Inspired by Oscar Wilde’s The Happy Prince and the late artist Miriam Wosk’s estate of glassworks, Californian artist Shirley Tse this summer mounts her 5th solo sculptural exhibition “Lift Me Up So I Can See Better” at Shoshana Wayne Gallery in LA.
The body of works, hovering between the figurative and the abstract, the literal and the metaphorical, suggests Tse’s departure from her well known conceptual practice. The gem-adorned anthropomorphic wire mesh and celluclay sculptures together with Polystyrene, paper, and found objects are placed either on the gallery floor or elevated to various heights on stands, creating a simultaneously horizontal and vertical viewing experience, confronting the viewer with alternative perspectives of spectatorship. In the center and high above everything is The Happy Prince on a c-stand resting on a copy of Wilde’s book.
“Lift Me Up So I Can See Better”, installation view. Courtesy of Shoshana Wayne Gallery, photo: Gene Ogami
Shirley Tse, The Vehicle Series, installation view. Courtesy of Shoshana Wayne Gallery, photo: Gene Ogami
Shirley Tse, “Jade Tongue”, polystyrene, jade, metal stand, plastic, 35” x 20” x 21″, 2016.
Courtesy of Shoshana Wayne Gallery, photo: Gene Ogami
Shirley Tse, “The Happy Prince”, wire mesh, celluclay, glass, c-stand, book
Height adjustable x 35” x 28”, 2016. Courtesy of Shoshana Wayne Gallery, photo: Gene Ogami
