The ICA and K11 Art Foundation present Zhang Ding: Enter the Dragon

About

The ICA and K11 Art Foundation present Zhang Ding: Enter the Dragon. The exhibition consists of an installation that directly references the final scene from the seminal Bruce Lee film Enter the Dragon (1973). Considered to be one of the greatest Chinese martial arts films of all time, it was the first to have been produced by a major Hollywood studio under the guidance of Lee, whose contribution to the production of the film and script was extensive. Lee identified the film as a vehicle to illustrate his understanding of Far-Eastern philosophies to Western audiences. It proved to be his final film appearance before his premature death. The performances, as part of the exhibition, which are aiming to be co-operative improvisational, experimental and self-reflective rather than competitive, seek to reflect the philosophies that Bruce Lee was aiming to express in his film.

Zhang Ding will transform the ICA theatre into a ‘mutating sound sculpture’, covering the room with mirrored surfaces, suspended sound panels and a series of rotating mirrored sculptures situated next to two identical music stages. For the duration of the exhibition, there will be a series of daily performances, consisting of invited artists and open submissions (please see information below) from a variety of musical genres selected by Zhang Ding in association with NTS. The performances will seek to activate the installation to create a platform for co-operative improvisation, experimentation and self-reflection.

For more information regarding open submissions please visit the NTS website or email zhangding@ntslive.co.uk.

Zhang Ding was born in 1980 in Gansu, China. He resides and works in Shanghai. Zhang Ding's practice is mainly presented through his solo projects, which includes video, installations, paintings and live performance,etc. His works play on ideas of sensory perception and will, constructing absurd scenes full of contrast, often creating metaphors layered with societal references. That may be seen as a series of deconstructed mise en scenes, or as an environmental sculpture of twisting and merging emotional atomsphere. Recent exhibitions include: Zhang Ding: Orbit of Rock, ShanghART, Beijing, China (2014); Orbit: Zhang Ding Solo Project, The Armory Show, Focus Section, New York, U.S.A. (2014); Gold & Silver, Zhang Ding Solo Exhibition, Galerie Krinzinger, Wien, Austria (2013); Meanwhile… Suddenly, and Then, the Biennale of Lyon, Lyon, France (2013); Perspectives 180 - Unfinished Country: New Video from China, The Contemporary Art Museum in Houston, USA (2012).