Exhibitions
‘Open Books commenced as a great idea for a modest exhibition and has grown to be a great idea for a great exhibition.’ Sasha Griffin.
Since the first exhibition, of sixteen artists Chinese folding books, at the National Library of Wales in Aberystwyth in 2012, Open Books has taken many forms. In 2013 it arrived at the Sanshang Contemporary Art Museum, Hangzhou, and from that time on, key curators from Hangzhou and Wales have collaborated on exhibitions in Hong Kong, India, Canada, Australia and the US.
Paper Exchange first shown in BayArt, Wales and touring to Hangzhou, China in 2020 added a new dimension to the possibilities of our work .
‘‘New Dialogues’ at the Charles E. Shain Gallery, Connecticut College, USA in 2018 featured artists from China, the United States, Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, and India whose works are inspired by or respond to the traditional Chinese art format of the folding album. It investigated how artists from diverse cultural traditions and artistic backgrounds creatively utilize the unique format not only as a way of self-expression, but, more importantly, as a method of cross-cultural dialogue and collaboration in the era of globalization. Among the 45 artists selected for the exhibition, 20 are non-Chinese and 25 are from China, including internationally renowned artists such as Xu Bing, Wang Dongling, Ding Yi, and Ye Yongqing.’
The exhibitions in Jaipur in 2017 graphically demonstrated an extra ordinary variety of styles, content and media within the folding book format. Printmaking, drawing, painting, photography, mixed media, collage, cartoon and text all featured, often displaying considerable skill and great detail demonstrating real commitment by the individual artists concerned. Taking the Open Books show to Rajasthan broke new ground for our Indian colleagues and has stimulated a new direction of work for many of them. Eight Indian artists took part in the exhibition
In Canada the Open Books exhibition in 2016 became the loci for a number of events - diplomatic, educational, performative. As a large contingent of artists from China, Hong Kong, Canada and Wales attended the exhibition there were many possibilities for ongoing dialogue between artists. Workshops and talks also took place.
