{"id":20629,"date":"2022-11-26T19:04:24","date_gmt":"2022-11-26T11:04:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www2.weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/?post_type=portfolio&#038;p=20629"},"modified":"2026-01-08T14:40:21","modified_gmt":"2026-01-08T06:40:21","slug":"sean-lean-china-6th-december-2022-14th-january-2023-press-release","status":"publish","type":"portfolio","link":"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/portfolio-item\/sean-lean-china-6th-december-2022-14th-january-2023-press-release\/","title":{"rendered":"Sean Lean &#8211; china | 6th December 2022 &#8211; 14th January 2023 &#8211; Press Release"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id='artists-title'  class='avia-section av-2hjuec5-b8c27dd37482de80a196076dd1fe5e2a main_color avia-section-default avia-no-border-styling  avia-builder-el-0  avia-builder-el-no-sibling  avia-bg-style-scroll  container_wrap fullsize'  ><div class='container av-section-cont-open' ><main  role=\"main\" itemprop=\"mainContentOfPage\"  class='template-page content  av-content-full alpha units'><div class='post-entry post-entry-type-page post-entry-20629'><div class='entry-content-wrapper clearfix'>\n<div class='flex_column av-1vt1o5x-68a602af4872ad78b66d733f8c3a3434 av_one_full  avia-builder-el-1  el_before_av_one_full  avia-builder-el-first  first flex_column_div '   ><p>\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-1ozoxrp-8451a631f91ac62dbd42509295ad95ce\">\n#top .hr.hr-invisible.av-1ozoxrp-8451a631f91ac62dbd42509295ad95ce{\nheight:20px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='hr av-1ozoxrp-8451a631f91ac62dbd42509295ad95ce hr-invisible  avia-builder-el-2  el_before_av_textblock  avia-builder-el-first  '><span class='hr-inner '><span class=\"hr-inner-style\"><\/span><\/span><\/div><br \/>\n<section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/CreativeWork\" ><div class='avia_textblock  '   itemprop=\"text\" ><h3 class=\"p1\" style=\"font-family: 'eb garamond'; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: 2px; text-transform: uppercase; text-align: left;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/portfolio-item\/sean-lean-china-6th-december-2022-14th-january-2023-works\/\">WORKS<\/a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/portfolio-item\/sean-lean-china-6th-december-2022-14th-january-2023-press-release\/\">PRESS RELEASE<\/a>&nbsp;| <a href=\"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/portfolio-item\/sean-lean-china-6th-december-2022-14th-january-2023-insitu\/\">INSITU<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/SL-ebooklet.pdf\">E-booklet<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Ceramics-as-Matrix_by-Adeena-Mey_Essay-for-Sean-Lean-2.pdf\">Essay<\/a><\/h3>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div><div class='flex_column av-114kfud-bb6656f87c2cebc4a69a960357ae5d44 av_one_full  avia-builder-el-4  el_after_av_one_full  avia-builder-el-last  first flex_column_div column-top-margin'   ><section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/CreativeWork\" ><div class='avia_textblock  '  style='font-size:14px; '  itemprop=\"text\" ><p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-family: 'open sans thin'; color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-size: 25px; letter-spacing: 1px;\">china<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Wei-Ling Gallery is pleased to announce \u2018<em>china<\/em>\u2019 by Malaysian artist Sean Lean.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u201c<em>This time around, I am looking outside of myself more, as in looking at China politically, socially and attempting to incorporate those issues into my work.\u201d<\/em> &#8211; Sean Lean<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">A continuation of his previous two exhibitions, \u2018<em>Motherland<\/em>\u2019 (2015) and \u2018<em>M2<\/em>\u2019 (2020) in respectively, \u2018<em>china<\/em>\u2019 is Sean\u2019s investigation into his heritage and personal cultural history which deals with the Chinese culture.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Breaking out from previous formats of squares and rectangles, the artist\u2019s works are cut into the shapes of source materials he references, of Chinese porcelain. Half of the series is fashioned out of aluminium, and the other half using mild steel, the latter chosen because of its propensity to show rust.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u201c<em>I really want to show the process in the final works, and accentuating the quality of the materials used. It\u2019s not so much of a permanent material, rust changes with time. I want to show that to the viewer. As for the other half of the works, aluminium does not corrode. It\u2019s heavier than canvas, but lighter than steel.<\/em>\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">His aluminium based works comprise two sections welded together, in the shape of the shadow of a pot, and within the \u2018darkness\u2019 dwells the political and cultural issues that concerns him most.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Using metal paint, automative components and tools, the works are sectionalised, the reference materials segmented, and in between lies either the material or paint used. It is Sean\u2019s way of forcefully \u2018inserting\u2019 himself into his art as opposed to just duplicating or replicating a particular work. The biggest sections of the process put into his works are the rust effects, to break the illusion, the immersion, and to put into focus a sense of transience &#8211; that things change, that they are beyond the artist\u2019s control. It is very much in line with his views about culture; it is ever-shifting and ungovernable.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u2018<em>china<\/em>\u2019 is about the artist\u2019s doubts, and as he postulates, \u201c<em>It comes naturally when investigating something as complex as the \u2018idea\u2019 of China, and perhaps that is why my shadow pieces darken considerably, and the more research I do, the less certain I am about the issues that I am tackling. At some point, information from both sides seem to lean into propaganda. I question everything, from sources of information to authorship.<\/em>\u201d&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">&#8216;<em>china<\/em>&#8216; is featured at Wei-Ling Contemporary from 6th December 2022 &#8211; 14th January 2023.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Wei-Ling Contemporary is located at 2nd Floor, Wei-Ling Gallery Annexe, No 8, Jalan Scott, Brickfields, 50470 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Admission hours are Tuesday \u2013 Friday 10am \u2013 6pm, Saturday 10am \u2013 5pm.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Exhibition is open by appointment only. For appointments and further assistance, please contact +60322601106 or e-mail siewboon@weiling-gallery.com<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>ABOUT THE ARTIST<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sean Lean\u2019s work often deals with the issues of fragmented identities and the contradictions between traditional Eastern values and the lure of Western popular culture. And through it, he branches out with his own history and personal memory and reflects on the events that have shaped his country and his region. Sean traces social, political, and religious tensions, disparities, and engages with stories that have shaped the collective memory of his region.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Interrogating identity, navigating history, and questioning ways of being is a thread that runs throughout Lean\u2019s practice. His previous exhibitions have followed a similar path. Through \u2018<em>Motherland<\/em>\u2019 (2015) the artist examined the core of what it means to be Chinese, questioning the shifting definitions\/criterion of what it takes to be a Chinese person, and the generational loss and gains of a culture inherited and gradually diluted.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">In his process, he leans towards methods that were more \u201cindustrial\u201d, and akin to techniques used in automotive painting. The artist feels that the exploration of methods that are more \u201cmechanised\u201d is more relevant and reflective of the time we live in.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u2018<em>M2<\/em>\u2019, Lean\u2019s most recent show in 2020, is a continuation of \u2018<em>Motherland<\/em>\u2019 and explored many similar concepts and ideas as Motherland. Lean treated his subject matter here with an undeniable sense of play and light heartedness this time, refusing to be bogged down by seriousness and guilt when discussing his cultural past.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">In 2018, he was one of 6 artists from around the world commissioned by KENZO, in collaboration with Tiger Beer and WWF to work on a project called \u2018Rare Stripes\u2019 \u2013 a collection of garments inspired by actual stories of the wild tiger. Sean Lean&#8217;s design of Kamrita was very apt, as it showcased three sets of paw prints in different colours, signifying the Himalayan tigress with her two cubs walking through the forest floor. For years, Kamrita was &#8220;WWF\u2019s adopted tiger and a symbol of hope for her whole species&#8221;. The collection was unveiled at the Ginza Six KENZO store in Tokyo, and was available in limited collection. He was also commissioned by Harper\u2019s Bazaar magazine to create a cover in 2017.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-t5f2s5-3a48a44c1f211c0b2549def89a109a78\">\n#top .hr.hr-invisible.av-t5f2s5-3a48a44c1f211c0b2549def89a109a78{\nheight:40px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='hr av-t5f2s5-3a48a44c1f211c0b2549def89a109a78 hr-invisible  avia-builder-el-6  el_after_av_textblock  avia-builder-el-last  '><span class='hr-inner '><span class=\"hr-inner-style\"><\/span><\/span><\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"WORKS&nbsp;|&nbsp;PRESS RELEASE&nbsp;| INSITU | E-booklet | Essay china Wei-Ling Gallery is pleased to announce \u2018china\u2019 by Malaysian artist Sean Lean. \u201cThis time around, I am looking outside of myself more, as in looking at China politically, socially and attempting to incorporate those issues into my work.\u201d - Sean Lean A continuation of his previous two [...]","protected":false},"featured_media":20622,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"tags":[],"portfolio_entries":[],"class_list":["post-20629","portfolio","type-portfolio","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/portfolio\/20629","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/portfolio"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/portfolio"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20629"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/portfolio\/20629\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26371,"href":"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/portfolio\/20629\/revisions\/26371"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20622"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20629"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20629"},{"taxonomy":"portfolio_entries","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/weiling-gallery.com\/gallery\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/portfolio_entries?post=20629"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}