I believe that all things have contradictory side, and development is built on contradictions. In fact, the contradiction is the most frequent thing which is in my CGU’s life. Different culture, different habit of life, different learning styles, different educations. These are all contradictory to me. But also let me have a different way to think. I think it is a good thing for me. Because it makes to understand a thing become more comprehensive. So I want reflect this idea in my work. I want tell people contradictory actually can make progress. I want to say there are tow levels meaning of contradictory. First level, people think contradictory only make confused. Second level, by contradictory things we can see different meaning of things. This is the most important point for me

Shen, Lei

Keck Graduate Institute

Claremont Colleges
Scholarship @ Claremont
CGU MFA Theses CGU Student Scholarship
5-5-2016
Lei Shen Artist Statement
Lei Shen
Claremont Graduate University
This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the CGU Student Scholarship at Scholarship @ Claremont. It has been accepted for inclusion
in CGU MFA Theses by an authorized administrator of Scholarship @ Claremont. For more information, please contact
scholarship@cuc.claremont.edu.
Recommended Citation
Shen, Lei, "Lei Shen Artist Statement" (2016). CGU MFA Theses. Paper 125.
http://scholarship.claremont.edu/cgu_mfatheses/125
Name: Lei Shen 
Date:04/02/2016 
Artist Statement 
I believe that all things have contradictory side, and development is built on 
contradictions. In fact, the contradiction is the most frequent thing which is in my 
CGU’s life. Different culture, different habit of life, different learning styles, different 
educations. These are all contradictory to me. But also let me have a different way to 
think. I think it is a good thing for me. Because it makes to understand a thing become 
more comprehensive. So I want reflect this idea in my work. I want tell people 
contradictory actually can make progress. I want to say there are tow levels meaning of 
contradictory. First level, people think contradictory only make confused. Second level, 
by contradictory things we can see different meaning of things. This is the most 
important point for me. 
In my work, I like to use some strong contrasting colors. I think a strong 
visual difference can attract people's attention. Meanwhile different colors also 
reflect the contradiction. Put two bright blocks of color together can make a 
strong sense of stimulation. These visual effects can stimulate people's 
subconscious，the visual effect can also lead to the reader’s sympathy. As red can 
make associations-specifically: fire, blood, sun, etc. You can also think of passion, 
danger, fire or something in a more abstract way. Different colors make people 
have different feelings. Color is an important part of the artistic language of 
painting. It is also an important means of expression, and one of the necessary 
conditions. In painting color plays a unique role. It creates characters, depicting a 
scene, you can play fascinating works of art by enhancing effect. Clever use of 
color, can increase luster artwork, gives the impression of a more intense, more 
profound, shape the image of which can be more real, more accurate and more 
clearly expressed. They reflect the reality of life and, therefore, have more 
attractive and artistic appeal. 
From the structure side, I use simple lines and complex graphics composition 
to perform the picture. I use this comparison to deepen contradictions. One of my 
art works called:” Hand Wall.” I’m interest in plaster, I began to study painting at 
the time, the first is a simple painting plaster geometry, with lengthened my 
painting time from the beginning of the geometry into a gypsum plaster human 
head, it can be said plaster in my painting career is accompanied I grew up with 
something. 
So I chose to do my hands with plaster. Hand in the production process, in 
the beginning I was not very familiar with the ratio of water and gypsum powder, 
so there are some fingers fall off. My intention is to make a complete hand, but I 
found an incomplete hand and hand to produce a complete unique contrast. 
Complete and incomplete contradiction reflects what I want, and the event is a 
contradiction in every corner of our lives, the conflict itself is a random arise. 
After the plaster hand finished, I put my hand into the hole in the brick. For me, 
this is a conflict between reality and fantasy. I hope that through this form of 
expression, to remind people that in the face of the reality of the difficulties do 
not forget their ideals.  
I always have a question in my mind, yes, I like perform contradiction in my 
work, but what I want to tell behind contradiction? The most important thing is 
through this performance way, I can make people think deep. At my third semester, 
I’m done some new works. One of them I called: two levels. I put some complete 
plaster people on the swing and put some incomplete people under the swing. The 
reason I do this is because Paris got attack several weeks ago, everyone force on this 
event, everyone bless Paris. But at the same time, Baghdad and Middle East also got 
terrorist attack, so many people died, but only a few people knew. So I’m try to use 
incomplete plaster people to mean the third world people and use complete plaster 
people to mean first world people. I’m try to use this way to reminder people never 
forget equality. 
So I have to say, contradiction is just a point or way to show viewer. It’s 
important but not most. Again, I need though this point to show or tell viewers 
my feelings. I mean everyone can use contradiction point in them works, but only 
your feelings, your languages are belongs to you. 


English

Lei Shen Artist Statement

Scholarship@Claremont

Claremont CollegesScholarship @ ClaremontCGU MFA Theses CGU Student Scholarship5-5-2016Lei Shen Artist StatementLei ShenClaremont Graduate UniversityThis Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the CGU Student Scholarship at Scholarship @ Claremont. It has been accepted for inclusionin CGU MFA Theses by an authorized administrator of Scholarship @ Claremont. For more information, please contactscholarship@cuc.claremont.edu.Recommended CitationShen, Lei, "Lei Shen Artist Statement" (2016). CGU MFA Theses. Paper 125.http://scholarship.claremont.edu/cgu_mfatheses/125Name: Lei Shen Date:04/02/2016 Artist Statement I believe that all things have contradictory side, and development is built on contradictions. In fact, the contradiction is the most frequent thing which is in my CGU’s life. Different culture, different habit of life, different learning styles, different educations. These are all contradictory to me. But also let me have a different way to think. I think it is a good thing for me. Because it makes to understand a thing become more comprehensive. So I want reflect this idea in my work. I want tell people contradictory actually can make progress. I want to say there are tow levels meaning of contradictory. First level, people think contradictory only make confused. Second level, by contradictory things we can see different meaning of things. This is the most important point for me. In my work, I like to use some strong contrasting colors. I think a strong visual difference can attract people's attention. Meanwhile different colors also reflect the contradiction. Put two bright blocks of color together can make a strong sense of stimulation. These visual effects can stimulate people's subconscious，the visual effect can also lead to the reader’s sympathy. As red can make associations-specifically: fire, blood, sun, etc. You can also think of passion, danger, fire or something in a more abstract way. Different colors make people have different feelings. Color is an important part of the artistic language of painting. It is also an important means of expression, and one of the necessary conditions. In painting color plays a unique role. It creates characters, depicting a scene, you can play fascinating works of art by enhancing effect. Clever use of color, can increase luster artwork, gives the impression of a more intense, more profound, shape the image of which can be more real, more accurate and more clearly expressed. They reflect the reality of life and, therefore, have more attractive and artistic appeal. From the structure side, I use simple lines and complex graphics composition to perform the picture. I use this comparison to deepen contradictions. One of my art works called:” Hand Wall.” I’m interest in plaster, I began to study painting at the time, the first is a simple painting plaster geometry, with lengthened my painting time from the beginning of the geometry into a gypsum plaster human head, it can be said plaster in my painting career is accompanied I grew up with something. So I chose to do my hands with plaster. Hand in the production process, in the beginning I was not very familiar with the ratio of water and gypsum powder, so there are some fingers fall off. My intention is to make a complete hand, but I found an incomplete hand and hand to produce a complete unique contrast. Complete and incomplete contradiction reflects what I want, and the event is a contradiction in every corner of our lives, the conflict itself is a random arise. After the plaster hand finished, I put my hand into the hole in the brick. For me, this is a conflict between reality and fantasy. I hope that through this form of expression, to remind people that in the face of the reality of the difficulties do not forget their ideals.  I always have a question in my mind, yes, I like perform contradiction in my work, but what I want to tell behind contradiction? The most important thing is through this performance way, I can make people think deep. At my third semester, I’m done some new works. One of them I called: two levels. I put some complete plaster people on the swing and put some incomplete people under the swing. The reason I do this is because Paris got attack several weeks ago, everyone force on this event, everyone bless Paris. But at the same time, Baghdad and Middle East also got terrorist attack, so many people died, but only a few people knew. So I’m try to use incomplete plaster people to mean the third world people and use complete plaster people to mean first world people. I’m try to use this way to reminder people never forget equality. So I have to say, contradiction is just a point or way to show viewer. It’s important but not most. Again, I need though this point to show or tell viewers my feelings. I mean everyone can use contradiction point in them works, but only your feelings, your languages are belongs to you. 

http://scholarship.claremont.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1144&context=cgu_mfatheses

Lei Shen Artist Statement

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

Keck Graduate Institute

Scholarship@Claremont