Biography

Born in 1980, in Harbin, China, Song completed her education at Luxun Academy of Fine Arts, after which she moved to Beijing. During her formative years, she gained the patronage of Zeng, a collaboration that shines on in this exhibition. Typical of Song’s practice is the depiction of everyday objects and figures that are isolated from their conventional environment. According to the artist, “Every substance has its unique nature, different state of presence, colors, shapes, forms, which people envision differently. I am just trying to amplify this simple, essential fact, by creating a context where regular objects are in non-normal circumstances.” Song’s works make frequent references to her childhood—to the sense of isolation accompanying youth and its tendency to make the immediate present seem aggrandized. Within her paintings, her penchant for isolating the subject matter gives rise to feelings of distance and abandonment. The solitary objects, centered within the composition of her works, create a stark contrast to the saturated background, as if the everyday mundane is enveloped by a layer of darkness or the unknown. Song’s objects, old and used, carry a sense of history—in her paintings they become no longer abandoned items, but rather relics that reveal gripping details of their past.