Editor's note: Two Chinese painters are incorporating water and light into their painting process to alter how viewers perceive reality in an exhibition at LCE Gallery in Beijing.
The "Topo-Filters" exhibition, which closes Friday, features works by Wang Jianwei and Li Hua that explore how incorporating water and light effects can transform the way viewers see and interpret the world. The exhibition is curated by Dai Xi.
Wang incorporates water into his painting process, letting acrylic paint mix with water to create flowing colors and sediment patterns that capture the passage of time on canvas. Li works with windows as light filters, combining brushstrokes with reflective surfaces to create what he describes as a "landscape spectrum."
Together, the artists argue that creative deformation represents a distinct human freedom: one that remains grounded in reality while transcending its limitations.
A ground-floor poster advertises the "Topo-Filters" exhibition at LCE Gallery in Beijing, Aug. 20, 2025. The gallery sits in a second-floor corner reached by worn stairs and a still-damp cement landing. [Photo by Liu Ziying/China.org.cn]