January 9 - February 4, 2021
“Archway Gallery presents Duo • Identity, featuring recent works by Jiashan Lang and Anthony Pabillano. The exhibit will be on view January 9 – February 4, 2021.
In this joint exhibition, Jiashan Lang and Anthony Pabillano explore ideas related to duality and contrast, as well as identity and culture through their shared interest in figurative art. Jiashan Lang’s three-dimensional figurines invite the viewer to encircle each piece and examine it closely for the fine details of her sculpture, whereas Anthony Pabillano’s two-dimensional pieces (some life-sized) rely on the surfaces of walls for support and are optimally viewed from a vantage point.
Lang and Pabillano tell stories through their figurative art. Lang’s dough figurines are based on scenes and events from Chinese history and literature; they depict traditional people, folklore, and scenes from ancient times. By contrast, Pabillano’s layered paper images portray contemporary Houstonians; people he has met, whose stories he relates to, and whose voices he hears as representatives of our culturally and linguistically diverse city. Though their stories contrast in terms of time and context, there are parities that weave the two bodies of work together. Lang and Pabillano are equally concerned with culture and identity – they strive to understand, capture, and celebrate the lives of others, past and present. In doing so, they seek not only to explore culture and identity in others but also to discover and define their own along the way.
“Dough figurines are a very old Chinese art form,” Jiashan Lang explains, “with their origins dating back to the Song Dynasty around 1000 CE. These figurines preserve Chinese history and lore by passing it down through the ages.” Lang’s technique involves coloring the rice dough and then sculpting it into the desired form so that no painting is required. Her work is in the collections of various museums, galleries, and individual collectors around the world.
The elevation of paper from a substrate to a medium has informed Anthony Pabillano’s choice of materials and style as he pursues his foundational interest in portraiture. Early in his career, he began creating portraits by layering blocks of colored paper cut along the defining contours of the human figure. He has spent many years developing and perfecting his technique. Through his portraits, Pabillano explores all aspects of the human condition and experience, from ideas relating to self and identity to topics about diversity. “
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