Guan Xiao

Using multiple media Guan Xiao juxtaposes elements that seem to adhere to labels of the past and future, primitive and classical, crude and high-tech. Her interest however is in exploring an apparent lack of hierarchy in the contemporary visual world, where objects and images circulate in a flat ontology that makes them feel both close to us but also strangely distant. The multi-part sculpture Documentary: From National Geographic to BBC (2015) features combines swirling snakeskin patterned backdrops with totems made of camera lenses and that destabilise the photo-studio configuration.