Mountains can flow, and lakes can be still. This paradox anchors Xuemeng Li’s “The Still Flow”, a project exploring the duality of motion and stillness and the interconnectedness of all things. Over two years, Li embarked on a meditative journey across mountains and seas, using the method of “walking, observing, and thinking” to engage deeply with nature. His large-format camera serves as both a tool of documentation and introspection, capturing moments that reveal the dynamic and static aspects of existence.
Li’s photographs uncover a profound interplay between stillness and motion. Each image invites viewers to reflect not only on the physical qualities of the natural world but also on the transformative relationships underlying its opposing forces. This exploration of duality draws on Eastern philosophical traditions, particularly the concept of oneness articulated in Zhuang Zhou’s “Qi Wu Lun”, where opposites coexist, transform, and depend on each other in harmonious balance.
The series began with a simple moment of wonder: a cracked stone revealing subtle vitality beneath its solid exterior. This observation sparked a two-year exploration of American landscapes, where mountains, rivers, and coastlines became laboratories for investigating the fundamental nature of existence. Li’s large-format photographs transform these observations into meditations on interconnectedness and perpetual transformation.
Using a monochromatic palette, Li strips nature to its essential forms. Gray tones — captured through the precise optics of large-format photography — become a bridge between extremes. Devoid of color’s distractions, mountain ridges and arboreal silhouettes gain heightened presence. These images are not absolute statements but studies in complementarity, where opposing states enhance rather than negate each other. Li’s work suggests that without the depth of darkness, light cannot assert its brilliance; without light’s clarity, shadow loses its evocative power.
In 「潮映 Night Sea」, moonlight at nine o’clock blends with oceanic surges, creating a visual dialogue between temporal flux and eternal constancy. The tide’s rhythmic movement evokes natural respiration, a primal pattern suggesting the underlying pulse of existence. Another piece, 「山河 Mountain & River」, created using intaglio printing, challenges perceptions of geological permanence by presenting multiple viewpoints of the same peak. Through these works, Li transforms solid rock into fluid form, suggesting that reality itself may be as mutable as our perception of it.
The exhibition, held at theBLANC from August 24 to September 14, 2024, was curated by Tingzhi Zhang, with assistant curator Wenjie Zhao. Li’s work transcends the surface of natural scenery, offering viewers a framework for contemplating the fluidity and interdependence of all things. By presenting dualities as inseparable facets of a unified reality, “The Still Flow” challenges perceptions of nature as static or unchanging. Instead, it reveals transformation as inherent in all things and shows motion and stillness as complementary forces that give meaning to one another.
In these liminal spaces, Li invites viewers to explore their relationship with impermanence, offering not answers but an endless inquiry into the nature of existence.
Review by Wenjie (Demi) Zhao
Wenjie (Demi) Zhao is a New York-based art critic and curator specializing in 20th- and 21st-century fine art and decorative arts. She is currently pursuing an M.A. in Arts Administration at Columbia University and holds a B.A. in Art History and French from New York University. Demi has contributed to publications such as Musée Magazine and Art China. Her curatorial projects, including “How Are You Doing?” and “A Triptych in Jazz”, explore the intersection of visual expression and everyday experience, emphasizing diverse approaches to engaging with art. She is currently involved in roles at Gurr Johns and Phillips, focusing on the art market and advisory services.
(text & photo courtesy of theBLANC)
