Text by Hou Hanru.

With “Corpus Painting”, Semiose éditions is launching a new collection of published works dedicated exclusively to painting. Each coffee table style volume will focus on a precise set of paintings and will include a text in English and French signed by a prominent figure from the world of art. This series is an invitation to delve into the painting medium and gain insight into a particular series of works, while contemplating a fascinating succession of images with the same passion and devotion one might have for altarpieces or painted icons.

Xie Lei chose painting through personal conviction, as it opens up a pathway towards a language capable of expressing his sensory universe and a field of experimentation that allows him to delve into the specificity of this medium in the contemporary world. His work always starts with a basis in reality before taking flight to explore uncertain or ambiguous realms that are transformed by his imagination.