Meet the sophomore who brought the first ever Chinese artist show to Illini Union Gallery
He wanted to show Americans a different side to China
You may have seen the new exhibit in the Illini Union Gallery. It’s a look at the different side of China than the one we usually see.
We spoked to Zepei C, the man behind the unique exhibition. He said: “I learned from TED that we all stick to ‘a single story’ most of the time, unconsciously view things with our own perspective. I don’t want to let others only know a ‘single story’ about China. And a lot of domestic students were actually shocked that China still has its beautiful side, regardless of the fast development, increase in cars and population etc.
“I wish the mass could see that we still have places like my hometown, ChunZhou.”
The character: the tide of DongJiang Lake (Meaning Lake on the east side of the river) knows the answer
How did you get started with Art?
“My hometown is called ChunZhou. It is a small town at the south point of Hunan province in China. We have pretty scenery there and that is the reason why photography is really popular. I started to fall in love with taking photos and gradually got to know my photography teacher, who is now really close to me.
“I also enjoy visiting different art exhibitions. I have been to lots of shows in NYC and Boston.”
Fisherman in ChunZhou
How did the exhibition start?
“When I came to the U.S., when domestic students talked about China, most of the time the only topic was the pollution and the overpopulation problem.
“So when I was freshman, I really wanted to show other students the other side of China, to show that we do not just have pollution.”
The pure natural scenery
Have you ever run an exhibition before?
“Not really, I actually knew nothing about it before this exhibition.
“Everything got started just because months ago, there was a heated discussion about pollution in china, and then I posted one of the photograph of my hometown in Class of 2019 FB Group, just to show the different side of China. I never expected someone would leave a comment and suggest me to run an exhibition.”
How does it feel to display Chinese art on a U.S. campus?
“The procedure was definitely a little different than I expected but the overall isn’t too much difference. I am actually glad that our domestic students are interested in knowing more about the other side of China.”
Traditional houses
How is the feedback?
“In the duration of the exhibition, feedback from domestic student came to me over time, including one photography student here and one professor from Landscape Architecture department. They said its different from what they have known, and the professor acknowledged how fully developed the shooting technique was.
“Most of the visitors [of the show] were Americans, because lots of Chinese students do not know the gallery and they don’t even go there.
“It was also pretty funny, because I remember one comment asking if the beautiful natural fog is polluted air. Of course it is not, and I replied politely explaining how it works. But again, back to my initial intention, there are still a lot we can do to promote an objective viewpoint of China.”
Zepei is giving away the displayed pieces and he graciously offered one to me, which happens to be the one creates controversy
elegantly sitting on the back of my couch
What were obstacles that you went through?
“Yeah, at the beginning, the board never really replied so I was not quite sure how everything should go, so I literally went to the office multiple times to pin down the exhibition details. Shipping was also delayed for two days.”
Another beautiful fog scene from the top of a mountain
What will be your next step?
“The next step I take will be actually make a video[of the view in ChunZhou, ZiXing].
“I am also going to donate the book with all the photography works to our University’s library. I may run another exhibition, or may not, although I don’t mind providing support and suggestions. I suggest students, especially Chinese students on campus, run more art exhibitions. It will be a good chance to improve ability on (an) individual level. Plus, art is something so interesting. I could not imagine a life without art.”
***exhibition photos credited to Zepei C.
***all material translated from Chinese to English by Karen W.