Solo Exhibition ShanghART SUHE, Shanghai
Exhibition Name: Why Not Make A Bet?
Academic Advisor: Li Suchao
Artists: Chen Wencun
Exhibition Date: 2025/01/10-02/24 (Weds. - Sat. 11:30-18:00, Sun. - Tues. By Appointment: suhe@shanghartgallery.com)
Location: ShanghART SUHE 204, 2/F, 30 Wen'an Road, Jiang'an, Shanghai
ShanghART SUHE is pleased to present Why Not Make a Bet?, a solo exhibition by Chen Wencun. This exhibition features the artist’s latest series of text- and slogan-based paintings, which explore the unique role of language in his work. The pieces delve into how simple, often ambiguous phrases take on new meanings when they intersect with elements of painting and graphic design.
Chen’s paintings are instantly recognizable for their bold colors and standardized fonts. The titular piece, Why Not Make a Bet? (2024), is a prime example: the Chinese text “为何不D一把?” in bright red, paired with the English phrase “WHY NOT MAKE A BET?” in bold black letters, dominates nearly half the canvas. The text, styled like large-character posters or commercial ads, combines with a central image of a crane taken from a found image, creating a maze of symbols open to endless interpretation.
Much of the text in Chen’s work comes from familiar phrases encountered in everyday life. By removing these words from their original contexts, Chen reconstructs them to carry new, often ambiguous cultural meanings. This approach invites viewers to rethink the role of text in visual art. These phrases often carry emotional weight or situational significance, but when placed in Chen’s paintings, their meanings subtly shift. For instance, in Sold Out (2024), Chen pairs a quote from the film Fight Club with an image of men’s leather shoes taken from an ad, beneath which he boldly writes “即将售罄’’ in red Chinese characters. In this context, the text is no longer simply a tool to convey information; instead, it becomes a dynamic element that interacts with the painting. Words that might evoke strong feelings or ideas in their original setting take on new, unpredictable meanings when juxtaposed with Chen’s stark imagery, offering viewers an alternative visual experience.
The way Chen arranges text and imagery in his work is heavily influenced by graphic design. He pays careful attention to the placement of letters, the choice of fonts, and the interplay between text and composition, drawing clear connections to visual communication design. In works like Born in Art (2023), which combines screen printing with painting, or Click to Go Forward (2024) and Front Page (2024), inspired by book cover design, text plays a crucial role in composition, rhythm, and even providing a playful critique of contemporary culture. The fragmented phrases in his work reflect a hallmark of our digital age, where viral snippets of language spread rapidly online, becoming a new medium for expressing emotions and ideas. As a result, this exhibition also serves as a reflection on how visual art interacts with the media-saturated world we live in today. Works like b.d. (2024) and White Banner (2023) document subtitles from online videos that have been automatically generated. These fragments of words don’t form complete or coherent sentences; instead, they represent what Roland Barthes described as signs of “emptiness” (vide). In the disappearance of meaning and the ‘signified’, the textual signs begin to reveal their inherent existence.
Using text as a core element in art is not a new idea. Artists like Barbara Kruger, Christopher Wool, Lawrence Weiner, and Glenn Ligon have long explored this approach, often to make strong social or political statements. While Chen’s works also use text as a focal point, they differ in tone—eschewing direct critique or aggression in favor of a subtler, multi-layered signs and schemas. Therefore, when viewing his works, we can focus on the interplay between the surface mediums (text, images, print) and the underlying mediums (advertising, film, television, the internet). Through them, we can reflect on how we are embedded within these media. (Text/Li Suchao)
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