MYTHICAL JOURNEY - UART SHANGHAI - 15 OCTOBER - 18 NOVEMBER 2025

With many thanks to art historian Dr Joshua Gong, Research director at Unicorn Publishing
​for his curatorial essay


CURATORIAL ESSAY by Dr JOSHUA GONG

​(Bilingual version Chinese/English)

​慎余里石库门中，开启一场横跨东西方的神话艺术之旅
Where Shikumen Meets Myth: An East-West Art Odyssey in Shenyuli

海派风情建筑遇见当代神话演绎，采艺术中心呈现时空对话
Where Shanghainese-style Architecture Meets Contemporary Myth: UArt Center Presents a Dialogue Across Time

在苏州河畔的慎余里石库门建筑群中，采艺术中心（UArt Center）正如一颗璀璨的艺术明珠，承载着海派文化的深厚底蕴，见证着当代艺术的创新蜕变。而今，采艺术中心正迎来一场别开生面的展览——"神话之旅穿越时空的对话"。

Nestled within the historic Shikumen architectural complex of Shenyuli by the Suzhou River, UArt Center shines as a radiant gem of art, embodying the profound heritage of Shanghai-style culture while witnessing the innovative evolution of contemporary art. Now, UArt Center presents an extraordinary exhibition--
                                          "A Mythical Journey: A Dialogue Across Time and Space".

                                                            建筑与艺术的完美融合：慎余里的当代新生
                                       Where Architecture Meets Art: Shenyuli's Contemporary Rebirth

作为现存最完整石库门建筑之一，慎余里始建于20世纪30年代，是本世纪保护性拆除后于2022年重建的上海文保建筑。整个建筑使用31000余块老墙砖，采用"修旧如旧"理念，毗邻天后宫，已成为世界级"城市会客厅"。

As one of Shanghai's most intact Shikumen complexes, originally built in the 1930s, Shenyuli was designated a protected cultural heritage site after undergoing 21st-century conservation demolition and meticulously reconstructed in 2022. The project utilized over 31,000 reclaimed bricks while strictly adhering to the "restoration as it was" principle. Now standing adjacent to the Mazu Temple, it has emerged as a world-class "urban living room".

采艺术中心作为紫薇美力集团自主运营的艺术品牌，在这座充满历史印记的建筑中融合了往昔、当下与未来的美学理念。其空间艺术理念围绕"风色有无中"展开，打造出一个既传统又现代的艺术展示空间。
As an independently operated art brand under VIBRANT GROWTH Group, UArt Center harmonizes past, present, and future aesthetics within this historically significant architecture. Its spatial concept, "wind and hues in between presence and absence", creates an art exhibition space that bridges tradition and modernity.

                                                                       神话之旅：中西神话的当代艺术对话
                     Mythic Journey: A Contemporary Art Dialogue Between Eastern and Western Myths

"神话之旅穿越时空的对话"展览旨在展示中西方神话内涵的当代艺术演绎。本次展览汇聚了爱尔兰籍艺术家飞扬·戈恩（Fion Gunn）和旅英华裔艺术家姜啸然两位艺术家的精彩作品。

"A Dialogue Across Time: Myth Reimagined" exhibition presents a contemporary artistic interpretation of Chinese and Western mythological connotations. This showcase features works by Irish artist Fion Gunn and British-Chinese artist Jiang Xiaoran.

两位来自不同文化背景的艺术家在英国伦敦因艺术结缘，通过图画进行跨文化探索，在求同存异中创作出令人惊叹的作品。她们的作品具像化了人类命运共同体，通过对古代神话的解读和演绎，揭示了人类血缘和文化构成的复杂性、可塑性和延伸性。
​
Two artists from divergent cultural backgrounds found creative kinship in London's art scene. Through their collaborative visual dialogues, they embark on a cross-cultural exploration where differences become catalysts for innovation. Their works materialize the concept of a Community of Shared Future for Mankind by reinterpreting ancient myths, revealing the intricate complexity, plasticity, and expansiveness of human lineage and cultural formation.

                                                                 戈恩的"家庭心理剧"：希腊神话的后现代诠释
                       Fion Gunn's "Family Psychodrama": A Postmodern Interpretation of Greek Mythology

在"家庭心理剧"系列（Family Psychodrama）中，戈恩采用画框"画中画"的构图方式，突出被描绘对象的复杂矛盾心理。她将希腊神话中的家庭伦理、背叛、恐慌和复仇等故事元素，通过后现代的绘画技巧——多角度、多层次、综合媒介，将神话构成的复杂文化地层关系在一帧帧平面中展示出来。

In her Family Psychodrama series, Fion Gunn adopts a "painting-within-a-painting" framing technique to accentuate the intricate contradictions of her subjects. By integrating elements of Greek familial ethics—betrayal, panic, and vengeance—she unfolds the complex cultural strata of mythic narratives within a single plane through postmodern artistic devices: multi-perspective angles, layered compositions, and mixed-media techniques.

她的绘画既有委拉斯贵支的矛盾视角，又有贾斯帕·琼斯的新达达效果，还带着深刻的女性力量表达。在追溯神话构成时，戈恩结合自身经历，用富有层次的绘画结构，展示女性在人类文化构成中的多面性。

"Her painting embodies Velázquez's paradoxical perspectives, Jasper Johns' neo-dada effects, and profound expressions of female power. When tracing the formation of myths, Fion Gunn integrates her personal experiences with layered pictorial structures to reveal women's multifaceted roles in the cultural fabric of humanity.

                                                               姜啸然的多元融合：传统与未来的对话
                           Jiang Xiaoran's Polyphonic Fusion: A Dialogue Between Tradition and Future
 
在姜啸然的画作中，画家巧妙融合传统绘画的笔法、晕染、符号和现代媒介的色彩、机器、漫画，将古典感和朋克风多层次而直观地呈现。她拟人化的生肖形象与中国传统志怪图像通过数码拼贴和描摹的方式有机结合起来。

In Jiang Xiaoran's paintings, the artist masterfully integrates traditional techniques—brushwork, ink wash, and symbolic motifs—with modern elements such as vibrant digital colors, mechanical forms, and comic aesthetics, creating a layered yet intuitive synthesis of classical elegance and punk-inspired energy. Her anthropomorphic zodiac figures are organically combined with traditional Chinese zhiguai imagery through digital collage and tracing.

她的绘画主题贴切当下年轻人的心理，在追求传统吉祥平安寓意的同时，又表达对自身文化根性的新渴望。
Her painting themes resonate with contemporary youth psychology—simultaneously pursuing traditional auspiciousness while expressing a renewed longing for cultural roots.

                                                                     圆的哲学：循环与统一的艺术表达
                             The Philosophy of the Circle: Artistic Expression of Cyclicity and Unity

飞扬·戈恩和姜啸然的绘画不少都采用圆形作为主要构成元素，通过时空转换、生命轮回和能量流动，表达能量、爱护、团圆的内涵。

Many works by Fion Gunn and Jiang Xiaoran adopt the circle as a central compositional element, conveying concepts of energy, care, and reunion through temporal shifts, life cycles, and dynamic energy flows.

在戈恩的"修复"系列（Restoration）中，艺术家描绘了在面对残破古迹和神话缺憾时，如何用富有想象的方式让世界变得更美好、平等、和谐。在她的笔下，古埃及、古希腊的神像与不分种族性别的人、动物、大海等，远离帝国主义和殖民主义的丛林法则。

In Fion Gunn's Restoration series, the artist reimagines a more equitable and harmonious world by creatively mending fragmented ancient monuments and mythological gaps. Through her brushwork, Egyptian and Greek deities coexist with beings of diverse races, genders, animals, and the sea—transcending imperialist and colonialist "laws of the jungle."

在姜啸然的生肖组画中，天干地支的轮回周期与壁画式的人物形象融合在一起。鲜亮的色彩让充满古意和高深的传统星宿系统焕然一新。赛博朋克的机械感在祥云的笼罩中，产生令人忍俊不禁的效果。

In Jiang Xiaoran's zodiac series, the cyclical rotation of the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches intertwines with mural-style figures. Vivid colors revitalize the ancient and profound traditional astrological system, while cyberpunk mechanical elements—veiled in auspicious clouds—create a delightfully absurd effect.

                                                                       文化交流的桥梁：从上海到科克
                                               A Bridge of Cultural Exchange: From Shanghai to Cork

这次展览不仅很好地呼应了采艺术中心之前林风眠艺术展览的宗旨："介绍西洋艺术，整理中国艺术，调和中西艺术，创造时代艺术"，也极大地推动了中国和爱尔兰两国的文化交流。

This exhibition not only beautifully aligns with the mission of UArt Center's previous Linfengmian exhibition—"introduce Western art, refine Chinese art, harmonize Eastern and Western art, and create art for the times"—but also significantly promotes cultural exchange between China and Ireland.

上海和爱尔兰科克市作为友好城市，是中国和爱尔兰经济、文化、艺术交流的重镇。本次展览也得到了爱尔兰驻上海领事馆的大力支持。展览通过艺术的语言，搭建起中爱两国文化交流的桥梁。

Shanghai and Cork of Ireland: twin cities fostering economic, cultural, and artistic exchange between China and Ireland. This exhibition received strong support from the Consulate General of Ireland in Shanghai. Through the language of art, it builds a bridge for cultural exchange between China and Ireland.

在中国和爱尔兰的神话故事中，人物故事很多都与旅途和海港有关。人类的冒险进取精神，让文明不断演进迭代，繁荣了一座又一座海港城市。从爱尔兰的科克、英国的利物浦、伦敦，再到中国的天津、上海，海港城市的繁荣发展离不开旅居于城市的人们。

In both Chinese and Irish mythology, countless tales revolve around journeys and harbors. It is humanity's restless pursuit of horizons that has propelled civilizations ever onward, giving life to one thriving port after another. From Cork and Liverpool in Ireland and Britain to Tianjin and Shanghai in China, the flourishing of these port cities owes much to the people who have traveled and settled within them.

                                                                           结语：开启属于你的神话之旅
                                                          Epilogue: Begin Your Mythological Journey

世界是平的，世界是圆的，世界是多样的，世界是共同的。采艺术中心通过"神话之旅穿越时空的对话"展览，为中国和爱尔兰两国，还有上海和科克两座城市，开启新的篇章——一场源于人和艺术的神话之旅。

The world is flat, yet round; diverse, yet shared. UArt Center's exhibition "A Mythological Journey: A Dialogue Across Time" opens a new chapter for China and Ireland, Shanghai and Cork—a journey born of humanity and art.

展览信息
Exhibition Information 地址：采艺术中心（上海市静安区浙江北路上海苏河湾万象天地慎余里2幢）
Venue: UArt Center (Building 2, Shenyuli, Shanghai Suhewan MixC World, Zhejiang North Road, Jing'an District, Shanghai)
展览时间：2025年10 月15 日 Date: October 15, 2025
参观方式：预约参观