Ding Yi 'Between Prediction and Retrospection' at Mostyn, Llandudno, Wales
30 January 2025
From 15 February – 31 May, Mostyn presents 'Between Prediction and Retrospection', a survey exhibition of works by Ding Yi, featuring works on canvas, wood and paper, created over the last forty years.
Drawing on both Eastern philosophy and Western aesthetics, the exhibition presents a range of approaches to contemporary painting, from experimental, process-based works to more traditional techniques. Throughout his extensive career, Ding has employed these methodologies to explore cross-cultural perspectives, addressing the impact of rapid technological development, urbanisation, and broader societal shifts. The ‘retrospective’ aspect of this exhibition is reflected in the selection of works spanning from the 1980s to the present, a period marked by significant societal transformations, including the fall of Soviet Communism, the decline of the American Dream, and the rise of China and Southeast Asia. Ding’s practice, with its distinct and motif-based approach, offers a lens through which the results of these historical shifts can be understood.
Ding’s early education took place amidst China’s Cultural Revolution. His practice was developed in reaction to Socialist Realist propagandist imagery, called xuanchuanhua, which flooded the country’s visual landscape during his formative years, as well as by later studies in Chinese ink painting at Shanghai University, which he attended from 1986 to 1990. During this period, the artist created a system for constructing nonrepresentational works using solely the motif of a rudimentary cross—depicted alternately as x and +—which he developed into an ongoing series he named Appearance of Crosses.
'Between Prediction and Retrospection' reveals Ding’s mastery in navigating the intersections of tradition and innovation, guiding viewers on a transcendent journey through a visual language where every brushstroke speaks volumes.
Curated by Alfredo Cramerotti, former Director of Mostyn, and Kalliopi Tsipni-Kolaza, Curator of Visual Arts at Mostyn.
Find out more via Mostyn.
Image: Ding Yi, Appearance of Crosses 2023-B10, 2023, Mineral pigment, pastel, acrylic, water-soluble color pencil, and pencil on indian paper, 22 1/5 × 29 9/10 in | 56.5 × 76 cm
