Liu Xiaodong

A joint exhibition by the Kunsthalle Düsseldorf and NRW Forum Düsseldorf 

The Chinese artist Liu Xiaodong has long been a superstar in Asia and belongs to the legendary generation of artists who peacefully demonstrated at Tiananmen Square, brushed up against the system and caused a worldwide sensation years later. Langsame Heimkehr (Slow Homecoming), a joint exhibition by Kunsthalle Düsseldorf and NRW Forum Düsseldorf, is the world's first comprehensive retrospective dedicated to the exceptional Chinese artist.

Curated by Heinz-Norbert Jocks, the double exhibition Langsame Heimkehr (Slow Homecoming) is a world premiere and the first exhibition dedicated to the enormous complexity of Liu Xiaodong's oeuvre. On display are works from 1983 to 2018, around 60 paintings, sketches, photographs, overpainted photographs, a digital painting machine, diary notes, and the internationally acclaimed black-and-white avant-garde film "The Days" (1993) by director Wang Xiaoshuai. 

The Kunsthalle Düsseldorf gives an overview of Xiaodong's painting. The NRW Forum focuses on the photographic works as well as Liu Xiaodong's digital exploration of painting and also presents the digital painting machine that XIaodong developed with scientists. 

Langsame Heimkehr (Slow Homecoming) approaches the extraordinary complexity of Liu Xiaodong's work not only by dividing works between the two exhibition venues, but also through a thematic division into four chapters. The starting point is Jincheng (Liaoing Province), where Liu Xiaodong was born in 1963 and grew up. The second chapter deals with traveling within China, the third with being away from home, and the last chapter with returning home to Beijing.