Interview by Rui Pastorin
Christopher Lei Weng Kuong is continuing to showcase a raft of oil paintings in his exhibition “Flowing Memory: The Artistic DNA of Macau in the Eyes of a Painter”, which is now entering its final six days at Creative Macau in Nape.
With 40 paintings on show, each piece was created over a period of around four years until 2025, most presenting layers for observers to peel back and take a closer look.
Having opened earlier this month, Lei told the Post during the recent launch ceremony that the exhibited works can be summed up into four concepts: “DNA”, which refers to a chapter in the 19th century that he highlighted as serving as an important base of Macau oil painting; the dialogue between the past and the present, along with time and space; Macau’s recent stories that features pieces with the city’s events and happenings; and lastly, the “stable scenery” that observes the world.
Introducing the artworks, Lei said that the exhibition starts with pieces presenting “DNA” that shows a junction between East and West, with an example depicted in the piece displayed at the forefront titled “Studio of 19th Century” that shows interaction between British artist George Chinnery (1774-1852) with Chinese artists and students. Lei said that works in this section also presents exchanges of or introductions to techniques, among others, along with those that show how Chinnery brought with him ideas from Britain and how it affected oil painting in Macau and elsewhere in southern China. It also presents how techniques and themes have evolved, showing a crossover or “transcendence” of culture.
Following this is a dialogue between time and space, where one will continue to find a dialogue between the past and present, along with works featuring other historic figures, the city’s landmarks in their past and present state, as well as pieces like “Carousel Crossing” and “Tunnel Crossing” that allows one to reflect on the ideas.
Highlighting the importance for dialogue between the past and present, Lei said: “Something that happened in the past can also happen nowadays. So, every time, we do not need to just have a very clear-cut line between these two things”, asking the question: “Why not put these two things together?”, with Lei doing his best to present this idea in his ongoing exhibition.
Another area sees pieces depicting recent Macau events and performances such as those during the Lusofonia Festival, but Lei also takes the scope outside of Macau with a set of works depicting moments from around the world. These include pieces that depict moments from the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2021 painting titled “Refugees”, where Russian photographer Sergey Ponomarev’s Pulitzer Prize winning image is turned into a large oil painting, with the artist receiving the photographer’s permission to do so, being “very generous to let me use this”, he said.
The last of the paintings sees Lei present oils using Macau’s still and “relatively stable things” that don’t move, with scenery and nature as subjects. “These are drawings from life. The idea is that we have relatively stable things that don’t move. The scenery always stands here looking at the world”, according to Lei.
Lei concluded his remarks to the Post with a reflection on time. Time flies, he said, but even if it does, its moments will always exist, whether in our minds, imagination or “any invisible space” where something might have happened or existed. “Some people will probably think about the past very much, but don’t be sad. It exists in your mind, right?”, Lei concluded.
More information on the exhibition and its opening in a previous Post article on https://www.macaupostdaily.com/news/27368.
Local artist Christopher Lei Weng Kuong poses next to his painting “Studio of 19th Century” during the recent opening ceremony for his exhibition at Creative Macau, which ends on Friday. – Photos: Rui Pastorin
