Kunming welcomes back French artist

Viallat incorporates a sponge-shaped pattern into all his works, which has become a signature mark of his art. He was inspired by a practice among craftsmen in the Mediterranean who use a sponge dipped in paint to quickly apply a pattern of blue paint to walls.

Two years ago, Nie, the director of the gallery in Kunming, happened to collect one of Viallat's works. At that time, he never imagined the artist's solo show would be held at his gallery.

The exhibition has set up a space to display dozens of Viallat's fabrics just the way the artist would have liked. Viewing from a distance, visitors get a sense of a familiar outdoor scene.

"He is a very down-to-earth artist; his works are not lofty or distant but derived from everyday life. He even insists on preserving the loose threads on the fabric in his pieces and emphasizes that his works must be hung, like drying bed sheets outdoors," says Nie.