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{"id":266238,"date":"2025-01-01T16:10:00","date_gmt":"2025-01-01T21:10:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/esse.ca\/compte-rendu\/peishan-huang-maria-simmons-if-a-tree-falls-in-a-forest\/"},"modified":"2025-09-25T07:53:55","modified_gmt":"2025-09-25T12:53:55","slug":"peishan-huang-maria-simmons-if-a-tree-falls-in-a-forest","status":"publish","type":"compte-rendu","link":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/reviews\/peishan-huang-maria-simmons-if-a-tree-falls-in-a-forest\/","title":{"rendered":"Peishan Huang & Maria Simmons
If a Tree Falls in a Forest<\/em>"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
In their exhibition If a Tree Falls in a Forest<\/em>, curated by Tangent Collective, Peishan Huang and Maria Simmons explore the incongruities of a world in which the natural and the artificial collide. Huang\u2019s photographic series Artificial Nature<\/em> (2017\u201321) captures the eerie presence of plastic flora and fauna among inhabited spaces. One image depicts a set of artificial flowers sunk into the yellowing lawn of a residential lot. The picture is printed on translucent fabric suspended by strings of falling resin drops. The drops land on fragments of rocks climbed by synthetic grass, creating the illusion of a forthcoming artificial oasis fed by resin. Huang\u2019s subsequent photographic series, Forgotten Spaces as Temporary Studios<\/em> (2020\u2013ongoing), showcases abandoned buildings where nature is reclaiming its presence among the ruins. <\/pre>\n\n\n\n
Her work underscores an isolation of the living from the non-living, an alienating vision that differs from popular interspecies discourses. Yet, the recurring presence of hidden elements within her images hints at emerging realities that are left unseen. Her sense of composition and framing is impeccable, always directing our gaze toward what remains veiled by a layer of opaque film similar to the covering of a greenhouse. The obscuration leads us to wonder if the vegetation growing beyond the frame is flourishing or already dried up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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$\"Peishan-Huang\"$
Peishan Huang<\/strong>
Artificial Nature<\/em>, installation view, San Sheng Art Space, Markham, 2024.
Photo: Tangent Collective<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
$\"Peishan-Huang\"$
Peishan Huang<\/strong>
Artificial Nature<\/em>, installation view, San Sheng Art Space, Markham, 2024.
Photo: Tangent Collective<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
Simmons\u2019s work Solid Void Liquid Earth<\/em> (2022) transports us into the nocturnal landscape of deep forests, where lone overturned trees open a portal. Fictional dimensions unlocked by more-than-human agents permeate Simmons\u2019s practice, inspired by the underworlds of Nordic mythology and folklore. Hanging from the ceiling are silicone casts of voids left by extracted rocks, creating an intricate contamination between artificial and organic materials. The process of extraction is turned upside down: what has been taken from the soil now sits at eye level, making it impossible to dismiss. Beside the sculptural installation, two UV light boxes present photographs of overturned trees, though only partially lit. The surrounding darkness of the trees obscures what is to be discovered on the other side of the portal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n
$\"Maria-Simmons\"$
Maria Simmons<\/strong>
UltraViole(n)t<\/em>, installation view, San Sheng Art Space, Markham, 2024.
Photo: Tangent Collective<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
As we exit, a large, round mirror sitting in a corner reflects our positionality within these imaginary plastic landscapes. The exhibition considers what remains unseen and unacknowledged about these artificial renderings of nature. From an original perspective, Huang and Simmons conjure new realities through concealment rather than disclosure. The transparency of the fabric on which Huang\u2019s images appear does not prevent them from being narratively opaque. Similarly, the UV rays pulsing through Simmons\u2019s light boxes refuse to overcompensate for the forests\u2019 obscurity. To envision alternative realities, both artists encourage us to stretch our gaze beyond the reflective and see-through surfaces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
An emerging curator and art writer based in Tkaronto\/Toronto, Sophie Dubeau Chicoine roots her work in principles of degrowth, radical imagination, and queer utopias. She is pursuing a master\u2019s degree in visual studies at the University of Toronto.<\/p>\n
Maria Simmons, Peishan Huang, Sophie Dubeau Chicoine<\/div>
Maria Simmons, Peishan Huang, Sophie Dubeau Chicoine<\/div>
Maria Simmons, Peishan Huang, Sophie Dubeau Chicoine<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"San Sheng Art Space,<\/strong> Markham
May 25\u2013June 16, 2024<\/br>","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":266236,"template":"","categories":[884],"numeros":[7283],"disciplines":[],"statuts":[],"checklist":[],"auteurs":[6806],"artistes":[7345,7346],"thematiques":[],"type_compte-rendu":[],"class_list":["post-266238","compte-rendu","type-compte-rendu","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-reviews","numeros-113-plastics","auteurs-sophie-dubeau-chicoine-en","artistes-maria-simmons-en","artistes-peishan-huang-en"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/compte-rendu\/266238","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/compte-rendu"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/compte-rendu"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/266236"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=266238"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=266238"},{"taxonomy":"numeros","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/numeros?post=266238"},{"taxonomy":"disciplines","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/disciplines?post=266238"},{"taxonomy":"statuts","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/statuts?post=266238"},{"taxonomy":"checklist","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/checklist?post=266238"},{"taxonomy":"auteurs","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/auteurs?post=266238"},{"taxonomy":"artistes","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artistes?post=266238"},{"taxonomy":"thematiques","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/thematiques?post=266238"},{"taxonomy":"type_compte-rendu","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.esse.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/type_compte-rendu?post=266238"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}