ZHOU HANSHUN
PHOTOGRAPHER & ARTIST
The Endless Pursuit For Balance, 2012
Medium: Woodcut Relief Print on Xuan Paper
Size: 100cm x 120cm
The Endless Pursuit for Balance is about the never ending search to achieve equilibrium in life. In this modern era, people seem to be constantly trying to achieve a balance between working life and personal life. Why do we need to do this? Isn't it our own decision to place one before the other? Why seek to find this balance when it is us who caused the imbalance in the first place.
This work was award the Special Jury Prize at the 2012 Taiwan International Print Biennale. It has been collected at the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts.
https://printbiennial.ntmofa.gov.tw/print19/en/review_detail.aspx?id=10669
All Together Now, 2011
Medium: Woodcut Relief Print on Xuan Paper and Collage
Height: 150 cm Length: 164 cm Width: 77 cm Weight: 55 kg
Commissioned in 2011 for the Elephant Parade. Hands were used as a visual representation of each individual human being.
The action of the hands coming together and moving towards a constant direction symbolise the collective effort of achieving a single purpose. The hand holding on to the eye, symbolise the notion of keeping watch over the elephants. The huge cloud at the top represents the Chinese saying of “all under heaven”, which means the entire world.
https://www.elephantparade.com/parades/elephant-archive/all-together-now
Reach For It, 2010
Medium: Woodcut Relief Print on Xuan Paper
Size: 66.5cm X 59cm
"Reach for It" is about the endless and mindless pursuit of things. Hands reaching out aimlessly in all directions represent the endless and mindless desire to attain things. The gripping hands at the bottom of the artwork represent a subconscious effort to stay grounded, in the midst of the chaotic desire to reach one’s goal.
The Irresistible Lure, 2010
Medium: Wood Cut Size 59.7cm X 45cm
This work is about the constant struggle over the countless enticements in life. As we try to attain what we desire in life, sometimes we fail to realize that the end result might not be all that sweet after all.
It's In Your Hands, 2010
Medium: Woodcut Relief Print on Mulberry Paper
Size: 75cm X 90cm
This work is about the inconspicuous weight of our actions that affects the things around us. Our one singular action could result in numerous outcomes, expected and unexpected. The big hand represents our one singular action, and the numerous smaller hands represent the many different outcomes that are attributed to that singular action.
Moving Forward Holding Back, 2010
Medium: Woodcut Relief Print on Mulberry Paper
Size: 89cm X 61cm
This work is about the conflict of wanting to progress in life, but at the same time the tendency to get held back by ourselves. We use hands to feel, communicate, work and produce. Therefore, they are used to signify the ways and means that helps us progress in life. The act of the hands moving forward, represents the strong human desire to succeed, while the hand holding onto another signifies the forces that are holding us back.
Fate Is, 2009
Medium: Monotype Print on Fine Art Printmaking Paper
Size: 46.5cm X 57.5cm
This work is an exploration of what fate is. Is fate something that is beyond our control? Or is fate really something that we can manipulate? Or is someone or something else pulling the strings that determine our fate? Or maybe it’s all just up us to decide...... Hands are used to portray the unseen forces that are in play. The hands rising beyond the clouds represent the unseen forces that are holding us and in manipulation. The figures in the palms represent one’s self.