Chen Wen Ling

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About the artwork

Scylla and Charybdis were mythical sea monsters noted by Homer; later Greek tradition sited them on opposite sides of the Strait of Messina between Sicily and the Italian mainland. Scylla was rationalized as a rock shoal (described as a six-headed sea monster) on the Italian side of the strait and Charybdis was a whirlpool off the coast of Sicily. They were regarded as a sea hazard located close enough to each other, such that they posed an inescapable threat to passing sailors; avoiding Charybdis meant passing too close to Scylla and vice versa. According to Homer, Odysseus was forced to choose which monster to confront while passing through the strait; he opted to pass by Scylla and lose only a few sailors, rather than risk the loss of his entire ship in the whirlpool.

About the artist

Chen Wen Ling was born in 1969 in China and is recognized as one of the top ten contemporary sculptors in the international art industry today. Since graduating from the Xiamen Academy of Art where he studied in the sculpture department followed by Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing, his exhibitions have been held in numerous prestigious exhibitions all around the world. In 1999, Chen Wen Ling received the Venice Biennial International Prize of the Golden Lion in Italy and In 2005, he received the award for best installation in the Museum for Inopportune in France. He has also held displays of his Red Memory series at ‘Sculptures by the Sea’ for consecutive years, which received high demand and acclaim.