Like Someone in Love

In Dai Zhou's practice, the recurring figure of Xuanxuan functions as a peculiar mirror—simultaneously reflecting the artist's most authentic emotional tremors while refracting the kaleidoscopic transformations of the external world. This dual reflection has gradually become his anchorage, establishing equilibrium between reality and idealism. Through this beloved visage, the artist not only locates his existential footing but also extends his gaze toward distant horizons. The vastness of those horizons constitutes both Dai Zhou's memory and destiny. His hometown Latapao, near Shenyang, occupies boundless frigid terrain where human existence disperses sparsely across silent nature. In such expansive environments, no matter how concentrated emotions may be, they inevitably dilute in the immeasurable flow of time—reduced to the fragility of a lone plant. Within this immensity, there exists no sheltered corner; every vantage point reveals only more expansive distances. Confronted with such existential coordinates, we inevitably seek structures for self-definition—whether as boundaries or waypoints. For Dai Zhou, this structure manifests through human emotion itself. Infinite natural landscapes unfold through subjective perspectives, becoming emotional extensions that oscillate between concealment and revelation to reconstruct idealized visions. Whether facing vanishing villages, unknowable nature, or the muteness of eras, humanity remains immersed in perpetual dialogue between self and world—a calculus of emotions and ideals where answers continuously emerge. Dai Zhou's creations stand as both witness and active participant in this enduring conversation.