Ren Hong Wei

Biography

On “1.3 Billion”
Written by Hong Shunzhang

Fujian province used to be the refuge for the culture extended to South China.  Now, Fujian artists of sculpture become quite prominent with much influence.  Born in Jian’ou of north Fujian where the famous scholar in Song Dynasty Zhu Xi initiated his education, Ren Hongwei is straightforward, unrestrained and versatile.  Graduating from the sculpture department in Fujian College of Art & Design, Ren is skilled in painting, calligraphy and seal.  He often creates calligraphy after drinking, and his style is flexible, unpredictable and carefree.

Compared with Ren’s emotional side, his sculptures reflect his profoundly rational contemplation.

When approaching the sculpture “1.3 Billion” and seeing that both the adults and children are smilingly counting money, the audience would probably imitate the gesture in sub-consciousness and then smile for understanding.  Today is the times of consumption, and economy and population is a huge theme.  Whether “1.3 Billion” is about population or economy is the tactful integration of these two different concepts.  A family of three members representing the social unit, the rare (panda) and the overflowing (population), the developing (economy) and the restrained (population), images of different significance are overlapped.  The sculpture is mute, however, it could attract numerous audience to walk towards it to form a path on the ground.  Saying nothing but to enlighten the audience is the purpose of this sculpture, bringing meditation behind smiling.

The work of infant is the extension of the “1.3 billion” series, which means making a lot of money and having a baby born into the family.  In his new sculpture studio in Naizifang, which I jokingly call “the nursery room”, each upside-down newborn baby with closed eyes takes a bunch of money in one hand and a gun in the other hand, and the umbilical cord is connected with the things in the hands, which is the placenta for it to enter the world.

This pattern of existence is permeated with social multiple elements and interwoven with complicated relation network.  This intricacy also implies that contemporary sculpture needs more attention on the amalgamation of social multiple elements, and what’s important is the visibility of the work’s internal spirit instead of the skill.  If Marcel Duchamp’s works enlighten us to think about what art is, the life experiences of Joseph Beuys tell the world that art is to return to the original appearance of the object itself.  Among the concepts of these two contemporary art masters, Ren chooses his own pattern of sculpture to reach the audience’s internal world through the path of delivering meaning with image.