陈轴｜CHEN Zhou

Chen Zhou, born in 1987 in Zhejiang, China, is currently based in Shanghai. He primarily works with painting, video, and performance art, focusing on the human experience of existence. In his early works, mainly in video, he explored the absurdity of contemporary life, the performative and deceptive aspects of identity, and the loneliness and alienation within virtual worlds. Since the pandemic, he has increasingly focused on painting and performance. His long-term studies of Buddhist philosophy have gradually influenced his work, giving it an inner spiritual force, a tranquil aura, and an Oriental surrealist style. In this phase, Chen has begun to explore the relationships between the body, space, perception, spirit, and energy. A central motif that has emerged in his recent work is the Guanyin vase, symbolizing a state of meditative stillness. He also incorporates more primal imagery, such as water, fire, earth, smoke, and bones, utilizing methods like spatial arrangements, rituals, and meditation to create a sensory liminal space. Through this approach, he seeks to explore the subtler dimensions of human existence.

Chen Zhou lives and works in Shanghai. His first feature work, Life Imitation (2017), received the ‘New: Vision Award’ at the CPH: DOX Film Festival and the ‘Asian Perspective Award’ at the DMZ Film Festival and has been included in the Official Selection of the 61st BFI London Film Festival. He is also selected by ArtReview Future Greats (2018).

His recent solo exhibitions include: ‘Travelling Amid’ Centre Pompidou x West Bund Museum Project, West Bund Museum, Shanghai(2024); ‘Blue Hole’ White Cube, Hong Kong(2018)

He has exhibited internationally, including ‘The Circular Impact: Video Art 21’, OCAT, Shanghai(2021); ‘Age of You’, Museum of Contemporary Art, Toronto(2019);’ Emerald City’, chi K11 Art Foundation Pop-up Space, Hong Kong (2018); ‘Cold Nights’, UCCA, Beijing (2017); ‘2nd Asian Film and Video Art Forum (AFVAF)’, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Seoul (2017); ‘28 Chinese – Rubell Family Collection, Rubell Gallery, Miami (2013); ‘ON|OFF: China’s Young Artists in Concept and Practice’, UCCA, Beijing (2013); ‘Unfinished Country: New Video from China’, Contemporary Arts Museum Houston (2012); and ‘7th Shenzhen Sculpture Biennale – Accidental Message: Art is not a System, not a World’, OCT Contemporary Art Terminal, Shenzhen, China. (2012).