Antenna Space is pleased to present the video work Some Hair May Sing (A Song For You) (2019) and a series acrylic paintings on wood panel Untitled (2022) by artist Li Yongxiang at OVR: Paris+ par Art Basel, the online viewing period is from October 17 to October 24, 2022.

The inseparable words and melody from the video show the affective power of a love song, like an age-old puzzle of form wrestling with substance. The song was initially written in 1970 by Leon Russell, and subsequently covered by a wide range of musicians. In collaboration with the artist Kristin Reiman, Yong Xiang’s cover of the song triggered an immediate familiarity and affinity. By covering what was previously registered in the audience’s knowledge and memory, he let the songs speak for themselves, thus discreetly unifying material and surface.

The video is paired with a painting that the artist embraced it as a surface—not as a surface “for its own sake,” but the surface of, in relation to, or in service of something—highlights its unsung history as a decorative, tactile object, a queer power relation, a form of labour. This is underscored in small painted panelling on textured, sandy surfaces, perfectly modelled to fit the pre-existing panelling.

Texts courtesy of Parisplus Art Basel official website.
The online viewing link: https://parisplus.artbasel.com/rooms/detail/33153/Antenna-Space