《墙里墙外》系列作品介绍
上海，这个“城市味”最浓，规模最大的中国城市已经成为“城市”二字的代名词，成为其他地方“城市化”的模板。作为一个典型的上海人，城市成了我的一部分，我也同样成为了城市的一部分。创作之初，我问自己“什么是城市？我和上海存在着什么关系？”《墙里墙外》系列传递了我复杂矛盾的情感；试图去撩开高墙、大楼和雾霾之后的色彩，发觉城市本身的颜色、同化的颜色和保有的颜色。对我而言，上海一直在现代化、国际化和传统之间往返，阐述着“变化”这个词。
动迁中的景象是我创作的来源，弄堂里的老房子外表上看上去都十分相似，但内部的结构却各有门道。拆迁一开始，外部的墙被推倒，内部的结构印迹面向街头展示出来，像是被切开的蛋糕。这些都是住在里面几十年、近百年的人家为居住条件、隐私空间而对房屋结构改造的痕迹，没有一个截面呈现出的空间结构是一模一样的；但有意思的是每个被“切开”的石库门内墙的颜色都几乎只有那么几种——白、淡粉蓝、淡粉绿，沙色和窗框上的褐红色。这些都是文革后期的文化、经济、工业的影子。
而今，这些颜色被短暂地展现在上海街头，鲜明高调地记述着这座城市的故事。《墙里墙外》系列画作就是我探索、玩味和纪录对于上海巨大变化的复杂情感。当然，若是没有在里弄里长大的那段时光，也就不会有这个系列的作品。
袁崇寅
< Inside Out > Series Introduction
In more than two decades Shanghai has become one of the largest “world city”, catching the attention of many others. I was born and raised in Shanghai with this transformation; I am a part of the city and the city is a part of me. As an artist, I paint to ask myself: “What is a city? What is my relation with Shanghai?” The series of < Inside out > expresses the conflicting emotions of mine, trying to unveil the colorful world beyond the walls, under the towers, between the fogs… For me Shanghai has always been in transformation playing with modernization, tradition and internationalization. This dynamic is for my works and me: absolute Shanghai.
Lilong building, the main subject I take to create current series < Inside out >, is part of Shanghai identity, they seem to have similar outside appearance, but every internal structure is particular. Lilong aroused and vanished in different era. As soon as a destruction site starts, the internal side of the walls are appearing on the street, like a cake being cut, revealing what were intimate spaces to people. An inside world full of secret stories is exposed; the traces are showing the transformations of many dwellers and families in 100 years. Although the inner structures are different, the colors of the inner walls are very much the same; few colors like white, light blue, light green, sand and maroon appear at the destruction sites in Shanghai. Those colors exemplify the cultural phenomenon, economical and industry situations at that period of time in Shanghai in China.
And today, these colors are telling the story of the city by being temporarily “exhibited” on the street, become symbolic image of the city. My series of < Inside out > presents how I explore, taste and narrate this city and express my mixed feelings about changes of Shanghai. The idea to createwas inspired by the destruction site of a Lilong, however, without my early life experience living in a Lilong house I don’t think this series would be there. It is somehow like external causes becoming operative through internal causes.
Yuan Chongyin
