Purifying the Soul by Felicia Li

The 2022 VONMO 3rd Purifying, the Soul Contemporary Jewelry Exhibition, has attracted public attention since its launch on October 4, 2021. As of June 10, 2022, 220 artists from 38 countries have contributed their soul works. Upon selection by the six artists in our international jury, namely, Catarina Silva (Portugal), Hongxia Wang (Denmark), Kim Buck (Denmark), Maria Rosa Franzin (Italy), Wang Kezhen (China), Zhao Yi (China) in a professional, fair, impartial and open manner, 63 outstanding artists' soul-works are shortlisted for the Qinghai Exhibition.

>> Complete artist's list

Artistic works equal artists' souls. Artists will have completed the 3rd Purifying of the Soul only after they have gone through the process of extracting the Soul for creation, screening the Soul, and finally conducting the Purifying on Qinghai Lake. The VONMO 3rd 2022 Purifying the Soul Contemporary Jewelry Exhibition may be regarded as a performance art of curators and artists: we do not need people as the audience, as we are to show the artists' souls to heaven and earth and souls of a higher dimension. The transition from the last chapter of the second exhibition — Reinventing Self: Self-reconciliation, is also a kind of escape from death or the symbol of self-Purifying. Through Purifying our earthly desires, perhaps we, earthly souls, can return to the beginning of the world, where souls are reborn.

From December 31, 2022, to January 2, 2023, the Vonmo team conducted a performance of art and photography on the frozen Qinghai Lake. On the icy Qinghai Lake after snow, a 50-meter long and 4-meter wide area was cleared, where the curators, on their bodies, carried 66 soul objects from 66 artists (including the works of shortlisted artists and judges), showing them to heaven and earth with great respect, and allowing the artists' voices to echo above the Qinghai Lake. The performance lasted for three days, which was an extreme test for every member of our team. During the whole process, we reflected on topics about souls and life and death. Before the ceremony, we did not know where the souls would go after Purifying the Soul, whether they would be reborn or perish, but the curators always believed that art could make an artist's Soul go for eternity!

After the hardships human beings have gone through, we have finally come to a new turning point. When facing a terrible situation, we are powerless and can hardly feel happiness and satisfaction. At this point, is everyone's mind still vibrant, noble and fresh? How should artists face the dilemma, and what else can they do? Now we are back in the city to hold an offline exhibition, displaying more jewellery works (112 creations by 112 artists from all over the world), enabling the viewers to get a close-up view and insight into the uniqueness of each work: the artists' different perspectives on souls and the world, and their values and beliefs, coupled with their neither more nor less exquisite technique to a nicety/ just the right amount of exquisite technique to a nicety. This time, we will not just superficially discuss what contemporary jewellery is, the boundaries between jewellery and body, or technical things, but hope that my performance will enable people to see that, beyond life and death, souls can have a higher level of great love. The souls are responding at this moment.

Opening: 22nd Febuary at 15:00 h.