Artist of the Corridor
Celebrating Motherhood and Childhood is a collection of paper-tearings by local artist, Hua Nian.
Hua Nian has been an art instructor of Hua Nian Art Studio in Champaign- Urbana for 25 years. She is also an active exhibiting artist. Her paintings appear in international and national art exhibitions, winning awards at local, state, and national shows. Her works have been featured in American Artist Magazine, the Chicago Sun-Times, Dialogue: An Art Journal, and in numerous local newspaper and magazines, as well as cover art for books, music CDs, and posters produced by Stanford University and others.
Since moving to the United States from China to continue my education, my ways of thinking and painting have changed profoundly. However, my paper-tearing art, which I began in my homeland around 1992, still remains the same--children are always the subjects. Then, after I became a mother of two, mothers and siblings began to join the scene. My playful children have brought me much joy as well as inspiration. These works are made from torn magazine paper. The torn edges of the paper, casually defining the shapes set against darker backgrounds, help me to convey spontaneous and expressive ideas. With the randomly torn shapes piled up in front of me, I usually start a work without any certain images in mind. The colorful shapes, and even the sound of ripping the paper, stimulate my imagination. By continually rearranging the shapes and colors with critical eyes, I often find those little ones with joy and surprise. The figures are constructed in a rather abstract way and they don’t even have facial features, but with clues from their body language, I try to invite viewers to share their artistic imaginations with me--to sense their expressions and feelings, making out an arm here, a smile there. (To view more artworks, please visit her website)
On display throughout the month of May18th - September 1st.
Urbana Free Library
210 E. Green St, Urbana
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Artist of the Corridor, an initiative by the City of Urbana Arts and Culture Program, is a dual-site exhibition series that features local art in the City Building and The Urbana Free Library. All Artist of the Corridor shows are free and open to the public. To receive updates on arts and cultural events and artist opportunities in Urbana, follow Urbana Arts and Culture Program on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, or visit urbanaillinois.us/arts.
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