展览名称：欲望花园——北水新作展

　　主办单位：今日美术馆

　　协办单位：环铁时代美术馆

　　学术主持：顾振清
　　
　　策展人：孙小娟

　　参展艺术家：北水

　　开幕时间：2011年6月18日 下午15:30
　　展览时间：2011年6月18日——6月27日
　　展览地点：今日美术馆3号馆1层
　　地址：北京市朝阳区百子湾路32号苹果社区
　　联系电话：8610-58760600-100
　　网站：www.todayartmuseum.com 

　　赞助单位独家：北京晶美天下家居饰品经营中心

　　特别支持：北京德滋画廊

　　北京道福广告公司

　　北京绘泽永成国际贸易有限公司

　　北京华电祥云软件有限公司

　　北京昆泰龙太阳能科技有限公司

　　审美的无奈：北水的欲望花园

　　顾振清

　　　　守望山野，仰望星空，是来自中国东北长白山山麓的北水自幼养成的一种习性。身处中国社会急剧转型的时代，北水不得不在中国与西方、传统与当代的文化碰撞之中汲取能量，激荡心灵。1990年代初，北水以逾越体制藩篱的自由艺术家身份客居北京东村，从事行为、装置和绘画媒介的实验性创作，由此开启他的艺术独行侠之旅。2000年前后，北水在历经狂热、迷失、逃避、挣扎等各种超负荷的个体生存体验之后，他放下天降之大任，埋头画画，以画画平复自我、放空自我，反思并确认自我的艺术家身份。北水试图通过对绘画性的追溯，折回到艺术的本体论问题之上，追究人的良知、理性精神和终极价值。从庄子之鱼到混沌太初，又从苍茫宇宙回到罂粟摇曳的欲望花园，从具象到形而上，又从形而上回到具象，北水借助中国文化的暗喻符号系统，在画面上往来驰骋，展开自我的精神救赎。其实，他在内心始终未能容纳现代性怪兽，认同红尘万丈的都市生活。他的精神家园仍是来自幼年记忆，来自时而静谧、时而狂野的大自然。但是北水心里也是明镜一块，就社会发展的不可逆性而言，纯粹自然只是一个乌托邦梦想。

　　　　守望欲望花园，却源自北水面对的一种观念的困境和审美的无奈。从观念出发，认知事物现象与本质的巨大歧义并不困难。但从现实切入，把握事物在黑与白、虚与实、浅与深之间的双重性，却绝非易事。北水执着于天人合一传统理念和田园牧歌式的回乡情怀，却又不能无视山花烂漫的自然表皮之下现代性社会业已造成的生态灾难。罂粟花是北水在生活现实中选定的一个活标本。它是世界上最美丽的花，生命力极强。它又是恶之花，是毒品和死亡的源头。消费社会背景下，北水以审美的态度直视罂粟之形色、再现罂粟之本性，挑衅的就是现有文化的悖论和道德禁忌的弹性。罂粟花在北水《欲望花园》画面上繁衍、膨胀、变异。它已浑然不是一种象征人类罪孽的符号，而是艺术家谋篇布局的构图元素。在北水构成风格的烘托下，一种自然之花，却以诡异、妖娆形态在画面上绽放。每朵花中心，仿佛都有一个陷阱般的深邃黑洞。这种独特的视觉形象充满暗示，让人不寒而栗，甚至产生一种下意识的莫名惊悸。也许，正是罂粟花诗意绚烂的外表与深刻变异的本质所造就的意义分歧，催生了北水一语双关的表达方式。在《欲望花园》之中，北水渐渐以平易、客观、无我的态度看待现实。他把观自在作为一种境界诉求，在艺术创作的时空状态中体验自由自在的表达、放飞无拘无束的思绪。欲望花园的形象，则在北水不断强化的观念意境中不断衍生、又不断寂灭。通过罂粟花图式的拆解、重组，再拆解、再重组，北水波澜不惊地实施着针对人类环境理想的不断拷问。其实，北水追问的是一个永久的困惑：为何人类对美好世界的不懈追求总不能消解自身的丑陋？
　　
　　Title of the exhibition: The Garden of Desire—New Work from Beishui

　　Organizer: Today Art Museum

　　Co-organizer:Huantie Times Art

　　Academic Director: gu Zhenqing
　　
　　Curator: Sun Xiaojuan 

　　Artists: Beishui
　　Opening: 3:30pm, June 18, 2011
　　Duration: June 18, 2011— June 27, 2011
　　Venue: 2nd exhibition hall of Building No.3, Today Art Museum
　　Address: Pingod community, No.32 Baiziwan Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing
　　Tel: 8610-58760600-100          
　　Website: www.todayartmuseum.com

　　Exclusive Sponsor: Beijing Jingmei Tianxia Home Décor

　　Frustrated Aesthetics: Bei Shui’sGarden of Desire

　　By Gu Zhenqing

　　　　Bei Shui was born from Chang Bai Shan in the northeast of China, he used to live around mountains, with stars in the sky, when he was young he lived in a natural area. Living in the era of rapid transformation in China, Bei Shui got cultural resources and inspiration from both Western and Eastern, traditional and modern. Since the beginning of 1990s, he began his career as a freelance artist lived in Dong Cun village of Beijing. He had performances, installation artworks and made paintings. Around the year 2000, he experienced an overload in his personal survival in a state of  enthusiasm – lost – eacaping - and struggling. He made paintings to reflect himself as an artist. Though in his painting works, he searched for something related to humanity and human conscience, rational spirit and the ultimate value of life. His works: we can see, are from fish which belong to Zhuangzi’s theory, then another theory of the vast universe, and then to poppy flowers in the garden. His works evolved from concrete to the metaphysical, and back to concrete. His works are dealing with Chinese cultural elements, to express his interior. In fact, his childhood memories related to the quiet and wild nature influence him still. His heart fights against the modern city and the modern life. Bei Shui’s dream of life is bright, but it is just a utopian dream, the society will continue to develop. 

　　　　His Gardenof Desire was his concept of life and society. He recognized the phenomenon of flowers and society and its essence, and perfectly created works to depict them. Bei Shui’s Chinese traditional concept which was people and nature living harmoniously together. When he created the poppy flowers, he was also thinking about modern society and its ecological disaster. The poppy flowers were just living specimens of the modern society. They are very beautiful and have great vitality. They are metaphor of evil: drugs and death. Underneath our material society, the poppy flowers’ appearance represents the culture and morals of our society and people. Poppy flowers had different states of living: reproductive, expanding and variation. They were not only representing people, but the forms and their compositions are within artist’s intention. The flowers in his work were strange and fascinating. In every flower, there is a black hole in its centre that implied something horrible. Maybe the poppy flowers’ gorgeous look and their drug function were just meanings of Bei Shui’s works.In the Gardenof Desire, his attitude towards the reality turned to be objective and quiet. His dreams were expressed in his works. The image of poppy flowers was a result of Bei Shui’s idea and concept. He was questioned the environment for humans. His puzzle was: Why human’s restless pursuit can’t get rid of its ugly sides?