The Reflection of Minds

Joon Nam
Week 5
Museum of Contemporary Art Shanghai
The Reflection of Minds

The Reflection of Minds at MoCA Shanghai exhibited the works of both the first generation and the current generation of China's contemporary artists. Some of the works on the display include Gao Minyan's installation titled "Misunderstanding", Wang Yuyang's installation named "A Painting", and the untitled works of Ding Li, who is also one of the two curators of the exhibition. Although some of the pieces were visually amusing and impressive, I was left with a mixed view after walking around the exhibition. Works like "Warmed up Ice" by Lu Jiawei were visually appealing and easy to make a sense out of. However, other ones such as Li Ming's "The pool", was not as easy to make a sense of, and I was left bewildered. It was not until the professor, Francesca, came to me and explained her take from the pieces that I came to grasp some of the meanings to them. It is true, that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. However, I came to ask the same question that I had when I look at
the works back in New York; should the art works made in such a way that the audience can easily understand them? What is the point of creating a piece that only the creator can understand and exhibit it to the public? True, there is no answer to this question. However, I believe that it is worth a while to ponder about it.