(Nguyễn Linh Chi, b. 1992)
Visual artist from & currently based in Hanoi, Vietnam
My works explore liminal space and states between conflicting forces, and how these forces interact with each other, often between nature, human and more-than-human beings. Over the years, this has led me to investigate the intersection of human and aquatic environments, to unlearn our contradictions with nature through historical, socio-political, environmental, spiritual and technological lenses.
A recurring set of materials in my works has been the reflective and translucent, particularly of mirror and glass. With their inherent reflective properties often associated with the visuality reminiscent of waterscapes, they also imbue oppositional notions. It is the way they coexist with real space yet impenetrable, and how their double side-ness signifies conflicting forces between human and aquatic environments. These paradoxes stemming from both material and concept are what motivate me to explore how these materials challenge visual perception, conjuring unsettling states of the in-between, of contradictions, emphasizing the complex relations between self and others, the interior and the exterior, human and nature.
Since starting out in 2019, my practice has spanned drawing, sculpture, installation, as well as interdisciplinary and research-based projects.