects the systemization of modern society and the dream scapes that we create within this framework. The viewers can experience the intersection of dreams and everyday life in the contexts reimagined by the artist. This exhibition offers profound insights into digital existence and serves as a critical reflection on systemic living.

ABOUT ARTIST

Chen Wei, born in 1980 in Zhejiang Province, currently lives and works in Beijing.

His artistic practice started in Hangzhou, where he initially engaged in the performance of experimental music and sound art before transitioning to the creation of photography, video and installation.

As a mid-career artist active on the international art scene today, Chen Wei's works are widely recognized for their conceptual shooting, meticulous stage setting, and theatrical construction. Through this unique dimension that lies between reality and fiction, world and dream, Chen presents the complex realities and psychological states of contemporary society.

In recent years, he has increasingly extended his practice to the exhibition site, continuously employing various media such as video, sound, and installation to reshape the possibilities of narrative images through scenario re- enacting.

Recent solo exhibitions include: Make Me Illusory, West Bund Museum, Shanghai (2021); Good Night, HOW Art Museum, Shanghai (2021); Where Are You Going Tonight, chi K11 art space, Guangzhou (2018); The Club, Centre for Contemporary Photography, Melbourne, Australia (2017); Noon Club, programmed by Francesco Bonami, JNBY Art Space, Hangzhou (2016); In The Waves, chi K11 Art Museum, Shanghai (2015), etc.

Group exhibitions include: Yuz Museum, Shanghai (2023); White Rabbit Gallery, Sydney, Australia (2023); He Art Museum, Foshan (2022); Chengdu Contemporary Image Museum, Chengdu (2022); Public Art Fund, U.S.A. (2022); Wuhan Art Museum, Wuhan (2021); 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa, Japan (2020); Times Museum, Guangzhou (2019); Daegu Photo Biennale, South Korea (2018); Gwangju Biennale, South Korea (2018); Vitra Design Museum, Weil am Rhein, Germany (2018); Casa Cavazzini,Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Udine, Italy (2017); Asia Society, Houston, U.S.A. (2016); Museum of Fine Arts, Bern, Switzerland (2016); Museum Folkwang, Essen, Germany (2016); San Antonio Museum of Art, Texas, U.S.A (2015); Stavanger Art Museum, Norway (2014); Tampa Museum of Art, Florida, U.S.A (2014); San Jose Museum of Art, California, U.S.A (2013); UCCA Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing (2013); Seoul Museum of Art, South Korea (2006), etc.

Chen Wei was awarded the Asia Pacific Photography Prize in 2011 and received the Golden Panda Photography Art Award in 2023.