National Academy of Arts in 1994. In 1998, he took his art career abroad to the United States. His work synthesizes traditions of China: philosophy and religious thought, art and architecture, with a new range of material, form, and critical thought encountered in contemporary Western art practice. Working at the intersection of two worlds gives Xiang an insider/outsider status in both, providing him with a deeper understanding of the unity of seeming opposites. In matters personal and global, it is the relationship of opposing ideas and states of being that Xiang Yang explores in his art practice.

　　This solo exhibition will be a summary of Xiang’s work since his return to Beijing in 2010. It will present major new works: his signature thread sculptures, architectural installations, as well as works on paper and small-scale installations. In Xiang Yang’s Intellectual Garden, viewers will see the artist’s wide range of source material and depth of thinking.

　　The main piece of this exhibition, “Ultra Architecture-Garden in Mind”, was exhibited at Chinese Public Art in Kassel, 2012. This grand-scale installation is a composition of antique Chinese furniture and wood structures. The reconstructed furniture loses its original function during this transformation. The new composition becomes an abstract and futurist architectural space. Two large thread installations extend out from opposite ends of the structure. One is a fine depiction of a famous painting, “Early Spring” by Guo Xi of the Song Dynasty; the other is an abstract composition of plans of Western cathedrals. Colorful threads morph the content of the painting, which also dissolves the cultural message as the threads travelling within the space. Xiang heightens the exploratory participation required of the viewer by walking in or sitting inside the space. To enhance social interaction, there will be four activities taking place in the artist’s garden: Xiang Yang’s Art Class, talks between the artist and curators, a contemporary art forum, and a young artist’s performance or interaction with this work. These activities will be an extension of Xiang Yang’s garden, as an alternate perspective and way to converse with the artwork. This garden, as an abstract depiction of the artist’s mind, is also intended to become a discussion/participation of the openness of contemporary art.

　　The bone series, Cosmic String, will make its public debut in this exhibition. This new series derives from Xiang Yang’s recent study of String Theory, a theoretical concept in physics. Through the twisted shape of hard material, the artist opens a discussion on ultimate topics such as the formation of matter and the multiple dimensions of objects in the universe.