Not There, Los Angeles, California 2024
Curated by Heather Scott Peterson
March 16th- April 7th
Artist Reception: March 16th from 5-8pm
Not There is pleased to present On the Shoulders Of, an exhibition of context- specific sculpture by Los Angeles-based artist Alan Chin. While researching the history of Chinatown, alongside his family’s deep ties to the development of the American West, Chin discovered that the gallery’s location at 437 Gin Ling Way was once the location of the Chinaware and Gift Shop (immortalized in our still extant neon sign) which was serendipitously owned by his Uncle Steve’s Aunt and Uncle, Peter and Lillie Soohoo. This coincidence ignited a new body of work for Chin, which explores his Chinese American lineage while confronting contemporary issues of identity, immigration, and social unrest. As a result, it seemed fitting that the text for On the Shoulders Of should be enlisted as a work of its own in the exhibition.
Clay & Textile, 2022
Williamsburg Art & Historical Center
Curated by Yuko Nii
Sept 10th- Oct 8th
Artist Reception: Sept 10th from 3-5pm
Chin’s current body of work at the Williamsburg Art and Historical Center reflects his commitment to observations in nature and the intersection between the plants, rocks, people and his practice of experiencing these relationships during this time we are living in. In Chin’s ceramic sculptures he draws from inspirations of hardy plants and fungi that can survive harsh weather conditions. Like a search engine, his work attempts to organize the universe through a fragile, personal system of order with in the seemingly chaotic world by focusing the intersection of what we share when we live together.
Landscapes, 2021
Acrylic on canvas. 2” x 2”
On exhibition at Fine Art Exchanges Association of Taiwan, in collaboration with Taichung City Museum, the exhibition will be in Taichung City Gallery.
April17-May 6, 2021
Rats Star, 2021
Aluminum and galvanized steel, 324” x 324”x 324”
Permanent Collection Evergreen Art Ranch, Oak Run, California.
In 2020, the Evergreen Art Ranch in Oak Run, California, provided a serene haven for artists seeking inspiration amidst the harmonious blend of art and nature. This renowned sanctuary allowed artists to create site-specific sculptures using materials discovered on the property itself, inviting them to embrace the historical context of the region. Oak Run, once a bustling hub of mining activity during the California Gold Rush, offered remnants of its rich history as a captivating backdrop for artistic exploration. As the artists roamed the sprawling landscape, they uncovered discarded fragments of scrap metal, bearing witness to the triumphs and hardships of bygone eras.
Bottomless Cups and Other Things, 2021
Chin + Francos at Kaneko, Omaha, Nebraska.
At The Kaneko:
In the winter of 2021, as the world braved the challenges of the pandemic, a beacon of artistic inspiration illuminated the halls of The Kaneko in Omaha, Nebraska. Three exceptional artists, Alan Chin, Tom Franco, and Iris Torres, were bestowed with the honor of being the first visiting artists during these unprecedented times.
Tessellation, 2020
Kaneko, Omaha, Nebraska
This Community exhibit is an evolving public art project, Tessellation, created by hundreds of individual pieces of art, each individually submitted by members of our local community and people across the United States and around the world.
The Tessellation Project began in March 2020 as a way for KANEKO to engage individuals and communities sheltering in place in response to COVID-19. To guarantee safety, people were asked to submit their art digitally, and in a few months over a thousand digital and video images were submitted, carrying with them, unique stories of managing lives in a time of seclusion. Since then some pieces have been shipped or submitted in person, adding a new dimension to this constantly changing exhibit.
This project is a work in progress beginning with the curation of the first phase, Isolation. The second phase, Ritual, was a call for multi-media submissions of rituals that people created or appreciated in a new way during their time at home. Over time the newer phases will be added and the overall exhibit will become something, say something, reflect something different.
Garden, 2020
Opened Friday, January 10th, 6-9 pm 2020
LA Artcore Brewey Annex:
Is pleased to present an exhibition "Garden" by California-based artist Alan Chin. This is the artist's first public solo exhibition in Los Angeles.
In his psychologically charged objects and paintings, Chin portrays cultural modes against intangible circumstances. Whether depicting family history, gender, spirituality, mainstream culture, nature, or complex cosmic questions, his work attempts to navigate the continuous abundance of information through visual language in contemporary life. By integrating elements of painting, ceramics, architecture, installation, performance, he investigates the value we place on objects, color, and form, and explores how we create meaning within the vocabulary of life. Using everyday materials, ranging from found objects, nature, and humanity, he notes sculpture and painting as evidence of behavior. By using the process of experimentation, his work seems to hover in a transitional state of paradox, as if caught between life and death. His work becomes a self-perpetuating system, seemingly capable of a goal, decay, and rebirth. Like scientific instruments of measurement, his sculpture attempts to quantify and organize the universe through a fragile, personal system of order within the seemingly chaotic world. His work investigates culture's obscure undercurrents within our structured society by exploring the power of the human capacity. Much of Chin's work included in this exhibition is made of found materials as well as experimental and traditional materials such as oil paint, acrylic paint, plastic wood, ceramics, metal, sound, performance, purse handles, and other various mixed media and/or processes.
Dream Waves, 2019
Downey Projects, Downey, California
Downey Projects is pleased to present an exhibition of new work by California-based artist Alan Chin. This is the artist's first solo exhibition in Los Angeles and the most comprehensive exhibition of his work since 2010, showcasing the multiple facets of Chin’s studio practice and time while living in the greater Los Angeles area.
In his psychologically charged objects and paintings, Chin portrays cultural modes against intangible circumstances. Whether depicting family history, gender, spirituality, mainstream culture, nature, or complex cosmic questions, his work attempts to navigate the continuous abundance of information through visual language in contemporary life. By integrating elements of painting, ceramics, architecture, installation, performance, and film, he investigates the value we place on objects, color, and form, and explores how we create meaning within the vocabulary of life. Using everyday materials, ranging from found objects, nature, and humanity, he notes sculpture and painting as evidence of behavior. By using the process of experimentation, his work seems to hover in a transitional state of paradox, as if caught between life and death. His work becomes a self-perpetuating system, seemingly capable of a goal, decay, and rebirth. Like scientific instruments of measurement, his sculpture attempts to quantify and organize the universe through a fragile, personal system of order within the seemingly chaotic world. His work investigates culture’s obscure undercurrents within our structured society by exploring the power of the human capacity.
Connected, 2017
Found metal, welded steel, and enamel.
Sculpture Biennale, Wuhan, China.
At the 1st East Lake International Ecological Sculpture Biennale was kicked off on December 17, 2017, in the Sculpture Gallery and its outdoor space, Jiufeng Urban Forestry Reserve, in collaboration with The Hubei Museum of Art, Wuhan.
Made of material found at a local scrap yard while working in, Wuhan. The former purpose of the metal rings were used as wheels that once held spools of industrial electric cable that now lines and gives power to the ever growing ever, changing city of Wuhan, China. The nature of the material will change through, climate creating a patina painted by the weather. My sculpture presents two interlocking spheres of difference that are coming together creating a never-ending loop of connection to each other.
Golden Nugget, 2017
LA Fashion week, Alexandria Ballroom, Los Angeles, Ca.
The sculpture resembles a traditional Chinese scholar rock made up of industrial materials, such as cinder block, steel, insulation foam, acrylic, spray paint, and bronze. 30”x48'“x105”
Gold nugget is a work of art paying homage to Chin's Chinese American Taishan heritage. The work itself represents a time in history touching on Chinese Diaspora and the journey to “GUM SAN” (Gold Mountain: America), materialism, the California goldrush, the building of the transcontinental railroad, the American dream, truth, deception, greed, struggle, ornamental objects scholarly traditions, spiritual practice, religion, superstition, paradox, and the role of art in our contemporary society.
Presented by Destination Luxury Magazine and Los Angeles Fashion Week
The Possible, 2014
Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive
January 29–May 25, 2014
The Possible is an experimental exhibition at the Berkeley Art Museum, that reconceives the museum as a site for creative convergence. You will have the chance to be a part of this evolving exhibition by engaging directly with an exciting array of visiting artists. As an open platform for shared creativity and the exploration of diverse artistic techniques, The Possible combines studio, classroom, library, gallery, and stage. A multisensory library provides context and inspiration, while the galleries are reconfigured as a series of workspaces: a ceramics studio, dye lab, print shop, and recording studio. Collaborating with one another and the public, a diverse range of guest artists will use these studios to create new work in a public forum. The finished works will filter into a gallery installation, building the exhibition over time. We hope to inspire a spirit of experimentation, improvisation, and play by providing opportunities for artists to go deeper into familiar mediums, experience new practices, and work collaboratively. The studios will function as classrooms during a series of Sunday public workshops and audiences will also be invited to participate in discussions, performances, and field trips during the course of the exhibition.