John Giorno the “Poet” and “Buddhist” and his text works in Almine Rech Shanghai.. and More
China_Shanghai
John Giorno the “Poet” and “Buddhist” and his text works in Almine Rech Shanghai
Through October 14, Almine Rech Shanghai gallery presents “I am a Poet,” a solo exhibition by American poet, performer, and visual artist John Giorno (1936-2019).
Giorno introduced himself as a “poet” and a “Buddhist.” Artists, poets, and scholars immersed themselves in Buddhism in North America in the 1950s, and Giorgio remained committed to Buddhism as “Upāsaka” throughout his life. He was one of the founders of the Yeshe Dorje Temple in New York City in 1976.
Poetry was central to Giorno’s writing, speaking, performance, and art. His practice referenced various sources, including popular culture, spoken word, advertising, and Buddhist scripture. While expressing himself artistically through poetry, he was also concerned about the elitism of poetry, attempting to connect poetry to everyone by practices such as printing his stanzas on flyers or T-shirts. The exhibition’s curator explains these acts in terms of the Buddhist concept of “Dāna.” The show features a selection of silkscreens created by Giorno in the late 1980s.
China_Qinhuangdao
Monira Al Qadiri Solo Show “Haunted Water” at UCCA Dune: Oil and Pearl in the Gulf
UCCA Dune in Qinhuangdao, China, presents “Haunted Water” through October 8, a solo exhibition by Kuwaiti-born media artist Monira Al Qadiri (b. 1983). Al Qadiri has participated in major international exhibitions, including the 2022 Venice Biennale. Her works combine video, sculpture, and installation to address the Middle East’s oil industry and its future, gender performance, and the aesthetics of grief. This is the artist’s first solo institution exhibition in China and features a selection of her best-known works and commissioned new works.
In the exhibition, Al Qadiri discusses the impact of the oil industry and pearl harvesting on the ecological, economic, and social relations and the lives of citizens in Kuwait and the Gulf region. Pearl harvesting is discussed as a representative industry of the pre-modern era, as the main economic activity in the Gulf region before oil. The artist draws attention to the history of oil and pearls mythologized as “resources” and develops a mystical image of the marine ecosystem around oil and pearls.
Singapore
“Dancing with the Cosmos: Three Decades of Work from Kumari Nahappan” at the Private Museum
The Private Museum (TPM) in Singapore presents a solo exhibition by Singaporean sculptor Kumari Nahappan (b. 1953), “Dancing with the Cosmos: Dancing with the Cosmos: Three Decades of Work from Kumari Nahappan” through October 22.
Nahappan is best known for her large-scale public sculptures depicting natural objects such as fruits, seeds, and spices. In addition to her large-scale public sculptures, Nahappan also creates small-scale paintings and sculptures. Characteristic of her work is a broad range of materials, including organic materials, man-made structures, and found objects.
The exhibition presents a selection of installations, paintings, and sculptures from the artist’s three decades of practice, including recreations of iconic site-specific installations Nahappan created in the 1990s. Together, the works reveal Nahappan’s broad and recurring interests in nature, ritual, time, and space. Inspired by Hinduism’s cyclical view of the universe, the exhibition organizes the artworks not chronologically but by color, allowing visitors to witness the diverse yet cohesive nature of Nahappan’s practice.
