2015年6月13日下午三点三十分由今日美术馆主办的展览《砖问》--应天齐当代艺术展在今日美术馆1号馆2层圆满开幕。展览展出艺术家应天齐多件大型当代艺术作品。其中包括装置、影象、材料绘画等，部分作品曾参加威尼斯双年展的展出，展览主要作品大型装置《砖问》长11米宽7米，由近千只木箱组成，这些木箱装满了芜湖市民亲手在古城废墟中捡拾的古砖，庄严而肃穆地静卧在展场中间，等待和询问着它们的最终归宿。两个红色捡砖现场电话亭承载着市民的心声，佇立在木箱二侧，守卫着这最后的遗存。此外，该展还特别作为对话方式邀请了二位著名建筑师付志強先生和胡石博士参展。

　　应天齐，中国唯一的一位以建筑作为载体进行艺术创作的艺术家，他一直坚持不懈持续三十年延用安徽的本土资源进行创作，不断以自己的思考和艺术的方式介入传统、介入历史、介入现场，用精湛的艺术作品对社会提出质疑和批评。从西递村版画开始，到油画《世纪遗痕》再到芜湖古城的《砖问》一步一个脚印走出了属于自己的、独特的当代艺术探索之路。

　　关于本次展览，艺术家应天齐概括说：“《砖问》这个展览从整体看基调会比较沉重和悲怆，甚至含着深深的忧伤。我不能说这是一个快乐的展览，作品呈现出我们整个社会在快速前行时所面临的问题，我想通过展览对这些问题进行叩问，我把客观的芜湖古城现场搬到展厅，这可能比直接发表态度和作出结论更有震撼力，这也是我在创作上一直坚持的，我想让观众来评判，让观众参与并反思，这一点尤为重要。”

　　展览的主体呈现是以芜湖古城在城市化进程中的问题作为个案，中国社会的任何问题都会在城市化进程这个载体上有所体现。比方说农村与城市人口比例的变化，正说明了城市化进程已彻底改变了中国的格局，这种新的格局所带来的是人类生活种种境遇的变迁，我们现在所遇到的太多社会问题，皆来自于城市化进程......。从这个意义上來看，应天齐的当代艺术较为敏锐而准确地切入了当下现实。

　　展览将持续展出自六月二十九日结束。

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　　艺术家简介

　　应天齐，中国安徽芜湖人。毕业于中央美术学院，深圳大学教授，西安美术学院客座教授，中国版画家协会理事，中国美术家协会会员。应天齐早年曾从事木版画和水墨画探索，独创应氏水印版画技法，作品屡次获得中国文化部、中国美协大奖、日本-中国版画奖励会金奖、当代版画杰出奖、贡献奖等，《西递村系列》全套作品为英国木版基金会、大英博物馆、中国美术馆馆藏。奠定了应天齐在中国画界的重要地位。2000年始应天齐转型于油画、当代艺术的探索，2011年至2013年连续三次参加意大尼威尼斯建筑和艺术双年展，并成为华人艺术界首位以个展进入该展的艺术家。

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　　北京今日美术馆宣传部                                 如蒙刊登，样刊烦请寄至今日美术宣传部

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　　Inquiry of the Brick – an Exhibition of the Contemporary Art of Ying Tianqi

　　Inquiry of the Brick – an Exhibition of the Contemporary Art of Ying Tianqi opens at 15:30, 13 June 2015 at the 2nd Floor of Hall 1, Beijing Today Art Museum. The exhibition displays a number of large-scale contemporary artworks by Ying Tianqi, including installation, video and painting with materials and so on. Some of the works were exhibited at the Venice Biennale. The entitling work Inquiry of the Brick is a tremendous installation of 11 meters long and 7 meters wide. It is composed of nearly a thousand wood boxes filled with bricks from relics of the ancient town in Wuhu, all hand-picked by its citizens. These boxes lie quietly and solemnly at the center of the hall. They seem to be expecting and inquiring about their ultimate fate. Two red telephone booths from the brick collection sites stand by these wood boxes, as if safeguarding these last heritages and holding back a thousand words at the heart of the dwellers of the ancient town. The exhibition also features a special live dialogue session with Mr. Fu Zhiqiang and Dr. Hu Shi, two renowned architects.

　　Ying Tianqi is the only artist in China who is using architecture as the medium of his art. He kept using the regional Anhui Province resources in his art works for 30 years. The artist intervenes tradition, history and the live scenes with his individual thinking and independent art. His finely created works impose questions and criticism to our society. From his prints at Xidi Village to the oil painting Imprints of the Century and the Inquiry of the Brick, created in the ancient town of Wuhu, Ying walked steadily in his own pace and blazed an extraordinary path of his own in the contemporary artistic world.

　　Ying Tianqi commented on this exhibition that "the Inquiry of the Brick is going to be an exhibition overwhelmed in heavy and pathetic sentiments. It even holds a very deep sorrow. I cannot call it a joyful exhibition to watch. The problems of a society rapidly marching forward are put boldly in front of everybody. I would like this exhibition to make inquiries. I want to re-create the scenes of the ancient Wuhu in the exhibition hall. This is probably more powerful than preaching in words or making any judgments about the topic. This is what I've been persistently doing. I want the audience to make judgments. I want them to get involved and begin to reflect on the problems. This is very important."

　　The major part of the exhibition takes the ancient town of Wuhu as a case study of problems in the urbanization process. Any problem of the Chinese society may be reflected in the urbanization process. The change of urban and rural population ratio for example demonstrates the fundamental change of China's social structure during the urbanization process. This new order brings about changes in all aspects of everyday life. A large part of the problems we now face are results of the urbanization process. In this sense, Ying Tianqi's art finds a very sharp and precise perspective to penetrate the modern reality.

　　The exhibition will last until 29 June 2015.

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　　About Artist

　　Ying Tianqi, born in Wuhu, Anhui Province, China, graduated at China Central Academy of Fine Arts. He currently teaches at Shenzhen University. Ying is also guest professor at Xi´an Academy of Fine Arts, counsel of China Association of Printmaking Art and member of China Artists Association. Ying Tianqi devoted his earlier years to the exploration of wood printmaking as well as ink and wash painting. He created the Ying´s water print technique. His works were frequent winners of prizes by China Ministry of Culture. He was winner of the Grand Prize of China Artists Association, Gold Prize of Japan-China Print Awarding Foundation and various prizes of distinction and contribution in contemporary printmaking art.  The Xidi Village series was collected by the British Muban Educational Trust, the British Museum and the National Art Museum of China. These achievements lay a sound foundation for Yings significance in Chinese fine arts scene. Ying shift his focus to oil painting and contemporary expression of art since 2000. He participated in the Biennale and the Architecture Biennale in Venice consecutively for three years from 2011 to 2013.  He is the first Chinese artist holding a solo exhibition at the Biennale in Venice.

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