CELEBRATE THE FIRST EXHIBITION OF 2026 AT OXYGEN ART CENTRE
Phuong Nguyen
porcelain like flesh and skin, flesh and skin like porcelain
14 January – 14 March 2026
Oxygen Art Centre invites the public to attend the opening reception for porcelain like flesh and skin, flesh and skin like porcelain, a solo exhibition by Toronto-based artist Phuong Nguyen on Wednesday, January 14, 2026, at 6:00pm.
The artist will be in attendance. Light refreshments provided. Everyone welcome to attend. Join us in celebrating the artist and her solo exhibition as we kick off the 2026 programme.
Following the event, Nguyen’s exhibition will be on view at the artist-run centre from January 14, 2026, to March 14, 2026. The gallery will be open on Wednesdays to Saturdays from 1:00pm to 5:00pm throughout the exhibition run.
The artist’s fourth solo exhibition, Nyugen presents a series of new oil paintings with ornate wood-carved and ceramic frames and woven adornments.
The exhibition title, porcelain like flesh and skin, flesh and skin like porcelain, refers to the “undead” or a living yet dead person alongside stereotypes associated with feminine beauty. The artist is interested in troubling these stereotypes through material juxtaposition grounded by art historical references, specifically the Chinoiserie—the European interpretation and mimic of East Asian art and culture, predominantly in the eighteenth century.
Born and raised in Tkaronto (Toronto), Phuong Nguyen is a Tkaronto-based visual artist working in representational oil painting and experimental weaving. Nyugen travels to Nelson in early January to install new paintings for this exhibition and will be in attendance at the opening reception.
We welcome the public to join in celebrating the exhibition and the artist on Wednesday, January 14, 2026, from 6:00pm to 7:00pm for an opening reception of porcelain like flesh and skin, flesh and skin like porcelain.
Phuong Nguyen’s exhibition porcelain like flesh and skin, flesh and skin like porcelain will be on view at Oxygen Art Centre from January 14, 2026, to March 14, 2026. The gallery will be open on Wednesdays to Saturdays from 1:00pm to 5:00pm during exhibition run. Admission is free.
This program is generously supported by the Canada Council for the Arts, the BC Arts Council, the Vancouver Foundation, and the Regional District of Central Kootenay ReDi program. Special thanks to Kenton Doupe for their support as Gallery Preparator.
Oxygen Art Centre is located at #3-320 Vernon Street along the alleyway behind Baker Street in Nelson, British Columbia. More information about how to access the facility can be found on Oxygen’s website or by contacting info@oxygenartcentre.org.
Image Credit (above): Phuong Nguyen, Artist headshot, Courtesy the Artist, 2025.
Press Contact:
Julia Prudhomme
Executive Director
Oxygen Art Centre
Artist Biography:
Born and raised in Tkaronto (Toronto), Phuong Nguyen is a Tkaronto-based visual artist working in representational oil painting and experimental weaving. Nguyen uses these mediums to explore themes of Ornamentalism and the relationship between exoticism and violence by referencing the aesthetics and the history of Chinoiserie and South East Asian/Vietnamese femininity. Nguyen holds a BFA from OCAD University (2014).
Image Credit: Planche CXCV V4, Phuong Nguyen, oil on panel with reclaimed clay, plastic twine; Photography by Greg McCarthy, Courtesy the Artist, 2025.