ren ri makes a buzz at pearl lam galleries with beeswax sculptures

ren ri makes a buzz at pearl lam galleries with beeswax sculptures

ren ri: yuansu projects
pearl lam galleries hong kong SOHO
on now until april 12th, 2015

located in a vibrant and fast-developing district of the bustling asian metropolis, the ground and first floor space of pearl lam galleries new space at SOHO 189 gives the cultural organization a better platform in which to promote its homegrown, and global line-up of artists; with two out of ten shows each year dedicated to two international designers. its aim is to support and enhance the art scene at a local, regional and world level.

the artist manipulates bees’ behavior to form his organic and stunning sculptures

the pearl lam galleries hong kong SOHO opens its doors with an exhibition curated by david ho yeung, that presents the three-dimensional organic forms of ren ri. the beijing-based artist’s practice is an expression of his intimate experience with bees, both as a creative and a beekeeper, in which he employs beeswax as his chosen medium. ren manipulates the movement of the insects, and the formation of honeycombs to realize his metaphysical and hybrid sculptures, which stand to investigate the force of nature and consequences of human intervention. the show features 40 previously unseen works and sees the artist taking over the space with two distinctive works: ‘yuansu I: the origin of geometry’ and ‘yuansu II’.

every seven days the boxes containing the bees are repositioned to create new, living forms

‘yuansu I: the origin of geometry’ incorporates maps into the make-up of beeswax, while ‘yuansu II’ is a series of otherworldly geometric forms manipulated by bee behavior. to achieve these stunning sculptures, ren places a queen bee in the middle of a box, while worker bees build natural beehives around her. every seven days, a reference to the seven days of creation, ren changes the position of the box, to create a living object. ‘yuansu II’ embodies a belief system that symbolizes new metaphysical qualities and forms of life itself.

installation view of ren ri: yuansu projects at pearl lam galleries hong kong SOHO

‘the duality of interactions between the human body and the bees is not simply in the physical sense; more importantly it hints at an interrelated force and its counterforce.’ – ren ri
full view of a sculpture from the ‘yuansu II’ series