Artists explore the human-nature contract

The exhibition borrows its title from the namesake book The Natural Contract, penned by the late French philosopher Michel Serres (1930-2019). It meditates on the evolving relationship between man and nature in the face of increasing ecological challenges and the intensified integration of artificial intelligence in human activities.

The exhibition's curator, Wei Ying, says: "The works of seven artists at the exhibition, who present diverse cultural and social contexts, probe into redefining the relationships among man, nature, and technology."

Since the late 1980s, Liang Shaoji, one of the featured artists on show, has been raising silkworms and introducing them into his artistic creations. His works strike people with their unanticipated variations in forms of silk and its inherent beauty, ushering his audience into a state of philosophical reflections.

For example, his piece Can Chanchan/Nature Series No 190 looks, from afar, like a classic Chinese landscape painting done with ink and depicting changing seasons. The texture of the work, after a closer look, reveals a long, delicate piece of silk cascading from the ceiling to the ground.