[TANK EXHIBITION] Interview with Mark Manders

Convex/Concave: Belgian Contemporary Art
Curated by Dirk Snauwaert and Charlotte Friling
October 31st, 2019 - January 12th, 2020
Convex or concave directions - in perception, perspectives and reflections - have come to symbolize the multiple exchanges and interrelations of subjectivity. These reflections, stand-ins for the dualism in subjectivity, symbolize the opposing tendencies of an inner self vis-à-vis an outer world - of a gaze turned inwards in contemplation - and of an extrovert and engaging gaze turned outwards. This dualism, defining of the very conception of subjectivity or identity and of the self, is the lens through which this gathering of contemporary Belgian artists has been organized, since that dualism captures a general characteristic, not only of modernity, but also of the artistic endeavors, and singularity, of Belgian artists. In addition, the choice for this organizing principle finds echoes in the ways in which Chinese artists and intellectuals have tackled modes of representation and dominant paradigms and, in so doing, have transformed the convex-concave dialectics into playful or meditative attitudes to self-awareness.
About the Artist:
For more than two decades, Mark Manders (b. 1968 in the Netherlands; lives and works in Belgium) has developed an endless self-portrait in the form of sculpture, still life and architectural plans. Manders described his work as an ongoing “self-portrait as a building,” and indeed he constructs complex environments and atmospheric worlds, a timeless reality wherein contradictions co-exist. He strives for timelessness and universality by using archetypal forms and familiar-looking materials such as clay, steel and wood. As a sculptor, Manders adheres to the tradition of bronze sculpture, though he also incorporates contemporary materials in his work. Blurring the line between reality and illusion, the androgynous bronze figure “Clay Figure with Iron Chair (2009)” seems to have been fashioned out of wet clay, creating the impression that it has just left the artist’s studio or, conversely, that it was abandoned by the artist, mid-work. The illusion of peeling dry clay creates a sense of foreboding, as if the sculpture could crumble into fine dust and disappear at any time.
TANK Website: www.tankshangha...
Exhibition Page: www.tankshangha...