Zhongjia Sun (b. Shanghai, 1990) is a visual artist currently lives and works in New York City. She is creating images that subvert the language of still life photography as it is used in consumer culture. Drawing on the language of advertising and fashion, her images provide a delightfully humorous take. Her work is full of unexpected material combinations, representational twists, and quirky object associations that combine to create a witty visuality. She aims to capture viewer’s imagination, engage their criticality and question their underlying assumptions of the everyday. Her work has been exhibited both in New York City and internationally, including most recently at the Pingyao International Photography Festival; Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia and Photoville in Brooklyn, NY.
Names of Things
In my series Names of Things, style is the primary element of content for me. I am making bewildering, amusing, visually striking and seductive images that utilize humor, surprise situations and unexpected material combinations. The laws of gravity do not apply to my photograph. I make the ordinary, not ordinary. I want to disrupt viewers expectations through the extraordinary, shifting their perception. I seek to change the viewers original conception and representation of an objects nature.
Similarly my portraits focus on the peculiar moments of everyday life disrupted , with a playfulness and ambiguousness. I want my pictures to be defined only by the visual experience they provide. I allow the viewers to draw their own conclusions from their interaction with the image free of my intent. I hope to provide viewers with a visual experience that makes them question everyday assumptions about the world.
I am also interested in creating images that subvert the language of still life photography as it is used in consumer culture. My works involves a narrative seemingly related to the consumerism. My project responds directly to the contemporary still life. It attempts to impose a new vision and rules to the still life photography.
To view more of Zhongjia’s work please visit her website.