Jinbin Chen
Prophecies of the Post-Angel Era
The exhibition spaces on the 1st floor
13.04.23—28.05.23
With a starting point in the literary phenomenon danmei, which can be directly translated as "aestheticism" or "indulging in beauty", Jinbin Chen explores the subculture and fictional universe associated with the Chinese online short story genre. Danmei revolves around love stories and erotic narratives between men, but is written and read primarily by women.
The exhibition transports us into the fictional "Omegaverse"—a hierarchic and chauvinistic tyranny populated by the dominating “alpha”, the “beta” workhorses, and the “omega” gender. Possessing both male bodies and uteruses, omegas are exploited and oppressed by alphas, but still often, against their will, form couples. The society they live in considers omegas to be tame and submissive birth machines.
In the exhibition, one such omega character appears in several of the Omegaverse's diverse propaganda: In one situation as the faithful partner of the leader of the “Galactic Empire” and later as a central figure in an emerging rebel movement. With the mythology surrounding the omega, Chen challenges various gender stereotypes and identities, exploring how these are exploited politically and culturally.
Examination and deconstruction of desire, gender temperament, and gender identity are consistent themes in Jinbin Chen's practice. He works interdisciplinarily with painting, sculpture, text, photography, and video.
Jinbin Chen (b. 1994, China) lives and works in Oslo. In 2019, he obtained a bachelor's degree from Koninklijke Academie van Beeldende Kunsten in The Hague and, in 2021, received a master's degree from The Academy of Fine Art in Oslo. Jinbin Chen has had solo exhibitions at Kohn Gallery in Los Angeles, Northing Space in Bergen, and Fotogalleri Vasli Souza in Oslo. His work has also been shown in several group exhibitions, including at Fotogalleriet, Tegnerforbundet, KÖSK, Høstutstillingen, and Bomuldfabriken Kunsthall in Arendal.
This exhibition has received support from Arts and Culture Norway and the Billedkunstnernes Vederlagsfond.