Jason McCoy Gallery
A Private Show
May 27 - June 5, 2024
Inspired by the legacy of Jackson Pollock, ARGOKNOTS is a conceptual space of alchemy between the East and the West.
The meaning of ARGOKNOTS is comprised of two words: Argo representing Jason’s ship (in the sea between two cultures) and Knots being the living links connecting the past with the future. This show intends to merge a rich heritage of art between the two cultures, exploring the dialogue that occurs in natural evolution from one culture to another.
Jackson Pollock’s “Stone Head” c. 1932-4 (CR1042) is at the core of this interaction.
At the fountainhead of Abstract Expressionism, Jackson Pollock’s influence cannot be measured, however, we can explore the core of his inspirations, which perhaps are contained within one of his earliest works, "Stone Head”. Pollock’s only existing figurative work, subtle and yet mysterious, "Stone Head" was made at the outset of his career as an artist -- intended to be held in the hand in an intimate gesture of existential questioning.
Stone Chun Shi is a Chinese native (b. 1963) who left the mainland for the Western World in the 1980’s and found fame first as the face of MTV Asia. Before music however, he had studied calligraphy and painting and these early influences helped mold his perspectives on Art – he is at the core a Chinese painter, despite living and working in New York ever since. Subject matter for him, as well as painting, is a zen meditation. At heart a colorist, Stone creates perfect ‘cubes’ of color mixing oils and applying them in thick but micro-brush strokes on large canvases based on core precepts of Chinese calligraphy. His subjects range from themes of collective power to specific esoteric objects, where every pixelated ‘cube’ of the work is created in equal harmony of stroke, imbuing the resulting image as a field of energy and/or deep meditation.
In juxtaposition, Stone’s “Stone Head” inspired by and paired with Pollock’s immediately proposes a field of intrigue, mystery and dialogue. It also opens the door to Stone’s other work, which begins to examine the way in which modern Chinese art looks to the West, all the while remaining true to its core. Some of Stone’s other paintings, inspired from Eastern subjects (but now from an adopted Western point of view) range from traditional ‘Plum Blossoms’ to Li Bai’s Shangyang Post, pushing this dialogue another step further.
19 Howard Street NYC
June 2023 - August 2023
19 Howard Street NYC
On June 23, 2023, Stonecube Art Association held an exhibition for artist Stone Chun Shi in SoHo at 19 Howard Street, New York City, which achieved great success.
The exhibition showcased thirteen pieces of Chun Shi's Stonecube oil paintings.
Stonecube is a unique artistic language using Chinese calligraphy created by Stone. With specially mixed oil colors on traditional canvas, he paints cubes as if writing Chinese characters. Each cube has a different color, but the shapes, sizes, and thicknesses are remarkably similar. Up close, they resemble abstract cubes of various colors, but from a distance, they form a photo-realistic landscape, characters, and scenery.
Chun Shi rarely participates in exhibitions primarily because his painting style is highly challenging, and each artwork has a long creation cycle, resulting in a limited number of pieces. This art exhibition was held to support the nonprofit art organization Stonecube Art Association's Art Saves Space initiative. Art Saves Space is a philanthropic activity that transforms vacant commercial spaces in the New York City area into suitable exhibition venues, providing free exhibition spaces for New York artists.
As a private exhibition, many of Stone’s friends, collectors, and artist acquaintances attend the show. Everyone was deeply impressed by his recent work.