Vanguard Gallery

1990 Born in Hunan.

2014 Graduated from School of Inter-Media Art of China Academy of Fine Arts

Now works and lives in Shanghai

The essence of Tang Chao’s work is like Italo Calvino’s suggestions on lightness in literature. For instance, he refines a whole script into one sentence: “The dilemma of being in a modern island, a paradise of self-exile.” And recently: “Several delightful dots covered of a series of weak voices.” When you focus on the tone and rhythm of the sentence, and express it though camera, you then get the shaking focus, light and the scenes. The words are not the most important content; they are sometimes softly whispered, stuttered, or even topsy-turvy. Of course he occasionally uses pictures, performances, installations or dramas for expression, sometimes even typing a few letters on the keyboard. Tang Chao is good at pause and press space, press and hold for a few seconds would be fine as well. He always tries to release some illocutionary meaning in every blank space with a straightforward manner.

Solo / Duo Exhibitions
2024 “Whimper Song No.3”, Shanghai Museum of Glass, Shanghai, China
2023 Liste Art Fair Basel solo project at Vanguard booth, Basel, Switzerland
2022 “Out of Sync”, Vanguard gallery, Shanghai, China
2022 “Nights after Days”, The Store, Seoul, S.Korea
2021 “Nonphysical: Shimmer” (online project), Vanguard gallery, Shanghai, China
2017 “From Lack to Light”, Vanguard gallery, Shanghai, China
Group Exhibitions
2024 “Life’s Activities”, Shanghai International Photography Festival & The 17th Shanghai International Photography Art Exhibition, Shanghai, China
2024 “Vanguard Onwards”, Vanguard Gallery, Shanghai, China
2023 “Terrestrial Landing, Planet Candidates”, Shanghai Biennale x Emerging Curators Project, Shanghai, China
2023 “How Far, How Close”, Aranya Art Centre, Qinhuangdao, China
2023 “Us, amid Nature and After Nature”, Art Museum Of Guangzhou Academy Of Fine Arts, Guangzhou, China
2023 “Motion Is Action – 35 Years of Chinese Media Art”, BY ART MATTERS, Hangzhou, China
2023 “The New Survivors”, Three Shadows Photography Art Centre, Beijing, China
2023 “Heading West – From Shanghai to Songjiang, Then Arriving Jiangnan”, Yunjian Arts Centre, Shanghai, China
2023 “Year by Year”, DEJI Art Museum, Nanjing, China
2022 “The Pieces I Am”, UCCA Edge, Shanghai, China
2022 “Unnamed River”, ZiWU the Bridge, Shanghai, China
2022 “Night as Prelude”, UCCA Sky Space, Shanghai, China
2022 “Unnamed River”, Three Shadows Photography Art Centre, Beijing, China
2022 “Warehouse Story VII – On Your Mark!”, Vanguard Gallery, Shanghai, China
2021 “Within Space – Time”, We Walk Through Images, Glow Shenzhen 2021 – Futian, China
2021 “Nowness Experiments: Nocturnal Visit”, Tank Shanghai No.5, Shanghai, China
2021 “Meditation Chambers with Furniture in Motion”, Bare screen x The Cloister Project, Shanghai, China
2021 “Some Like Them Cold”, Shanghai Museum of Glass, Shanghai, China
2021 “Bare Screen”, a digital video commission series by Macalline Art Center, Beijing, China
2021 “Barometer”, By Art Matters, Hangzhou, China
2020 “The More Opinions You Have, The Less You See”, Rongyi Art Museum, Shanghai, China
2020 “Hasty Falling Time”, Centre d’Art Contemporain Genève (online project)
2020 “UN/CONVENTIONAL”, OCAT Shanghai, China
2020 “Play societies: Wolved”, Lynx and Ants, Hyundai Motorstudio, Beijing, China
2019 “Be in a Half of Maze”, CAA Art Museum, Hangzhou, China
2019 “Incandescence”, Big Space x Chino gallery, Shanghai, China
2019 “Sooner/Later”, SNAP, Shanghai, China
2019 “There Are Volcanoes Under the Sea”, BLG Lab, Beijing, China
2019 “The Racing Will Continue, The Dancing Will Stay”, Times Museum, Guangzhou, China
2018 The Time That Remains – Room No.6, Grey Cube, Goethe Institut China, Beijing, China
2018 Questioning Photography Now, GCA, Chongqing, China
2018 Pity Party, Sleepcenter, New York, USA
2017 “Indoors Universe” – the 5th Huayu Youth Award, Huayu Art Center, Sanya, China
2017 Spain Moving Image Festival, Madrid, Spain
2017 “A Map of the World that Does Not Include Utopia Is Not Worth Glancing At”, Beijing Commune, Beijing, China
2016 “Toward the Emergence of Resistance”, TAIKANG Space, Beijing, China
2016 “Shenzhen MAF”, G&G Creative Community, Shenzhen, China
2016 “You Won’t Be Young Forever”, No.235 GuangFu Rd, Shanghai, China
2016 “JIMEI·ARLES International Photo Festival”, Xiamen, China
2015 “Nowhere to Hide”, Vanguard Gallery, Shanghai, China
2015 “Nightmare of Exhibition (2nd-half)”, Emerging Curators Project, Power Station of Art, Shanghai, China
2015 “Hinterland Project”, Times Museum, Guangzhou, China
2015 “Floating Garden”, Meta Gallery, Shanghai, China
2015 “New China / New Art”, Djanogly Gallery, Nottingham, UK
2015 “DiFang Gongzuo”, Radical Space, Shanghai, China
2015 “Compressed Project”, Vanguard Gallery, Shanghai, China
2014 “Enemaniae”, Experimental Theater, One Space, Hangzhou, China
2014 “Nightmare of Exhibition (1st-half)”, Radical Space, Shanghai, China
2014 “Experience of Nervousness”, Radical Space, Shanghai, China
2014 “Permission”, One Space, Hangzhou, China
2014 “The Hidden Potential”, Shanghai, China
2013 “All New-formed Ones Become They Can Ossify”, AM Art Space, Shanghai, China
2013 “Enemania”, Experimental Theater, Hangzhou, China
2013 “Auto-ignition” Photography Exhibition, Shao Yi’s studio, Hangzhou, China
2012 “One meter theater”, Imago-kinetics, Hangzhou, China