Chen Wei
China
Born in Taizhou, Zhejiang, he received his bachelor’s, master’s and doctor’s degree from China Academy of Art and is now teaching at the School of Architecture of China Academy of Art. He is a member of Chinese Academy of Fine Arts, Chinese Sculpture Institute, Chinese Mural Association, Zhejiang Artists Association, Zhejiang Sculptors Association, Zhejiang Environmental Artists Association.
2022 Fiber Pavilion
Wooden panels, nails, waxed thread
250 × 340 × 400 cm
2021—2022
The 2022 Fiber Pavilion consists of 86 individual triangular components, 80 of which are web-like cells formed by hand weaving black waxed threads around a triangular wooden frame. The web-like cells are inspired by the fiber structure of woven threads, which demonstrates the characteristic light-weight structure principle that weaving follows in architectural design. Using thread as an element to imagine spatial forms, the web-like cells, which are made of twisted black waxed threads, are pulled together and woven to form different formations and layers, incorporating a rhythmic beauty with an orderly linear construction; the weaving technique and mathematical logic allow the threads to be twisted and woven around a specific form to create a rich layer of threads, which in turn demonstrates the beauty of order.
The purely thread-based approach to the weaving of spatial forms transcends the realm of traditional weaving and brings about a singular visual experience. The strands pull and cascade to form a shape, and the triangular web-like cells form an arch-shaped architectural form, creating a unique spatial experience that demonstrates the expansion and impact of interdisciplinary thinking on design, materials and modes of production. The work provides room for exploration for future experimentation and developments in digital weaving, the use of robotic arms and robots to produce fiber structures that create spatial forms, etc.
2022 Fiber Pavilion
Wooden panels, nails, waxed thread
250 × 340 × 400 cm
2021—2022
The 2022 Fiber Pavilion consists of 86 individual triangular components, 80 of which are web-like cells formed by hand weaving black waxed threads around a triangular wooden frame. The web-like cells are inspired by the fiber structure of woven threads, which demonstrates the characteristic light-weight structure principle that weaving follows in architectural design. Using thread as an element to imagine spatial forms, the web-like cells, which are made of twisted black waxed threads, are pulled together and woven to form different formations and layers, incorporating a rhythmic beauty with an orderly linear construction; the weaving technique and mathematical logic allow the threads to be twisted and woven around a specific form to create a rich layer of threads, which in turn demonstrates the beauty of order.
The purely thread-based approach to the weaving of spatial forms transcends the realm of traditional weaving and brings about a singular visual experience. The strands pull and cascade to form a shape, and the triangular web-like cells form an arch-shaped architectural form, creating a unique spatial experience that demonstrates the expansion and impact of interdisciplinary thinking on design, materials and modes of production. The work provides room for exploration for future experimentation and developments in digital weaving, the use of robotic arms and robots to produce fiber structures that create spatial forms, etc.
House of Thread
Metal thread
200 × 390 × 90 cm
2021—2022
The House of Thread uses the surreal architecture in Giorgio de Chirico's paintings as imagery and ideograms, weaving threads randomly and spreading them freely within the building to form a permeable web of threads.
The seemingly disorderly lines resemble a dense spider's web, cutting through specific spaces and atmospheres, outlining and defining the blocks and boundaries of the building. The tangled, intertwined lines establish some kind of implicit connection of memories, searching for clues of order in the awakened subconscious—the lines weave the form of the house, while simultaneously alienating the visual perception, the chaotic lines and the architecture overlap and flourish, converging into a dense web which is reminiscent of a dream, forming a metaphysically unreal space. The viewer is unknowingly mesmerised by the thread-woven structure as they gaze upwards. This solidified architectural structure is a fusion of architecture and weaving, and if the weaver has a house, it must be a thread-woven one, a “house made of thread”.
