Julian Opie debuts virtual reality work at 'OP.VR/HEM@shenzhen' in China

6 October 2022

Presented by He Art Museum, Julian Opie's latest exhibition ‘OP.VR/HEM@shenzhen’ is now on view at MIXC World, Shenzhen, China. This is the artist’s first major solo show in southern China, which features the world premiere of his newest virtual reality work.

Always exploring different techniques both cutting edge and ancient, Opie plays with ways of seeing by reinterpreting the vocabulary of everyday life. His reductive style evokes both a visual and spatial experience of the world around us. On display for the first time in this exhibition is a new virtual reality work by Opie. In this piece, the artist creates an exhibition space with sculptures presented on plinths and paintings displayed on the gallery walls. The viewer feels they are in a familiar world and can take a small but convincing step into the virtual realm. “I have orchestrated my paintings and sculptures in museum rooms for decades, trying to share my mental models and create a mirrored world that looks and feels as alive as reality,” Opie writes on his initiatives to construct the three-dimensional interactive experience through VR.

Scenes of Opie’s works are represented in both reality and virtual reality: also on display are a series of portraits and landscapes, alongside installations and sculptures, depicting the interconnectivity of the urban environment. Intertwined, these works resonate with the viewers, leading them to enter and experience through various sensory inputs - sound, touch, and balance, as well as vision.

Exhibition Information
Date: 1 October 2022 – 31 January 2023
Venue: Level 4, North Zone, MIXC World, Shenzhen, Guangdong, P.R.C.