Space Station is set to present Celestial Magic, a solo exhibition by Geng Xue. This marks her first solo show at the Space Station. Known as an artist who resists easy categorization, Geng Xue has developed a distinctive approach to the exploration and advancement of artistic language. For this exhibition, she brings three new series created in recent years: theNetherlight series in ceramics, the Decaying ofHetu Transfigured series on paper and silk, and selected video works from the Cosmos: Liaozhai series, which originated from her participation in Xu Bing’s satellite art residency project. These three series, while distinct, share a common conceptual foundation.
TheNetherlight andHetu Transfigured series incorporate traditional materials such as ceramics, paper, and silk. The liberation of formal elements and methodologies in these works signifies an elevation of aesthetic power. Ceramics transcend their association with artisanal craftsmanship, advancing toward a sublime and mystical dimension within next-generation Chinese ceramic aesthetics. The satellite videoCosmos Prophecy and the folded works from theHetu Transfigured series employ randomness to generate geometric forms, creating a temporal sculpture—a multidimensional geometry that encapsulates the possibilities, intentionality, and intuition of time.Through these explorations, Geng Xue raises questions about the intangible and the manifest, the void and truth, the visible and the invisible. Her engagement with astronomical aesthetics reflects a vast and profound tradition deeply embedded in Chinese civilization, one that predates the advent of modern space aesthetics. Ancient civilizations sought guidance and enlightenment from astronomy, and today, we continue to seek such insights to inspire our contemporary era.
She juxtaposes ceramics, artifacts, paper, and silk rooted in ancient forms with high-tech devices, using voids and folds within her works to trace the spiritual trajectory between heaven and earth, light and shadow. Drawing on the symbolic systems developed from the ancient Hetu and Luoshu diagrams, she creates resonances with contemporary astrophysics. By reinterpreting Liaozhai tales as reflections of modern mythology, her works break the linear constraints of past, present, and future, seeking escape routes from the rules and limitations of the material world. This pursuit reveals an invisible yet indomitable resilience.
