Hugo Tillman Photography Exhibition in the Library

The Library hosts an exhibition of photographs by Hugo Tillman as a part of the FOCUS: CHINA, a campus wide programming initiative, with China and Chinese culture as its central theme.

The exhibition, Hugo Tillman: Film Stills of the Mind, will run September 1 through October 30 at the Library - floors 1, 2 and 3 - with a reception on Thursday, October 1 and an artist talk/lecture on Friday, October 2.

As described on the FOCUS: CHINA events site, "in this revealing series of color photographs, British artist Hugo Tillman turns his lens towards China, the fastest growing force in art and economics, and examines in the most intimate of portrayals, approximately eighty of the leading Chinese artists of today. This solo exhibition will present selected film stills of this powerful investigation."


"For this project, Tillman spent two years in China interviewing his subjects and immersing himself in the culture and art scene. He explains: “I interviewed each artist for a few hours, asking them about their past, their memories, their dreams and their fears. Then I photographed each artist in sets that recreate their memories and dreams.” The result is a mesmerizing look at the unique psychological landscape of the present-day Chinese art world, seen from Tillman’s Western point-of-view. The dream-like quality of the settings that Tillman creates and the vibrant hues of red, blue, pink and green give the images a psychedelic quality reinforcing the surreal element of his project."

"In this deeply personal examination by a Western artist of his Asian counterparts, Tillman creates, through artful stage settings, a dramatic composition to convey a generation of forward looking individuals whose struggle with the country’s recent past, its oppressive regime, is a constant battle. As in his other photographs, the intense tonal quality and the ambiguous settings contrast with the stark reality of the memories and dreams that they depict."