Everything has differences and similarities; everything in the world is both the same and different. Similarity and difference are the unity of opposites. Here, 'similarity' refers to the same form of artistic creation practiced by the five artists. 'Difference' can be understood as diversity and variation, but it can be said to be a binary simultaneous existence. The artists' works are placed in the same exhibition, and due to differences in region, experience, and life background, the expressions and focuses of their paintings vary, with the exhibition reinforcing these differences. Zhao Peizhi's paintings continually explore the internal tension of the picture's space, discarding narrative complexity, aiming to perceive the extension of people and objects. At the same time, he showcases thoughts on society, culture, and life, uncovering the latent potential of visual imagery, revealing the metaphors behind the artistic text, and demonstrating the diversity of contemporary visual culture representation. Li Xuefeng's paintings have a core of strong release, resembling a spread of vitality; he expresses a certain primal and naïve quality from an individual internal perspective, yet constructs an aesthetic attitude imbued with mystery. Zhang Wenhui incorporates public images into his paintings, allowing us to feel the mundane states of people and objects. His painting materials resemble a record of life, focusing on the emotional states of people around him and emphasizing visual consciousness, thus creating a rich spiritual world of characters. Huang Li'you's works perceive the collision between the illusory and the real, aiming to experience the objective correspondence internally from the exterior of the painting. Through a subjective expression of the illusions of life, he accomplishes a leap from the real world to the dreamlike realm. Duan Yuanwen's works mainly involve matters and objects that are seen momentarily rather than fixed viewpoints; he layers different moments like slices within the works, creating interfaces of instant tenses that evoke people's attention to the new value generation they constitute, highlighting their relevant interfaces and new artistic semantics. Just as the exhibition concept 'similarity and difference' emphasizes commonality, the differences presented in the artistic creations of the five artists are even more worthy of our attention. When works of art that are 'differently practiced and uniquely engaged' are presented together, communication becomes inevitable. It can also be said that 'similarity and difference' provide a new dimension of time and space, even allowing one to find a kind of balance within the intervals between them.

Yang Dawei

June 13, 2024, in Hangzhou