Qingyun Zou: You Are Not A Fish (by appointment)

“You Are Not A Fish” (子非鱼), a MFA thesis exhibition by Qingyun Zou, is conceptually focused on an ancient Taoism philosophy story written by Zhuangzi. The artist aims to  immerse the audience in the story by separating varied elements into independent pieces of ceramic work. By borrowing our ancestors’ philosophies, she discusses the problems that people nowadays still need to face — understanding, interpretation and experience. “You are not a fish, how do you know that the fishes are delighted?” (子非鱼，安知鱼之乐). Zou asks her audience to empty their thoughts before walking into the gallery and experience themselves as a fish swimming under the water. Through telling the audience the story with her artworks, she is valuing affect and experience rather than interpretation and meaning. “We don’t need to understand it, we only need to fully experience it.”

This exhibition can be viewed by appointment during gallery hours, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. To schedule an appointment, please contact galleries@asu.edu.

Image: "You Are Not A Fish," 2020, porcelain, each 6" x 3"