Chen Wei

Chen Wei graduated from Zhejiang University of Media and Communications in 2002. He constructs personal-psychological and societal-structural narratives using found objects, fabricated props and staged scenes, all of which are meticulously constructed and assembled inside his studio. Evoking recurring motifs, memories and dreams, every image is a fiction and a story in itself. In the fictional scenes of objects, interiors and nocturnal cityscapes, Chen exposes the psychological and socio-political characters of contemporary China: collective yearning for betterment, disillusionment of consumerist desires, and a nostalgia for a haphazardly erased past.

Chen’s recent solo exhibitions include “Chen Wei: The Club” (Centre for Contemporary Photography, Melbourne, Australia, 2017); “Noon Club” (JNBY Foundation, Hangzhou, 2016); and “Chen Wei: In the Waves” (K11 chi art museum, Shanghai, 2015). Group exhibitions in which Chen has participated include “The 12th Gwangju Biennale” (Korea, 2018), “We Chat: A Dialogue in Contemporary Chinese Art” (Asia Society Texas Center, Houston, USA, 2016); “CHINA 8 – Works in Progress” (Museum Folkwang, Essen, Germany, 2015); “Performance and Imagination: Chinese Photography 1911–2014” (Stavanger Art Museum, Stavanger, Norway, 2014); “ON | OFF: China’s Young Artists in Concept and Practice” (Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing, 2013); “The 4th Seoul International Media Art Biennale” (Seoul Museum of Art, Korea, 2006). Chen is the recipient of the Asia Pacific Photography Prize at SH Contemporary in 2011. Chen’s works is collected by San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (USA), Singapore Art Museum (Singapore), Rubell Family Collection (USA), Ullens Center for Contemporary Art (Switzerland), Sigg Collection (Switzerland) and White Rabbit Contemporary Art Collection (Australia).

Chen currently lives and works in Beijing, China.