During her residency at CFCCA, Han will further her research into the tradition of woodblock printing, a technique which purportedly originated in China and later developed in India. Her recent work investigates craft as a vehicle for cultural exchange, paying particular attention to the “little” traditions typically neglected in Chinese art history, as well as the ways in which craft connects to her own practice as an artist working across multiple mediums, including painting and installation. Our guest speakers will share original research on the topic of craft, ranging from the historical use of ornamentation in illustrated manuscripts to the legacy of William Morris and the Arts and Crafts movement.
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This online event will begin with a talk by the artist, followed by speaker presentations and a roundtable discussion before ending with an interactive Q&A.
Han Mengyun (b.1989 in Wuhan, China) is a multimedia artist currently based in London. Initially trained in the tradition of Western oil painting, Mengyun sought alterity in the histories of Chinese, Indian and Islamic art via dedicated study of their intertwined religious, cultural and linguistic discourses. Her work manifests a high degree of transculturalism, through which she seeks to establish a wholeness of self in the wake of fragmentations caused by modernity, globalisation, postcoloniality and diaspora. Mengyun’s current practice looks closely at the art of the book across cultures, from Indian and Persian manuscripts to woodblock-printed books in China and Japan. She received her MFA from the University of Oxford in 2018 after specialising in Classical Indology and Indian aesthetic theories. Prior to this, she completed a BA in Studio Art at Bard College in 2012 and has also pursued Sanskrit studies at Kyoto University.
Recent exhibitions include Night (IS A Gallery, Shanghai, 2022); The Glass Bead Game (ShanghArt Gallery, Art Basel, Basel, 2022); The Pavilion of Three Mirrors (Ad-Diriyah Biennale: Feeling the Stones, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 2021); A Place for Concealment (Galerie Urs Meile, Beijing, 2022); The Dwelling Place of the Other in Me (Power Station of Art, Shanghai, 2021); Splinters of Jade (A Thousand Plateaus Art Space, Chengdu (2019); and In Between Islands (Today Art Museum, Beijing, 2013), among others.
Roisin Inglesby is a curator at London’s William Morris Gallery, where her work is focused on Morris’ international connections. Recent exhibitions have included Pioneers: William Morris and the Bauhaus (2019), Distant Fellowship: Morris and South Asia (2020) and Young Poland: An Arts and Crafts Movement (2021). She is currently researching the Japanese Mingei movement and its international connections. Roisin studied at both the University of Oxford and the Bard Graduate Center and has held curatorial positions at the V&A, Tower of London and Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum.
Vivek Gupta is Postdoctoral Associate at the University of Cambridge, where he teaches and researches Islamic and South Asian art and architecture. His primary field of expertise is Indo-Islamic manuscripts from the medieval to contemporary periods. Other interests include: affect and experience, transculturation and the status of Islamic heritage in India. He is the co-convener of the international webinar, From Konkan to Coromandel: Deccan Heritage, Art and Culture. Vivek also maintains a curatorial profile and has held research positions at a range of institutions from the Metropolitan Museum of Art to the British Library. Most recently, he curated Shahzia Sikander: Unbound at Jesus College, Cambridge. He has published in a range of peer-reviews journals and public-facing venues and his monograph on wonder in Indo-Islamic art is forthcoming.