Lei Zong

I explore the relationship between contemporary political events and painting. I adopt an affect of indifference articulated through visual means such as the pixel, encouraging viewers to find multiple meanings within the puzzle of the image. These paintings reflect on politically correct language, imagery, and experiences in China.

In China, the authenticity of the indexical trace is always already troubled and erased; only the government voice is “real.” I am struck by events and places of my past, lived experiences that I am both burying and uncovering. These experiences do not fit with the government voice. Many people in China obscure their views through other modes of discourse, like the emoji. These contradictions make my paintings unique and contribute to a painting style that is challenging to analyze.

All of my paintings start with an eighteenth- or nineteenth-century painting—this is my memory of my own art education in China. I combine pictures of historical significance with personal life experience, gridding out the original picture in a field of pixels. The pixel compels the viewer to work harder to find meaning.