Lee Mingwei's anti-war work, 'Guernica in Sand', feels more relevant than ever
Briefly

The 'Guernica in Sand' installation by Taiwanese artist Lee Mingwei, on display at M+ museum in Hong Kong, draws inspiration from Picasso's iconic 1937 painting. This vast sand painting reflects on the ongoing violence in places like Ukraine and the Middle East. Mingwei emphasizes impermanence and utilizes traditional sand painting techniques, particularly from Tibetan mandalas, to present a perspective on historical and contemporary suffering. The installation coincides with a major Picasso exhibition at M+, fostering a dialogue between Eastern and Western artistic traditions.
"In Guernica in Sand, I used Picasso's Guernica as the departure point for a different view of the damage done when human beings are victimised."
"Instead of simply being critical of what happened in the Basque town of Guernica in 1937, I wanted to use the concept of impermanence as a lens for focusing on such violent events."
"I'm using the Tibetan method of creating a mandala to [build] a great masterpiece of the West, so I'm creating a conversation and an homage from an East Asian point of view."
Read at The Art Newspaper - International art news and events
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