ITISHAPPENING

30 January – 14 February 2009
Opening: Thursday 29 January, 6 – 8pm
Artist Talk: Thursday 12 January 

What strikes me is the fact that in our society, art has become something which is related only to objects and not to individuals, or to life. That art is something which is specialized or which is done by experts who are artists. But couldn't everyone's life become a work of art? Why should the lamp or the house be an art object, but not our life? (Foucault 1997: 261)

So I am. (Guo 2009)

Hao Guo is an artist from Beijing, China. He graduated from the art department of Capital Normal University, Beijing, and taught at schools before arriving in Australia. He completed an Applied Design course at RMIT before going on to complete a Bachelor of Fine Art (painting) with first class Honours at the Victorian College of the Arts in 2006. Hao is now undertaking his research Masters in Fine Art at the VCA.

Hao has been awarded a few prizes including Proud (2003 and 2004) and the Wallara Travelling Scholarship (2005). He has worked on many collaborative projects including: Increase Your Uncertainty with A Constructed World (Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, 2007), got no puppamumma with James Deutsher (Singapore, 2006), Hao Guo, a magazine edited by Olivia Barrett (2006), Little Deaths with Lane Cormick, Andrew Hurle and Rob McHaffie, curated by Stuart Bailey (Apartment Space, 2008), and the group show Objects in Space (a KickStart project presented as part of the 2008 Next Wave Festival). Hao created a project with James Deutsher during the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, and whilst in Beijing held a simultaneous project with Thea Rechner in Melbourne at Seventh Gallery.

In 2009 Hao will return to China.