Labyrinth of Water is an immersive installation composed of six slanted black walls, one suspended above the others, forming a maze-like spatial structure. Using sawing, chopping, and chiseling, Han Ren carves fluid forms directly into the surfaces, transforming the walls into shifting images of water. The work draws on Zhoushan’s long relationship with the sea, where fishing, sailing, and everyday life have developed alongside the ocean’s unpredictability. As visitors move through the installation, the carved images continually change in relation to the body and the surrounding architecture. Water becomes both image and spatial condition—a force that connects, surrounds, and unsettles the viewer.
plaster, wooden wall sawing, chopping, chiseling, founded books
dimensions Variable (total carved wall surface approx. 350 m²)
2024
Zhoushan Art Museum(CN) commissioned by UCCA Lab
A bird carved onto the spines of books originates from the ancient Zhoushan myth of “Jingwei Filling the Sea.” These books are all documents related to the city. The bird is placed on top of the wall structure of the installation.