»Within the photobook Bees & The Bearable, Chinese artist Chen Zhe presents her closing statement of her long contemplation on the disquieted souls, the wounded bodies and the elusive link between the two over the past nine years. As suggested by the title, this book contains two parts/projects, which face about the same topic but explore about her own self as well as a broader group of people separately yet intensely connected. Presented as a layered notebook which weaves in and out of images and texts, the book restores Chen’s practice as an ongoing process of exploration, discovery and research. What happens when actions that canjeopardize one’s existence, such as hurting one’s own body, in return serve the purpose of understanding the existence itself? Should we see it as a fluky escape, or a relief from the weight of modern life? While the individual response may differ, the book illustrates that there still lies psychological connectedness that undoubtedly link each of us together. Everything else follows from there.«

– Chen Shen –
Three Shadows Photography Art Center, Beijing