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Karin Weber Gallery is pleased to present Zhu Jingyi: Ink Lodge, an innovative approach to traditional ink painting in which the artist elevates, quite literally, this ancient medium. Zhu provocatively refers to his works as “ink,” even as gravity-defying acrylic is also at play. In so doing, the artist is deliberately challenging preconceived notions of ink painting (in the traditional sense) by questioning the very methods and materials that make up its DNA.

Zhu takes as his subject matter all that is familiar in the genre—forests, mountains, trees, and rocks—and lends fortification with the application of three-dimensional structure using modern-day technology. The resulting effect is akin to space trusses or lattice shells reminiscent of Buckminster Fuller’s geodesic designs, but in free form. Spiritually connected to ink traditions, but materially allied with contemporary art making, the artist has added yet another layer to contemplate in the great tradition of ink painting appreciation.