Miguel Angel Payano Jr. has built a unique artistic language around what he calls “heavy collage,” with sculptural elements and readymades highlighting subtly rendered figures and landscapes on canvas. A New York-based Dominican-American artist, he has built his career in Beijing over the course of nearly two decades, consciously stimulating reflection on cultural stereotypes.
In recent years, as he has expanded his medium and refined his painting techniques, Payano's practice has become imbued with semantic clues, intercultural perceptions, and visual slippages. Vibrant yet rigorous, his works are rich in connotations and multiple meanings while eschewing literal references and allegories.
As Payano's first institutional solo exhibition, this exhibition will feature a wide range of new works created by Payano in Beijing and New York during the epidemic, as well as past works documenting the formation of his unique artistic expression and practice. The exhibition is curated by Philip Tinari, the director of UCCA.
