Song Dong. Soul Out

Conceived as a site-specific project which involves the whole MAO Museum of Oriental Art by Turin, the exhibition route transforms the historic architecture of Palazzo Mazzonis in a narrative framework in which the works of Song Dong interact with the permanent collections. The exhibition traces over thirty years of the Beijing-based artist’s work, highlighting a practice capable of weaving together private memory, individual experience and social transformations of the China contemporary.

The search for Song Dong has its roots in the Taoist philosophy of Laozi e Zhuangzi and in thought Zen, combined with the languages of the’Arte Poveraof the Mono-Haof the Minimalism and theConceptual Art. Through subtle gestures and the use of everyday materials, the artist reflects on the impermanence and fragility of existence.

Among the main features, the monumental installation stands out Waste Not, inspired by the ready-made by Marcel Duchamp, which houses over 10,000 objects collected by the artist’s mother, Zhao Xiangyuan. The exhibition also features works on family relationships such as Touching My Father e My Daughter is my Four Seasons, as well as the participatory installation Borrow Light at Mazzonis Exhibition Hall, created using hundreds of lamps donated by members of the public. The performance rounds off the programme Eating the City, an urban landscape of biscuits devoured by the public, which reflects on the continuous cycle of the creation and dissolution of metropolises.