Focus No. 37

2004

Chinese, born 1961

This work is part of a series in which the artist digitally altered the photograph to create an intriguing pseudo-portrait—a figure that is indistinct and gender-ambiguous, representative of a singular person and at the same time of no one in particular. The inkjet photograph is mounted on canvas. Strands of thread in the form of a long braid are stitched into the surface, creating a veil-like effect that provokes thinking about traditional categorizations of gender, individuality, and cultural stereotypes.

Black-and-white photograph on vinyl with white embroidery

55 1/8 × 66 15/16 in. (140 × 170cm)

General Acquisition Fund

2004.25

Photo: Susan Cole

Not currently on view

Resources

Exhibition HistorySeattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Modern in America, July 8, 2004 - Feb. 27, 2005.

Seattle, Washington, Seattle Asian Art Museum, Chinese Art: A Seattle Perspective, Dec. 22, 2007 - July 26, 2009.

Seattle, Washington, Seattle Asian Art Museum, Conceal/Reveal, Dec. 20, 2014 - June 21, 2015.

Seattle, Washington, Seattle Asian Art Museum, Be/longing: Contemporary Asian Art, Feb. 8, 2020 - ongoing [on view Feb. 8, 2020 - July 11, 2021].

Published ReferencesAlbertini, Claudia. "Avatars and Antiheroes A Guide to Contemporary Chinese Artists," 2008: p. 75.

Upchurch, Michael. "'Conceal/Reveal' at Seattle Asian Art Museum." Seattle Times, January 2, 2015, https://www.seattletimes.com/entertainment/lsquoconceal-revealrsquoat-seattle-asian-art-museum/. Reproduced.

Seattle Art Museum respectfully acknowledges that we are on Indigenous land, the traditional territories of the Coast Salish people. We honor our ongoing connection to these communities past, present, and future.

Learn more about Equity at SAM