User:MayBunnies/Christine Wang

Christine Wang is a Chinese-American Artist, born on 1985 in Washington D.C. She is a globally acclaimed meme painter. Her work takes a socially viewed joke and turns it into a thought provoking image meant to get the viewing thinking beyond the surface.

Education
Wang started her career in art, studying in the Mural Painting Department at the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing, China. In 2007, she had a Residency at the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture in Skowhegan, Maine. After her residency, Wang went to get her BFA at the Cooper Union for the Advancement of of Art and Science in 2008. Between receiving her BFA and her MFA from the University of California Los Angeles for painting in 2013, she had two more residencies, two curatorial works, ten solo exhibitions, and received four honors/awards. Since receiving her MFA, Wang has had several residencies, numerous exhibitions, reviews and publications, and three gallery affiliations. Her work has been exhibited globally, such as the US, Germany, Canada, France, and Qatar.

Later works
Most of Wang's more recent work are paintings of recreated memes. She will take popular memes on social media and replicate them in a realistic impressionism style. Wang says that her art is her take on a topic as a Chinese American. The work is done through a meditative process. She uses her art as a way to grow and reflect as a person and after creating a work generated by this process she lets the feelings go. Wang also always keeps a sketch book on her to write down any good idea that me hit her during the day and then she will later go to google or Instagram to find a mem to fit her phrase. For her mediums she mostly paints with acrylic on canvas or oil on linen, ceramics, but she has also used watercolor, dry materials, and sculptural mediums in previous works.

Reviews
A few critics have not had a positive response to Wang's work. David Pagel being one of those Critics. In an article from 2014, Pagel describes her art as narcissistic. He later states her work to be half-baked and underdeveloped. That review has been a source of motivation still for Wang. From 2014 to now, Wang's work has grown and she has been grappling with even more politically charged topics.

Critics today seem to have a different opinion than Pagel. "I would like to suggest 'post confessional' to describe Wang's work. This is work that comes after confessionalism of the 1950s, and is changed by the political and aesthetic waves of ushered in by postmodernism. Contemporary auto theory by Wang and many others engages strategies such as post confessional confession and a self-aware, critical narcissism as a way of subverting long-standing histories that posit women's turn toward the 'self' as something other than critical or smart".

Wang has taken a socially concepted joke and impowered it with a higher gravity than was originally intended. "Wang plays with the tensions inherent in this aesthetic proclamation, asserting memes as legitimate aesthetic products and undermining divisions between high and low culture. Treating memes like any other found object, Wang meticulously reproduces the images by hand (a process antithetical to the very logic of memes), heightening their saturation and paying careful attention to individual pixels: trompe l’oeil for the digital world".

Her work is now seen as a challenge instead of a failure to create a developed, clean body of art. It is used as her voice in the world's politically charged atmosphere. "Wang de-sublimates the Twenty-First Century political unconscious, articulating what neoliberalism has rendered unspeakable: the appeal of whiteness, the limitations of diversity rhetoric, and the critique of mainstream feminism".

Solo exhibitions

 * 2021 Exhibition at Ever Gold [Projects], San Francisco, California
 * 2020 "Coronavirus Memes" at Galerie Nagel Draxler, Cologne Germany
 * 2019 "#Cryptomemes: Women and Leo DiCaprio" at Ever Gold [Projects], San Francisco
 * 2018 "Crypto Rich" at Kabinett, Galerie Nagel Draxler, Berlin Germany
 * 2018 "Twilight" Solo Window at Magenta Plains, New York, New York
 * 2017 "Actions Speak Louder Than Fonts" Galerie Nagel Draxler, Berlin, Germany
 * 2016 "Devotional Art for Your Home" Night Gallery, Los Angeles California
 * 2015 "LA:FURN Reiseburogalerie", Galerie Nagel Draxler, Cologne, Germany
 * 2014 "I Want That Bag" at Night Gallery, Los Angeles California
 * 2012 "Repetition Compulsion" Night Gallery, Los Angeles

Two person and group exhibitions

 * 2021 Group Exhibition at M.LeBlanc Gallery, Chicago, Illinois
 * 2021 "Screen Time", a two-person exhibition with Luke Murphy at Night Gallery, Los Angeles, California
 * 2020 "Eight Works by Eight Artists" at Evergold [Projects], San Francisco
 * 2020 "Theft and Found", Curated by Patrick Mc Elnea, MiM Gallery, Los Angeles, California
 * 2020 "MAJEURE FORCE PART ONE", Night Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
 * 2020 "Show Me The Signs", Blum and Poe Gallery, Los Angeles, California
 * 2020 "Image Power: The Art of Critique", Curated by Melanie Bühler, Frans Hals Museum, Haarlem, Netherlands
 * 2020 "HOLLYWOOD BABYLON: A RE-INAUGURATION OF THE PLEASURE DOME", Nicodim Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
 * 2019 "Resisting Incarceration Culture", Oliver Art Center, California College of the Arts
 * 2019 Opening exhibition with Mark Dion at Galerie Nagel Draxler, Munich, Germany
 * 2019 "Fermenting Feminism", curated by Lauren Fournier. Access Gallery, Vancouver, Canada.
 * 2019 "[On Approval] Beta Launch". Evergold [Projects] San Francisco, California
 * 2019 "Henry is Blue" curated by Sarah Lehrer Graiwer and Despina Stokou, Private Residence, Los Angeles, California
 * 2019 "10-year exhibition." Evergold [Projects] San Francisco, California
 * 2019 "Politically Private: The Interplay of Personal Identity and Public Performance", Guggenheim Gallery at Chapman University, Orange, California
 * 2018 "Tears then Holes" curated by Pam Lins, Rachel Uffner Gallery, New York, New York
 * 2018 "Skiptracer I" at M. LeBlanc, Chicago, Illinois
 * 2018 "Tarot Show" two-person exhibition with Mieke Marple at Ever Gold [Projects], San Francisco California
 * 2017 "True Lies", Night Gallery, Los Angeles, California
 * 2017 "Silhouette" Et Al. Etc. Minnesota St. Projects, San Francisco, California
 * 2017 "Reconstitution" Curated by Catherine Taft and Hamza Walker, LA><ART, Los Angeles, California
 * 2017 "A History Show Foxy Productions", New York, New York
 * 2016 "Arresting Patterns: Perspectives on Race, Criminal Justice, Artistic Expression, and Community", African American Museum in Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
 * 2016 "Global Terror", Galerie Nagel Draxler, Berlin, Germany
 * 2016 "Pipe Dream", organized by Night Gallery and Rachel Uffner, New York, New York
 * 2016 "White Columns Benefit", White Columns, New York, New York
 * 2016 "Fruit", Produce Model, Chicago, Illinois
 * 2016 "Walk Artisanal", Curated by Peter Harkawik and Miles Huston, Los Angeles California
 * 2015 "Awkward Threesome", Alter Space, San Francisco, California
 * 2014 "Strange Wonders: VCUQ Faculty Exhibition" at Msherieb Enrichment Center, Doha, Qatar. Curated by Catlin Doherty.
 * 2014 "Gaseous Abstractions" Two-person exhibition with Kelley Lowe, Education City, Doha, Qatar
 * 2014 "The Last Brucennial", The Bruce High-Quality Foundation, New York, New York
 * 2013 "Good Intentions: Re-Imagining Rockwell’s Boy Scouts" at Subliminal Projects, Curated by Andrew Pogany and Ben Lee Ritchie Handler, Los Angeles, California
 * 2013 "Privilege Show" at Control Room, Curated by William Kaminski and Evelena Ruther, Los Angeles, California
 * 2013 "More Young Americans", L’Enclos de Bernardins, Curated by Susanne Van Hagen, Paris, France
 * 2012 "INVAGINATION", Night Gallery, curated by Cara Benedetto
 * 2012 "MFA 2013 Exhibition" New Wight Gallery UCLA
 * 2012 "Pushing Painting Paradigms", Mason Gross Gallery, Rutgers University, New Jersey curated by LaToya Ruby Fraizer
 * 2012 "Invagination: Huger is Real", H.E.N.S. Gallery/Nail Salon/Solidarity Center, Brooklyn, New York Curated by Cara Benedetto.
 * 2011 "A Blithedale Romance", Chashama, Manhattan, New York
 * 2011 "Skowhegan at 92YTribeca: An Alumni Exhibition", 92YTribeca, Manhattan, New York, Curated by David Goodman, Wes Miller, Kate Werble.
 * 2011 "Year Zero: Review of Artists' Works Participating" in 2010 Studio LLC Jamaica Center for Arts and Learning, Queens, NY Curated by Louise Barry
 * 2011 "BOOM: Southern California MFA Invitational Group Exhibition", LA Mart
 * 2011 "LACE Benefit Auction", LA Mart, Los Angeles California
 * 2010 "A Failed Entertainment", LeRoy Neiman Gallery, Columbia University, New York curated by Sam Ekwurtzel
 * 2009 "Third National Juried Exhibition" Prince Street Gallery, New York, New York Juried by Susanna Coffey
 * 2009 "Shock and Awe: Where the Abject and the Sublime Converge", Gatov Galleries, California State University Long Beach

Honors and awards

 * 1) 2021 Affiliate Artist Residency, Marin Headlands Center for the Arts, California
 * 2) 2020 The Pommery Prize, "Platform" Curated by Anne Ellegood, The Armory Show, New York, NY
 * 3) 2019 San Francisco Museum of Modern Art Society for the Encouragement of Contemporary Art finalist, San Francisco, CA.
 * 4) 2017 Nomination by Suzanne Titz for the Paulo Cunha E Silva Art Prize
 * 5) 2014 Faculty Research Grant, Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar.
 * 6) 2013 Toby Devan Lewis Fellowship, University of California Los Angeles
 * 7) 2012 Edna and Yu-Shan Han Award, University of California Los Angeles
 * 8) 2010 Van Lier Fellowship, Jamaica Center For Arts and Learning, Studio LLC, Queens, New York
 * 9) 2008 The Sara Cooper Hewitt Fund Prize for Excellence in Art, The Cooper Union, New York, New York
 * 10) 2007 Alex Katz Fellowship, Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, Skowhegan, Maine

Residencies

 * 1) 2019-Present Headlands Center for the Arts, Affiliate Artist, Marin, California
 * 2) 2019 Artist in Residence, Summer Painting Intensive, School of the Art Institute of Chicago
 * 3) 2013 Artist in Residence, Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar
 * 4) 2010 Studio LLC Jamaica Center for Arts and Learning, Queens, New York
 * 5) 2010 June Chashama North Resident, Pine Plains, New York
 * 6) 2007 The Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, Skowhegan, Maine

Gallery affiliations

 * Night Gallery, Los Angeles, California
 * Galerie Nagel Draxler, Berlin, Cologne, Munich, Germany
 * Ever Gold [Projects], San Francisco, California

Reviews and print publications

 * 1) Fournier, Lauren. Autotheory as Feminist Practice in Art, Writing, and Criticism. Cambridge, MA, The MIT Press, 23 February 2021.
 * 2) Georg Imdahl. "Wieder Blick nach vorn." Frankfurter Allegemeine Zeitung. 2020.
 * 3) Alexandra Wach. "Die Neue Normalitat Beginnt Jetzt." Kunstmarkt, Die Walt, 5 September 2020. pp. 35
 * 4) Schwendener, Martha. “The Armory Show: Playing It Safe During an Unsettled Time.” The New York Times, 5 Mar. 2020.
 * 5) Michael Slenske. “The Hollywood of Kenneth Anger's Imagination Is Coming to Life in the Old Spago Space.” Los Angeles Magazine, 11 Feb. 2020.
 * 6) Michael Anthony Farley. “Cruising at Art Basel Miami Beach.” BmoreArt Baltimore Contemporary Art, 6 Dec. 2019.
 * 7) Daniel Volzke. “KUNST & OKOLOGIE.” Monopol Nov. 2019, pp. 34–42.
 * 8) Evelyn Vogel, "Kunst im Laden," Süddeutsche Zeitung, October 22. 2019.
 * 9) Stefan Bock, "Berlin Art Week," Der Freitag, September 14. 2019.
 * 10) Paul Carey-Kent, “Social Media In Painting,” FAD magazine, April 17. 2019.
 * 11) Charles Desmarias, “SFMOMA announces 2019 finalists for prestigious SECA award,” SF Chronicle. December 14. 2018.
 * 12) Catherine Wagley, “5 Free Art Shows to see in L.A. This Week,” LA Weekly, July 19. 2017
 * 13) “Alles meine Schuld. Die Künstlerin Christine Wang zeigt Politisches in der Galerie Nagel Draxler,” Der Tagesspiegel, February 25. 2017
 * 14) Catherine Wagley, “There Goes the Neighborhood: Is a Futuristic New Development the End of the Arts District as We Know It?” LA Weekly, January 3. 2017.
 * 15) “30 under 35,” Cultured, December Issue. Calder Yates, “Cara Benedetto and Christine Wang,” Artillery Magazine, November 3. 2016.
 * 16) Catherine Wagley, “5 Free Art Shows to see in L.A. This Week,” LA Weekly, October 26. 2016.
 * 17) Sabine Heinlein, “Artists Grapple with America’s Prison System,” The New York Times, March 11. 2016.
 * 18) David Pagel, “Christine Wang's 'I Want That Bag' a heavy-handed confessional,” Los Angeles Times, June 17. 2014.
 * 19) Catherine Wagley, “Downtown Exhibit Looks at Money in the Art World, From Kickstarter to Michael Ovitz,” LA Weekly, June 27. 2013.
 * 20) Catherine Wagley, “Norman Rockwell’s Boy Scouts,” Updated, July 4. 2013.
 * 21) Jean Ezrha Black, “Abigail DeVille/Christine Wang,” Artillery Magazine, Vol 7 Issue 2, Nov / December. 2012.
 * 22) Megan Hoetger, “Re-performance: History as an Experience to Be Had,” X-TRA, Fall, Volume 15, Number 1. 2012.

Public Works

 * Groeninghe Art Collection, Belgium
 * Los Angeles County Museum of Art, USA

Curatorial work

 * 2012 Big Dick$ $uck Money at Sax, Etc. Los Angeles California
 * 2011 Circulate, Exchange, Nugget and Gravy with Mathiew Greenfield, Southern California MFA invitational New Wight Gallery, UCLA. Catalog essay by Cassie Wu.