“Overwhelming Surface” marks Luo Qing’s debut solo exhibition in Australia. In his practice, bold and determined brushwork, rich colours, and textures resembling rugged terrain flood the canvas; however, distorted and blurred faces depict the struggles and unease of life. There is a logic that beneath the rough surface lies an intense and ineffable sense of sorrow, as if a suppressed cry for life or but a glimmer remaining in darkness; the works struggle, in company with the viewer, to reach for inner strength.

These peculiar images originate from Luo Qing’s encounters and emotional struggle with contemporary Chinese society. To Luo refinement and purity have become fleeting illusions; life, in all aspects, is now rough, dirty and hypocritical, saturated with violence. Confronted as such, he struggles with the purpose to convey earnestly. For example, in the age of dwindling faith, the pursuit for physical desires is elevated to the highest value, replacing belief: so what room is left for exploring the soul? Without a spiritual anchor, are we but mere animals seeking but solely physical gratification?

Luo thus delves into the landscapes within his own personal psychology to represent the “theatre of psychosis”, drawing inspiration from film and literature. Compelled by the struggles of inner conflicts, his works mark the objects in his psyche, with the painter “constructing” pigments to consummate what one believes are the remaining connections between art, cognition, faith and mental battle. When we confront the moment of the end without faith, can we face an overwhelming fear of emptiness? This is perhaps the ultimate contemplation that Luo Qing’s art expresses.

Adhering to inner truths, discarding surface falsehoods, exploring the evolution of dimensions, depth, and the language of art; a discovery towards the reflections on faith, spirituality, humanity, and society, are all subjects worthy of in-depth exploration. It can be said that this series of works present the multidimensionality of oil paint as a matter of practice, compressing the vastness and profound artistry within life into the thickness of but a canvas. Each stroke and layer of paint attaches to the dense experiences and emotions of life, tightly woven together like pages in a rich book.

About the artist:

Luo Qing was born in the southern province of Jiangxi in China in 1970 and graduated with a master’s from the Oil Painting Department at the Central Academy of Fine Arts. He has held significant solo exhibitions worldwide, including “Ruins” across Singapore, Indonesia and China and “Dirty City” in Zurich, Switzerland. He has also exhibited in the United States and Germany and has been shown in the National Art Museum of China. He was awarded prizes by the Central Academy of Fine Arts and the International Art Palace. Luo Qing currently lives and works in Beijing.