Celebrated and censored, the late Ren Hang’s body of work was once described by Time Magazine as a “carnival of milky limbs and botanical beauty”. Liang Chenyu writes for Sixth Tone.
Ren was interested in how nudity — which he described as “a human being’s most fragile and real state” — could reveal the truths of the unguarded mind.
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Untitled, 2014. © Ren Hang
Works by the late photographer Ren Hang are due to go on show at the Photofairs photography fair in Shanghai this autumn (7-10 September, Shanghai Exhibition Centre). In the meantime, we once again look over to our friends at Sixth Tone as they cover the first mainland solo exhibition, which will run at Shanghai’s Modern Art Base until August 26, of this creative’s work since the young artist’s suicide in February earlier this year. The exhibition showcases Ren’s luminous style — even as the mood among visitors has a mournful touch to it. The tribute features 19 photographs of nude young men, often posing amid flowers, animals and natural landscapes. Liang Chenyu reports for Sixth Tone.
Nudity continued to be a source of inspiration for Ren, whose visionary, artfully-constructed scenes blend the surreal with the provocative.
Ren began taking pictures in 2008, when he found himself drawn to photography while studying marketing. His classes didn’t interest him; taking pictures did. The artist once said he simply “shot what he saw,” which began with his roommate’s naked body. Nudity continued to be a source of inspiration for the photographer, whose visionary, artfully-constructed scenes blend the surreal with the provocative.
Untitled, 2015. © Ren Hang
“[His photographs] were all dark, although they are bright visually. It’s the contrast that creates the charm,” exhibition co-curator Zhang Yuling tells Sixth Tone. “It’s all about youth, young bodies, beautiful girls and boys, and nature; yet in fact, they are quite dark.”
The 29-year-old photographer and poet on February 24, 2017, took his own life in Beijing after a long struggle with depression that he had chronicled on his website. “I live my whole life as if in a hospital, spending each day in a different ward,” Ren wrote in September 2016. “Outsiders cannot enter, and I cannot leave.”
Untitled, 2014. © Ren Hang
Born in Changchun, in the northeastern province of Jilin, Ren began taking photos of his friends in 2007. Most of his photographs feature his friends, photographed in their homes or out in nature. The artist soon earned international recognition for his intimate and distinctive work, showing in 24 solo exhibitions across more than 20 countries.
Ren’s photographs are known for being erotic and bold, yet despite much coverage focusing on the explicit nature of his work or his queer identity, for Ren, sex was never the core subject of his photography. Rather, he was more interested in how nudity — which he described as “a human being’s most fragile and real state” — could reveal the truths of the unguarded mind.
“The way people deal with the body and desire is one of the main expressions of their mental state, which is hugely different from language and behavior after it is rationally filtered,” Zhang says.
Ren Hang, 2015, C-print Edition of 10.
© Ren Hang.
Zhang first met Ren in November. She later curated an exhibition of his work at KWM Art Center in Beijing, and Ren attended the opening in mid-January. The pair made plans to have a drink together after Chinese New Year, but the meeting never took place, as he died shortly afterward.
The memorial show reuses the title of the Beijing exhibition, “Beauty Without Beards” — a reference to classical Greek aesthetics that exalted the bodies of beardless young men. According to Tim Crowley, Zhang’s co-curator for both exhibitions, Ren was pleased with the title, especially because he had done a two-month residency in Athens. His photographs from Greece were later published in a work titled “Athens Love” — one of the prolific artist’s 17 photo books.
To Zhang, Ren was a very gifted photographer whose methods were as unique as his vision. “His composition process was very spontaneous,” Zhang says. For example, she explains, he once told her that his photograph of a man eating watermelon in a bathtub came about simply because someone had brought the fruit to the shoot as a snack.
Zhang spoke to Sixth Tone about Ren’s work and legacy. The interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
Beijing is a place where great minds gather, where active thinkers are always dissatisfied with their daily shackles. Zhang Yuling, exhibition co-curator
Sixth Tone: Ren lived in Beijing since he was 17 years old. He was arrested several times due to the content and nature of his work. What do you think of Beijing as a place for an artist to develop?
Zhang Yuling: The atmosphere for an artist is not bad. I have never considered a zero-pressure environment to be optimal for producing art, and the history of art has never proved that. Excellent art is often created under pressure. Yet it is impossible for us to create pressure in order to produce excellent art — this is not a reversible relationship.
In some ways, I think Beijing can be a “pressure cooker,” but there is also a side that is very free. This is a place where great minds gather, where active thinkers are always dissatisfied with their daily shackles.
Ren Hang for Atelier Rouge Pékin, SS16. ©Atelier Rouge Pékin
Sixth Tone: What makes Ren’s photographic depictions of human bodies so special?
Zhang Yuling: You can identify his visual language at a glance. He used human bodies as an artistic tool — for example, to form geometric shapes. Even the sexual organs were purely part of the picture’s composition. In one photograph, the four hands are just lines, and the young man’s mouth in the middle is a circle.
The idea of the multiple is very powerful, a very important concept in art history. Multiple figures appear in different scenarios, usually in a natural environment, creating completely geometric forms that repeat in a pattern. This is a very strong feature of Ren’s work.
Sixth Tone: What do the animals in his photographs convey?
Zhang Yuling: He used birds, doves, lizards, snakes, and other animals, and he would let them touch the naked human body. From my own point of view, I always feel that it creates a palpable sensuality.
For example, you have the snakes close to your skin, and it’s very dangerous, or you have the doves just flying — everything is moving, and you cannot catch them. It’s sometimes disgusting to think about fish and octopuses directly on your skin. It’s very stimulating for me; I just feel a chill. I think animals have this kind of effect — very sensual.
Make your way over to the full interview right here, on Sixth Tone! Unfiltered. Just like the art.
This trending topic was originally written by Liang Chenyu for Sixth Tone 2017 All rights reserved
Edited by Qian Jinghua for Sixth Tone
Additional editing and introduction by Elsbeth van Paridon for Temper Magazine
About Sixth Tone: There are five tones in Mandarin Chinese. When it comes to coverage of China, Sixth Tone believes there is room for other voices that go beyond buzzwords and headlines to tell the uncommon stories of common people. Through fresh takes on trending topics, in-depth features, and illuminating contributions, Sixth Tone covers issues from the perspectives of those most intimately involved to highlight the nuances and complexities of today’s China.
Featured Image: Little Punk, 2014. Copyright@Ren Hang
Images: Copyright@Ren Hang
Temper Magazine does not own any of the above English content. All featured English content belongs to Liang Chenyu for Sixth Tone 2017. All rights reserved.
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