10 Chancery Lane Gallery, Hong Kong, will present a major solo exhibition by leading Chinese contemporary artist Wang Keping, a founding member of the 1979 Beijing avant-garde group The Stars, from 23 November 2012 – 28 January 2013. The exhibition comprises 24 sculptures which have never been seen before in public.

The sculptures mark the continuing evolution of Wang Keping’s technique and exploration of the human form. Erotic and inviting, they convey a highly sensual representation of the female body, of man and woman, mother and child. Highlights from the exhibition include: Desire (2000), an over-sized pair of highly polished lips, slightly parted, with a glossy tongue appearing to approach the viewer; and Madame Butterfly (2000) a dancing woman, formed from a slice of tree trunk nearly one metre in width. This monumental work has an appearance of lightness and movement despite its dense weight.

Wang Keping reveals the natural forms of the wood: the grain; knots; and flaws to evoke the contours of the figures in his work. Beginning the carving process while the wood is still fresh and moist, Wang Keping encourages cracks to form which, once dried, create details such as hair, clenched fists and folds of skin.

Born in Beijing in 1949, Wang Keping is one of the founders of non-conformist artist group “The Stars” (Xing Xing), formed in 1979 during the post-Cultural Revolution “Beijing Spring”.  His work has been presented worldwide at museums including; The National Art Museum of China, the Fukuoka Museum in Japan, the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris, the Musée Maillol in Paris, the Groningen Museum in the Netherlands, the He Xiangning Art Museum in China, The Musée Cernushi in Paris, The Musée Zadkine in Paris and on the Avenue des Champs- Elysées in Paris at Les Champs de la Sculpture. His work resides in collections around the world, including the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, UK; Collection de la Ville de Paris, Paris, France; He Xianging Art Museum, Shenzhen, China and Museum of Asian Contemporary Art, Fukuoka, Japan. Work by the artist was recently donated to M+, Hong Kong’s future museum for visual culture by Dr Uli Sigg of Switzerland, the world’s leading collector of Chinese contemporary art. 10 Chancery Lane will present Wang Keping at Art Paris from 28 March to 1 April 2013. The artist lives and works in Paris, France.

Other members of the “Stars” group include Huang Rui, Ma Desheng and the young Ai Wei Wei. Wang Keping today states: “30 years ago, the “Stars” twinkled in the dark night; today, they are still smiling in the daylight.”