Screaming Walls, a solo exhibition by famed sculptor, installation and ceramic artist Liu Jianhua, was specifically designed to suit the unique proportions of the UCCA Nave. All along the length of the Nave, the artist will hang over 200 pieces of black porcelain in various shapes and sizes on the white walls, creating the effect of black ink dripping down vast sheets of blank paper, and an atmosphere in which time seems to stand still.

Liu Jianhua employs dichotomies such as Yin/Yang, dark/light and active/passive to produce a sense of dynamism and inherent tension. Dark ornaments hang like pendants on pale walls; porcelain gleams against a matte surface; pieces of porcelain drip from the walls like black drops of ink, conveying a sense of movement, while the solidity of the porcelain suggests a static state. Then there is the relationship between the elegant and peaceful space in which the work is displayed – the long, high-ceilinged UCCA Nave – and the clamour of the real world outside. Screaming Walls is both a statement about the world in which we live and a contemplative space that allows viewers to cast their thoughts in a multitude of directions.

For more information, please read the “Liu Jianhua: Screaming Walls” press release.