Tan Mu studio@tanmustudio.com
PERES PROJECTS (Berlin, Milan, Seoul) info@peresprojects.com
Tan Mu (b. 1991, Shandong, CN) is a contemporary artist exploring the complex relationship between modern technology, global interconnectedness, and human consciousness. Her art delves into the intersection of socio-technological history and personal experience, emphasizing the themes of connection and continuity that underscore our shared human experience. Utilizing traditional oil painting techniques with expanded vision like microscopes and satellites, she navigates the vast timeline of human innovation, integrating these elements into her surroundings and creative process.
Drawing inspiration from both archival and cutting-edge sources, her subjects range from embryos and neurons to logic circuits, quantum computers, solar farms, the hidden structures of data networks, and cosmic mysteries. This interplay creates a dynamic tension between visible and invisible realms, transitioning between life’s minute details and the universe’s grandeur. By blending the familiar with the abstract, she creates a visual language beyond representation that draws viewers into deeper concepts. Like the ancient cave painters recording humanity’s first tools, Tan Mu’s work bears witness to the continuous process of world-making. By invoking curiosity and wonder, she re-mystifies the familiar with emotional resonance, viewing technology as an extension of the body and an externalization of collective memory. Her works trace the flow of knowledge and emotional bonds, emphasizing the expanding web of human connection and linking historical narratives to speculative futures.
Tan Mu lives and works in the United States. She graduated from the High School of Central Academy of Fine Arts, Beijing, in 2011 and received her BFA in Expanded Media from the School of Art and Design at Alfred University, NY, in 2015. Mu has presented solo exhibitions at Peres Projects, Berlin, and Milan (2022). Her work has been shown in institutional group exhibitions, including Zhangzhou Museum, China (2017), Chongqing Museum of Contemporary Art, China (2017), and the International Print Center, New York (2015). Mu’s work was featured in group exhibition at YveYANG in New York (2023) and Penske Projects and Winter Street Gallery in Martha's Vineyard (2024).