From October 21st to December 15th, if a person finds oneself in the Ortlip Gallery in the CFA, he or she will be standing in the midst of works by the internationally acclaimed painter, calligrapher, photographer, new media artist, and designer Lampo Leong.
To kick off the gallery opening, there is a reception being held on Saturday, October 21st from 6 pm to 8 pm in the gallery. The event is free to the public and all, including students, are welcome to attend.
Alicia Taylor-Austin, assistant professor of art and the director of the Ortlip Gallery, first met Leong at a conference held at Alfred University last year, to foster an exchange of ideas between leaders in visual art from the United States and China. Taylor-Austin said, “At the event, I gave a presentation about the Ortlip Gallery program and Leong gave a presentation about his work. The idea for an exhibit of his work at Houghton took a natural progression from there.” About his work, she stated, “Focused on movement and materiality, this exhibition celebrates the radiance of cosmic energy, revealed through the synthesis of Lampo Leong’s artistic endeavors.”
The show will feature large scale ink paintings and a multimedia display that combines contemporary dance and video. According to the post card of the event, Leong’s “contemporary ink painting and multimedia work incorporate Western geometric structure with the brushwork of Eastern ink tradition to attain a sensibility of postmodern art, celebrating the dynamic energies and the grandeur spirit of the universe.”
Leong received a PhD in Art Theory and Practice from the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing, his MFA in painting with High Distinction from the California College of the Arts, and his BFA in ink painting from Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts. He is currently a professor of art at the University of Missouri-Columbia, and a visiting professor at the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts and Central China Normal University. According to his biographical summary, “Leong’s work has been featured in international contemporary art auctions such as Christie’s, Ravenel, Poly, etc., and in art expos and museums/galleries worldwide through 70 solo and over 300 national/international juried/curated group exhibitions.” His work can also be found in more than 10 museums, including the Cantor Center for Visual Arts at Stanford University, the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, and Macao Art Museum, and the Guangdong Museum of Art.
Furthermore, Leong “has presented over 200 lectures across the United States and Asia at international conferences and institutions and has served as curator and judge for more than 20 art exhibits, grants, and public art competitions,” according to the press release put out by Houghton to promote this exhibition. He has also received over 70 awards and extensive recognitions, as stated in his biographical summary.
The internationally acclaimed artist will be at the reception event to present his work Saturday and his work will be on display throughout the rest of the fall semester in the Ortlip Gallery.