Art+ Shanghai Gallery is pleased to announce that the works of gallery artist JUJUWANG will be exhibited at Zara Nanjing, the first flagship concept store in Asia and have been permanently collected by the brand.
JUJUWANG takes inspiration from Nanjing’s city flower, the plum blossom, as the starting point for her creative journey. Using a combination of suspended installations, videos, and other multimedia materials, she draws from the classical Chinese piece “Meihua Sannong” (Three Variations on the Plum Blossom) to create an immersive visual experience. This innovative blend of visual scenes and traditional music merges seamlessly, offering a captivating and multi-sensory experience for the audience. The plum blossom symbolizes a deep connection to the city’s rich cultural heritage and history, evoking memories and resonating with the essence of Nanjing’s cultural roots. Zara, with its unique artistic expression, skillfully merges fashion with local culture, creating a space where contemporary design meets the profound beauty of tradition. Through this collaboration, Zara enhances its environment with an atmosphere brimming with cultural significance, providing customers with not only a visual feast but also a deeper understanding of the local identity and heritage.
「The Impression of the Plum Blossom」
Inspired by the timeless Chinese flute piece Three Variations on the Plum Blossom, “The Impression of the Plum Blossom” serves as a delicate interplay between nature and human existence. The original composition, with its three movements of a couple—encounter, separation, and reunion— a metaphorical tapestry, weaving together the ephemeral beauty of life and the enduring connections that bind us to the world around us. Through poetic video expressions, the work invites us to contemplate the intricate relationships between humanity and nature, as well as the philosophical questions that arise from our fleeting yet profound experiences.
Artist JUJUWANG attended the opening event of Zara’s first flagship concept store in Asia, located in Nanjing.
At its core, “The Impression of the Plum Blossom” is a celebration of the plum blossom, a symbol of resilience and hope in Chinese culture. The plum blossom thrives in the harshest of winters, its delicate petals emerging defiantly against the cold, a testament to the enduring spirit of life. This metaphor extends to the human condition, where preservation, responsibility, and the pursuit of happiness are not merely acts of survival but profound expressions of our connection to the natural world and to one another. Just as the plum blossom perseveres through adversity, so too do we navigate the complexities of our relationships, striving to preserve what is meaningful, to fulfill our responsibilities, and to seek joy amidst the inevitable challenges of life.
The foggy setting of the piece further deepens its philosophical undertones. The mist, like a veil, obscures the boundaries between reality and illusion, inviting us to question the nature of existence itself. Are the images we perceive—the fleeting encounters, the poignant separations, the joyous reunions—merely fragments of a dream? Or do they constitute the very essence of our reality? The work suggests that life, much like the fog, is a liminal space where certainty and ambiguity coexist. It is in this space that we must confront the paradox of our existence: that life, with all its beauty and transience, is both a dream and a reality, a duality that only we, as individuals, can truly experience and interpret.
Ultimately, “The Impression of the Plum Blossom” is not merely a musical or artistic creation; it is a philosophical inquiry into the essence of being. It challenges us to reflect on our relationship with one another and with nature, to embrace the responsibilities that come with preservation and stewardship, and to strive for happiness even in the face of uncertainty. The foggy dreamscape it evokes serves as a metaphor for the human experience—a journey through moments of clarity and obscurity, joy and sorrow, connection and solitude. And yet, amidst this ambiguity, there is a profound truth: that life, whether dream or reality, is ours to experience, to cherish, and to shape.
