Wilfried Lentz Rotterdam

Hans de Vries & Peng Zhang, Observations From Dwelling, part 2, 6 November – 18 December 2021 (extended, 4-18 December opening times 1-5pm because of Covid-regulations)

Wilfried Lentz is pleased to present Observations From Dwelling, part 2, with works by Hans de Vries (b. 1947, Broek-onder-Akkerwoude, NL) and Peng Zhang (b. 1990, Shijian Cun, CN). The opening takes place on Saturday 6 November from 4–6pm.
Continuing from part 1 (Hans de Vries, Anstastia Kiseleva and Suyoung Yang), Observations part 2 presents works that are the result of the artists’ personal systems of observation, experimentation and communication with their natural-domestic environments.
Peng Zhang, a farmer’s son, grew up in a small village in the south of China. Memories of rural life of the village are the point of focus in the artist’s work. These include familiarity, closeness, and togetherness, as well as simplicity, slowness, physical labour, and nature. Through the subjects of his installations and drawings, he tries to evoke viewers’ yearning for the rural life. In Observations, part 2 Zhang presents several series of drawings: Sla Centrum for instance, a document which showing the process of planting lettuces in municipal spaces in Rotterdam.

Hans de Vries’ Stijgbeelden (Rising images) are recordings taken by the artist of fruits, vegetables and seeds over several years in the early 1970s: “an image of plants by plants”. The Stijgbeelden are informed by teachings of bio-dynamic agricultural practices, and form just one part of the artist’s study of how to visualize changes in the environment around him.

Peng Zhang graduated with a masters from the China Academy of Art at Hangzhou in 2015 and did a second masters at Sint Joost in Den Bosch where he graduated in 2018. In 2021 he is in residence at the Rijksakademie. His work has been shown in exhibitions at Tramkade (NL), the 13th National Exhibition of Fine Arts, Ningbo (CN) Paradise Garden. I-II, at Willem Twee Kunstruimte, ‘s-Hertogenbosch (NL), Paradise Garden 111 at Witte Rook, Breda (NL) and the 5th China National Youth Art Exhibition, Shanghai Oriental Art Center (CN).

Hans de Vries is self-taught in art and in farming. His work was included in the group exhibitions ‘Douwe Jan Bakker, Sjoerd Buisman, Krijn Giezen, Hans de Vries’, the Dutch Pavilion Venice Biennale, Venice (IT), 1978 and ‘Binnen en Buiten het Kader, environments en situaties van jonge Nederlanders’, Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam (NL), 1970. De Vries chose to stop producing art at the end of the 1970s. In 2016, a retrospective exhibition and monograph of his work were produced by Krist Gruijthuijsen for Kunstverein. He lives in Denmark.

The exhibition is extended until 18 December, 2021. The gallery is open from 1-5pm because of Covid-regulations. For further information and visuals, contact the gallery office@wilfriedlentz.com.