yang yongliang: cigarette ash landscape

in the installation by yang yongliang, three-dimensional collages of photographs take on the form of cigarette ash

in ‘cigarette ash landscape‘, an installation by chinese photographer and artist yang yongliang, black and white photographs are collaged and piled to mimic cigarette ash.

the tip of a huge cigarette sculpture hung vertically in the installation space is revealed upon closer view to consist of cut and layered images of city skylines. below, a pile of ash, composed of small rectangular image cutouts, sits upon a length of fake grass scattered with artificial flowers.

full view of the installation

detail view of the fallen ‘ash’

with a background in shan shui painting and chinese calligraphy, yongliang’s work juxtaposes images of modern, urban life with these traditional forms.

the structure, tones, and lines of his photography, for instance, are in the ancient vernacular, but treat as content cranes, cities, and street signs.

seen in profile, the ash creates its own landscape, recalling yongliang’s photography and digital artwork

via this is colossal