Exhibition Label:
"Temporal Turn: Art and Speculation in Contemporary Asia", 11-Nov-2016
This painting depicts Ou Jiayuan, lead singer and founder of the Sichuan-based rock band Soundtoy. The large-scale portrait is part of Du Kun’s Head series, which monumentalizes contemporary Chinese musicians as architectonic embodiments of religious temples and grottoes. The slippage between portraits of iconic rockers and rock temples is intentional: it reflects Du’s personal interest in Chinese contemporary music (he performs in his own band), and his intensely spiritual personal life.