As everyone is well aware, the ten year anniversary of the tragic events that now make the date 9/11 seared into our collective memories is almost upon us. CNN has developed a special artistic reflection called the "Ripple Project" that brings together select artists from all corners of the nation to interpret this historic life-changing time. Plus Gallery artist Xi Zhang was selected for inclusion in the program, which we believe will be aired live on CNN this coming sunday but can currently be viewed online at the CNN website:
Another tremendous honor for Zhang, his statement relating to the painting "The Root" is as follows:
After 9/11, we began to live in insecurity and fear. This radical change reshaped relationships between nations and people. Living in the post-9/11 era, I feel everything terrible could happen at any moment. Furthermore, breaking news from the major media and Internet solidifies the fears among us. The war in Iraq is another significant event that involves all of us. In my opinion, using war to solve the issue of "insecurity" is not a good idea; it is like using fire to destroy fire or terror to destroy terror. What makes us different from the terrorists on a humane level? No matter if it happens in Iraq or here in the United States, great numbers of people passed away. The title of the painting refers to an old Chinese tale, "Grown from the same trees, Why boil us so hot?" I created an abstract painting as the main body for the piece. It symbolizes qualities of "organic" and "realness." I used simple lines to draw many "fear expression" faces on top of it. By using this gesture, I intend to guide viewers to discover more "fear expression" faces on their own The video game elements symbolize qualities of "artificial" and "fakeness." Whoever is still in charge of our wars, I feel they are only considering the lost lives and financial woes as numbers. If these people in charge were to fight these wars in person, the wars might already be ended. - Xi Zhang, 2011
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