Kanny Yeung: Woo

EVENT DESCRIPTION

Odds and Ends is pleased to present Hong Kong artist Kanny Yeung’s first solo exhibition, Woo. The exhibition derives its title from Yeung’s most recent series of abstract paintings, born from her continued interest in the meditative powers of abstraction. Accompanying the exhibition will also be curated events led by Hong Kong artist Sin and sound healer Grace Mak which will take place throughout the exhibition period. Woo will be on view from 22 September to 31 October, 2022.

Kanny Yeung’s current practice is anchored in the confluence of mindfulness and art, exploring notions of neuroaesthetics and the emotive qualities of both the creation and reception of abstract art. The enduring appeal of abstract art lies in its ability to free our minds from the dominance of reality, and accessing a meditative state of mind alongside the profound healing it brings. To Yeung, practicing abstraction is a means of metabolising the world, and an active training of the mind that increases awareness and emphasises emotional acceptance. Her plant and book-filled studio is an environment that helps her arrive to that state of mind, enabling a meditative state of focus that is translated into flowing abstract forms.

As an avid reader, Yeung imbues her paintings with the same resurrectional power found in written words, visualised in spiritually harmonious compositions that emphasise the emotional properties of colour and form. Several paintings from this series are also accompanied by poems written by Yeung in her new artist book, providing guided narratives through which viewers can experience her work.

Exploring afresh the link between mindfulness and creativity, paintings from the Woo series are inspired by her affinity for nature and poetry, visually manifesting in both abstracted forms of nature and autonomous forms that are free from mimetic conventions. Works such as Spirit, 2022 exemplify Yeung’s artistic acuity to the diversity of abstraction, it is also within this spectrum of abstraction in which her paintings activate a state of mind- wandering that creates new emotional and cognitive associations. Her paintings endlessly oscillate between sensory overload and deprivation, transforming the gallery into a nondenominational space of nurture.

Echoing Yeung’s meditative practice, Hong Kong artist Sin and sound healer Grace Mak were invited to curate site-specific events for this exhibition. Inspired by the mathematical Bézier curve and the cathartic effect of geometric patterns, Sin will create a site-specific painting as live performance. Whereas sound healer Grace Mak will host two private sessions of singing bowl for reserved guests, offering moments of introspection and inviting guests to enter a meditative state of relaxation.

Events details
Live painting performance by Sinn
1 October 2022 (Saturday) , 12pm onwards

Singing bowl with Grace Mak 1st session
16 October 2022 (Sunday) , 4 – 5 pm
• Paid event • RSVP at info@oaegallery.com

Singing bowl with Grace Mak 2nd session
23 October 2022 (Sunday) , 4 – 5 pm
• Paid event • RSVP at info@oaegallery.com

ABOUT THE ARTIST / ORGANISER

Hong Kong based artist Kanny Yeung started studying data visualisation during her time at Parsons the New School for Design in New York. It was there that she cultivated an interest in mapping layers of quantitative and qualitative information into informative yet emotive stories.

Through painting, Kanny channels her energetic experiences both in the natural world and from introspection. She started painting detailed oil landscapes and skyscapes, first showing her work in Australia in 2019, and in Hong Kong in 2021. Since, she dove into experimental techniques, often with cathartic repetition, on a journey to express the infinite spectrum of emotions. Find her admiring the vivid sun set, meditating in rockscapes, obsessing over a colour and abstracting shapes of water. Regularly rotating the canvas as she works, each painting presents alternate perspectives like a mirror reflecting back epiphanies, once in a blue moon even transformed into poetry.