Mysterious
Shang Chengxiang
商成祥
Production date
2013
Object Detail
Media
oil on canvas
Measurements
202.5 x 256 cm
Notes
Shang Chengxiang records his dreams, and the dream-like states of an active imagination: his hyper-realistic oil and acrylic paintings depict unsettling, surreal images. Influenced by Surrealist master, René Magritte, Shang merges his memories of the post-industrial landscape of abandoned factories and obsolete machinery in his hometown of Shenyang with references to dystopian science fiction, lunar landscapes and psychedelia. In particular, Shang is interested in psycho-analytic theories of the unconscious mind and the interpretation of dreams. His paintings are disturbingly ambiguous; each canvas is an encounter with the uncanny. Shang has spoken about the impact of growing up in Shenyang during the period of Reform and Opening, when the old state-owned factories were being turned into private enterprises, and unprofitable heavy industries were simply abandoned, with workers laid off. Many works are inspired by growing up surrounded by machinery of various kinds, but in Shang’s works the references to space exploration are a metaphor for the exploration of one’s inner consciousness.
Accession number
2018.068