On the outside, we appear different. We have different skin tones, hair colors and textures, eye colors, voices, body types, the list goes on. But our bodies function the same. We all contain the same body parts that help us to function in daily life.
In his series “Visual Temperature,” Cao Hui uses that concept very literally. He sculpted human organs into everyday objects to explore the relationship between the interior and exterior. He believes that artists “want to play God more than anyone else” by morphing themselves into roles such as doctors, engineers, scientists, philosophers, etc. This allows them to make their pieces hyper-real in order provoke the viewer to reflect on their own life.
As gruesome as it is, Hui’s work makes us think about the common thread that runs through humanity. Though we look different, we are inherently all the same.
Image Source: http://www.linlingallery.com/eng/artists-d.php?id=33
