Dimensions: support: 995 x 994 mm
Copyright: © Zhang Enli | CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 DEED, Photo: Tate
Curator: Enli Zhang's "Bucket 8," currently in the Tate Collections, presents us with a seemingly simple subject: a bucket, rendered in tones of grey and brown. Editor: It's a rather somber piece, wouldn't you say? The limited palette creates a heavy, almost melancholic mood. The bucket itself dominates the frame. Curator: Yes, and that very dominance is key. Zhang often focuses on mundane objects, elevating them to symbols of everyday life in rapidly changing China, hinting at themes of labor and utility. Editor: I notice the almost photorealistic rendering of the metallic sheen on the bucket’s rim. The play of light and shadow gives it a striking presence. Curator: Indeed. Consider also the deliberate choice to depict a bucket. It’s a tool, devoid of inherent meaning, yet made significant through its function and the lives it touches. Editor: Reflecting upon our interpretations, it’s intriguing how an object so ordinary can provoke such diverse thoughts on technique and social context.
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Bucket 8 is one of an extensive series of paintings of buckets by Zhang Enli. Other works in Tate’s collection from this series are Bucket 3 2007 (Tate T13292) and Bucket 5 2007 (Tate T13293). Each one is a metre square and depicts a simple metal bucket, seen from different angles. In Bucket 8, the upright bucket is shown from above with its handle resting to the left of its rim. The bucket is empty and a dark blue shadow is cast on its interior surface. As in the other paintings, the bucket fills most of the canvas and is set against a simply rendered background, which in this case is a dark blue colour.
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