M WOODS is proud to present a solo exhibition by American master Paul McCarthy (b. 1945), a veteran of the Los Angeles scene and hugely influential to scores of artists across the world. McCarthy has dedicated his career to experimental practices, examining the shortfalls of conventional language and shining a light on the dark side of contemporary culture — specifically consumerism and mainstream media as they are experienced in America.

 

 

McCarthy’s 50 years of artmaking have seen him work in nearly every conceivable medium, from painting and sculpture, to performance, video, feature-length film and recently virtual reality. The medium of video at once preserves and informs McCarthy's performances and other creative endeavors, serving as a core part of his practice. For the exhibition at M WOODS, the artist has chosen to present a survey of video, which he has worked with since the beginning and consistently returned to over the course of his career. Showing publicly for the first time in China are 43 works by McCarthy and selected collaborators, made between 1970 and 2013.

 

 

Paul McCarthy (b. 1945) lives and works in Los Angeles. From 1982 to 2002, he taught performance, video, installation, and performance art history at the University of California, Los Angeles. A selection of his solo exhibitions include: “Paul McCarthy: Raw Spinoffs Continuations” (Hauser & Wirth, New York, 2016); “Paul McCarthy: Drawings” (The Renaissance Society, Chicago, 2015); “Chocolate Factory” (Monnaie de Paris, 2014); “Paul McCarthy; White Snow Dwarf (Dopey # 1)” (Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, 2011); “Central Symmetrical Rotation Movement – Three Installations, Two Films” (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, 2008); “Paul McCarthy – Head Shop / Shop Head” (Moderna Museet, Stockholm, 2006); “Paul McCarthy. LaLa land parody paradise” (Whitechapel, London, 2005); “Paul McCarthy at Tate Modern” (London, 2003); “Paul McCarthy” (New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York, 2001). McCarthy has participated in no less than five installments of the Venice Biennale, and his works belong to many of the most widely recognized collections for contemporary art.