Ray Jiang: LIFE

• Fri, Dec 1, 2023 - Sat, Jan 20, 2024  9am - 5pm On view
• Friday, Dec 1, 2023  6pm - 8pm Opening Reception

Sawyer Yards presents LIFE, a solo exhibition of oil paintings on canvas by artist Ray Jiang. The exhibit will take place in Gallery 200 of Silos at Sawyer Yards. Join the artist at the opening reception from 6-8 pm on December 1, 2023.

Jiang's work explores deeply felt themes such as life, love, death, sex, and dreams. His approach is between surrealism, minimalism, and symbolism; and his goal is to express the profound essence of the human experience, going beyond culture through the use of abstract and concrete forms, and brilliant colors. He believes that the creative process cannot rely solely on rational techniques, but that emotional intuition and the endowment of the soul into the work are integral as well. Therefore, whether it is the choice of color, the narrative he constructs, or the actual composition, Jiang's paintings resonate and connect with the audience on an emotional level.

Ray Jiang lives and works in Houston, Texas. He is the president of the US-China Artists Association, the chairman of the American Youth Ambassador Foundation, and the former chairman of the Panorama China Program of the Houston International Film Festival. He graduated from Lu Xun Academy of Fine Arts in the 1990s, and after moving to Houston, he enrolled in 1998 at St. Thomas University on a full scholarship and completed a Master's Degree in 2002. He has been engaged in art practice and research for nearly 30 years, and his work can be found in several different museum collections. Jiang also participated and exhibited in Art Basel Miami (red dot exhibition area) in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019, and Santa Fe Art Festival in 2017.