Negative Reading | Reading Negatives by Ming Furniture Collector Qin Yifeng

Description

The Chinese artist and scholar showcases negative images of antique Ming wooden furniture created using a large-format camera.

Qin’s artistic practice is influenced by the spiritual dimension and formal aesthetic of Chinese calligraphy, as well as the idea of “pureness” and the bare, intentional use of colour to emphasise spatial relationships and atmosphere. In this exhibition, the compression of space between the background and subject achieved through a creative deconstruction of the photographic negative has the effect that Qin terms “bringing life out of death”.

Qin’s work also connects with nature in by working with the natural light, as well as the variable properties and natural weathering of the wood element. Qin’s photographic works are a refreshing departure from the traditional “photograph” in eliminating perspective and depth and resisting unnecessary photographic effects by using the camera to work against technology, which highlights his continued engagements with poetic juxtapositions.