The Alfred Ceramic Art Museum’s recent exhibition, “Constructing Radiance: Sculpture by Li Hongwei,” has been featured in the April edition of Ceramics Now, an online magazine of ceramic art. “The Phenomenology of Physics in the Work of Li Hongwei,” is written by Benjamin Evans, assistant director/curator of the museum.
The Alfred Ceramic Art Museum’s recent exhibition, “Constructing Radiance: Sculpture by Li Hongwei,” has been featured in the April edition of Ceramics Now, an online magazine of ceramic art. “The Phenomenology of Physics in the Work of Li Hongwei,” is written by Benjamin Evans, assistant director/curator of the museum.
Evans notes the striking combination of contrasting materials in Li’s sculpture, which was on display at the Alfred Ceramic Art Museum (ACAM) through March 2025. The material contrast is only one of many contrasting themes, which include hand-made vs. industrial, East vs. West, and Yin vs. Yang. At the same time, the contrasts invert themselves as the viewer contemplates the art.
“The steel elements,” Evans writes, “might be read as ‘western’ owing to their association with skyscrapers, railroads and gleaming American cars, yet steel is also the fundamental building material of China’s own explosive growth as an industrial superpower. The ceramic elements reference the ancient tradition of Chinese porcelain production, yet are undeniably contemporary sculpture.”
Evans says the unstable tensions are part of the beauty of Li’s work. “Harmony, I want to suggest, is only the starting point of an encounter with this work.”
The full article is available to read at ceramicsnow.org (opens in a new tab).