The 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa, located in Kanazawa City, Ishikawa Prefecture, will be hosting "Ay Tjoe Christine: Spirituality and Allegory," Indonesian contemporary artist Ay Tjoe Christine's first solo exhibition at a Japanese museum, from April 28th to August 19th.

《Too Many Fishes》2013 Oil on canvas 170×200cm
©Ay Tjoe Christine, courtesy of Ota Fine Arts
Ay Tjoe Christine is a contemporary artist active in Indonesia, born in Bandung, West Java, Indonesia. After mastering intaglio printing techniques such as drypoint, she built a career as a textile designer before embarking on a full-fledged career as an artist around 2000. Starting with the Philip Morris Indonesian Art Award in 2001, she steadily established herself as an artist, winning the SCMP Art Future Prize at the Hong Kong Art Fair in 2009 and the Prudential Eye Award (Painting) in 2015.

Inspired by Christian tales and spiritual themes, Ai Cho's works are underpinned by profound insights into the imperfection and duality of human nature. In particular, the scattered fragments of color in her paintings reveal her own fluctuating emotions, while her abstract images, striking a captivating harmony with the blank spaces of the canvas, reveal her earnest approach to exploring the relationship between all things and humanity. This exhibition showcases the fruits of his multifaceted creative work spanning nearly two decades through approximately 50 works, including early drypoints and drawings, oil paintings that explore the expressive possibilities between figurative and abstract, soft sculptures and large-scale installations, and new large-scale paintings created specifically for this exhibition.

《Lama Sabakhtani #01》2010 430x250x400cm Mixed media installation
©Ay Tjoe Christine, courtesy of Ota Fine Arts

The multi-ethnic, multi-lingual, and multi-religious Southeast Asian region has nurtured a truly dynamic and diverse culture. Through the diversity of Asian perspectives, this exhibition offers a glimpse into the characteristics and development of contemporary art in Southeast Asia, including the desire for freedom, identity, growth and its shadows, community, faith and tradition, and revisiting history.

Furthermore, in this age often referred to as the "secular age" or "age of reason," many artists today produce works based on their own reason and sensibility. Meanwhile, Ai Cho seeks inspiration from the Christian Bible, that is, from the "outside" world. While not all of his work is religious, his work, which incorporates a religious perspective on "people," may offer an opportunity for us to rediscover the essence of human existence and the important values and meanings of life. In recent years, artistic expression has become increasingly diverse. While occasionally experimenting with sculpture and installation, Ai Cho's commitment to pure pictorial expression seems to pose a question that we, as a contemporary art museum, must constantly consider: "What is art?"

《I need your hand #2》2009 135x170cm Acrylic on canvas
©Ay Tjoe Christine, courtesy of Ota Fine Arts

Ay Tjoe Christine develops her own unique creative practice at the nexus between the history, culture, and religion of Asia and Europe. Holding this exhibition, a retrospective of her 20-year career, in Kanazawa, an international city that has embraced the diverse cultures of East Asia and other parts of Asia and has shared that unique culture with the world, will serve as an opportunity to deepen understanding of diverse cultures and religions in this city that is constantly seeking greater understanding and collaboration with cities around the world. On the first day, April 28th, an artist talk titled "Ai Cho Christine: Spirituality and Allegory" will be held in the museum's Lecture Hall. When discussing her own work, Ai Cho often uses metaphysical terms such as "spirituality" and "allegory" (or fable). These words seem to be simply based on her own religious views or views of humanity, but there is a stark contrast to the first impression of her work, which appears to be free-spirited and chaotic. In the artist talk, the artist herself will explain the unique characteristics of Ai Cho's art, which has always confronted universal questions of life, through the works on display in this exhibition. The talk is limited to 80 people and participation is free. Applications will be accepted on the website from April 6th on a first-come, first-served basis.