Lunar Dial and Human Smoke

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Synopsis: A 15-minute animation realized over a period of six years consisting of a series of acrylic paintings and works on paper that were digitized onto the animation. Yuan Gao’s work is rich with symbolism, conveying the uncertainty of consciousness, while illustrating the homogeneity and repetitiveness of images and concepts. By using a cyclical narrative, distinctive topics are interspersed throughout the ‘journey’, creating a visual rhythm of flowing water, moonlight, and other representations of knowledge. The film is accompanied Human Smoke (2014-2015), a series of mixed-media drawings.

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Yuan Gao’s FIELD MEETING participation is supported by Capsule Shanghai (Shanghai).

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Yuan Gao is a Chinese artist working and living between New York and Beijing. Through animation and painting, Yuan illustrates the homogeneity and repetitiveness of images and concepts, and the temporality of the two. Her work is often recognized for being rich with symbolism, a method she employs to convey the uncertainty of consciousness. Yuan’s most recent solo exhibitions include

Gao Yuan: Eternal Return (2017) at Capsule Shanghai, alongside other international exhibitions such as You Won’t Be Young Forever, curated by Biljana Ciric (Shanghai, China, 2016) and Secret Love (Stockholm, Sweden, 2012) among many others. Her animations have been selected by major film festivals including Vancouver International Film Festival (2017), Hong Kong International Film Festival (2017), International Film Festival Rotterdam (2017), International Leipzig Festival for Documentary and Animated Film (2016) among others. Most recently, Yuan’s animation piece Lunar Dial was nominated for a Tiger Awards for Short Films at the International Film Festival Rotterdam (2017) and received a special mention at CutOut Fest International Animation and Digital Art Festival (2016).