Edition MOCA (Chengdu Museum of Contemporary Art), Edizioni Charta, & Arts Santa Mònica © of the texts, the authors © of the images, the artists © of the translations, the translators © of this edition, MOCA (Chengdu Museum of Contemporary Art) / Edizioni Charta / Arts Santa Mònica – Departament de Cultura de la Generalitat de Catalunya Distributors Edizioni Charta srl Milano Via della Moscova 27 - 20121 Tel. +39-026598098 / 026598200 Fax +39-026598577 e-mail: charta@chartaartbooks.it Llibreries de la Generalitat de Catalunya www.gencat.cat/publicacions ISBN: XXX(Charta) 978-84-393-9028-2 (ASM) Legal Deposit: XXX (Charta)
Generalitat de Catalunya Department of Culture Minister of Culture Ferran Mascarell General Secretary Pilar Pifarré General Director of Creative and Cultural Businesses Jordi Sellas General Subdirector of Cultural Promotion Joan-Francesc Ainaud Manager of the Network of Visual Art Centres Conxita Oliver Arts Santa Mònica Director Vicenç Altaió Arts Area Manuel Guerrero General Coordination Fina Duran Marta Garcia Administration Cristina Guell Public Relations Alicia González Editions Cinta Massip
Communication and Press Neus Purtí Cristina Suau MèdiaQuiosc Lorena Louit Technical Area Xavier Roca Eulàlia Garcia Administrative Office Pep Xaus Carles Ferry Organizers
Co-organizer Institutions of Chinart D1-201 Fengdu International Square, 6 Hang Kong Road, Wuhou District, Chengdu, P.R.China Tel: 86-28-85267132 Fax: 86-28-85267132-800 Exhibition
Transportation Beijing Pilot First Logistics Co., Ltd Tti, Técnicas de Transportes Internacional, S.A
Curator Lu Peng
Arts Santa Mònica From July 2 to September 28, 2013
Assistant Curator Xu Sheng
With the collaboration of Antartide Institutions of Chinart L-Art Gallery
Arts Santa Mònica La Rambla, 7 08002 Barcelona Tel: 93 567 11 10 Fax. 93 316 28 17 Website: www.artssantamonica.com Email: info_artssantamonica@gencat.cat
Project’s General Coordination Josep Soler Casanellas
Chengdu Museum of Contemporary Art C1, Tianfu Software Park, Tianfu Avenue, Chengdu, P.R.China Tel: +86-28-85980055 Fax：+86-28-85331327 Website: www.chengdumoca.org Email: chengdumoca@hotmail.com
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Installation Marc Ases, Luis Bisbe, Juan Carlos Escudero, Juande Jarillo, Pere Jobal, Xesco Muñoz, Oriol Font, Alejandro Aznar
Arts Santa Mònica Coordinators Fina Duran Martina Morittu
Coordination Li Juan Lu Jing Technical Team Fu Lingfan, Pei Juan, Wang Shuang, Xu Dan, Zhang Yuanya Documentation Ye Caibao Liu Chenxu
Partnership: Torres RRPP SkyTeam NH Hotels Partner Institutions ESADE Director of ESADE China Europe Club Ivana Casaburi Project Manager ESADE China Europe Club Jiajia Wang Liu Casa Asia Director of Culture and Exhibitions Menene Gras
Pompeu Fabra University Manel Ollé Media Partners Artlink Asian Art Al Limite. Contemporary International Art Magazine Arts Santa Mònica has the support of the Catalan Corporation of Audio-Visual Media, and has La Vanguardia, Vilaweb and Mau Mau as collaborating media. CATALOGUE Coordination Cinta Massip Martina Morittu Text Lu Peng Xu Sheng Imma González Puy Josep Soler Casanellas Translation & Linguistic Revision Catalan, Spanish, English and Chinese Joan Quesada Yin Qinghua Graphic Design David Torrents Silvia Míguez Aknowledgements Ivo Bargalló, Manel Ollé Production Edizioni Charta srl Filomena Moscatelli
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table of contents
table of contents
Texts
Artists
pure views
Cao Jingping........................................................................................ 55
Ferran Mascarell, Minister of Culture...................................................... 7
Fang Lijun............................................................................................ 61 He Sen.................................................................................................. 67
the greatest and the smallest. every artist is their own dynasty
Hong Lei.............................................................................................. 73
Vicenç Altaió, Director of Arts Santa Mònica............................................ 9
Jin Jiangbo............................................................................................ 77 Li Chao................................................................................................ 81
pure views. transformations of chinese contemporary art
Li Qing................................................................................................ 87
Lu Peng, Chief Curator of MOCA.......................................................... 11
Li Rui................................................................................................... 93 Mao Tongqiang................................................................................... 99
how to see pure views
Mao Xuhui......................................................................................... 103
Xu Sheng............................................................................................... 17
Na Wei............................................................................................... 109 Qiu Anxiong.......................................................................................115
return to the country of the centre, 18 years later
Shao Wenhuan................................................................................... 121
Imma González Puy.............................................................................. 39
Shen Na.............................................................................................. 127 Shi Jinsong..........................................................................................133
on organization and friendship
They....................................................................................................137
Josep Soler Casanellas............................................................................. 49
Tu Hongtao........................................................................................143 Wang Guangyi.................................................................................. 149 Xie Fan............................................................................................... 153 Yang Mian.......................................................................................... 159 Yang Qian...........................................................................................165 Yang Xun........................................................................................... 169 Ye Yongqing........................................................................................175 Yue Minjun.........................................................................................179 Zhan Wang.........................................................................................185 Zhang Jian.......................................................................................... 189 Zhang Peili........................................................................................ 195 Zhang Xiaogang................................................................................ 201 Zhang Xiaotao................................................................................... 205 Zhang Ya.............................................................................................211 Zhou Chunya......................................................................................215
pu r e v i ews
Ferran Mascarell, Minister of Culture
In 1991, with the exhibition China: One Thousand Years of Art and Culture, the Catalan public had the opportunity to get closer to a culture that, back then, felt distant and mysterious. Four years later, in 1995, and in the same space, Centre d’Art Santa Mònica mounted another show with far-reaching impact: From The Country of the Centre: Artistic Avant-gardes in China. The 1995 exhibition marked a decisive moment in the collective awareness of what was happening in that all-too Far East, a place that our Euro-American view has so often idealised, simplified or reduced to folklore. Suddenly, now, it had a great deal to tell us in a world in which the status quo had changed. China, the giant, had awoken, leaving behind its old political, economic and cultural determinants, transforming itself into a new global player of immense interest, not least in terms of contemporary art. What were intuitions 18 years ago, have today become certainties. The proof is irrefutable: the Chinese contemporary art that we discovered in Barcelona two decades ago was clearly in keeping with a spirit of expression and breaking away, a response to a highly conventionalised culture that had become suffocating. At the end of the 1980s and the beginning of the 1990s, China had begun its particular metamorphosis with all the consequences, internally and externally, that we recognise today. Chinese artists of all genres now enjoy the attention and interest of a world ever more willing to recognise talent wherever it is to be found. The new generation of Chinese artists are emerging in a new context, and are expressing themselves without reservation. This can clearly be seen from the artworks in Pure Views, pieces that are continually creating bonds between the
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millennial traditions of Chinese art with that of the present day, integrating the
t h e gr e at est a n d t h e sm a llest. ev ery a rt ist is t h ei r ow n dy na st y
vision and experience of current social conditions in a country of multiple reali-
Vicenç Altaió, Director of Arts Santa Mònica
ties, all of which are in a process of rapid transformation. In the nearly two decades that have passed since From the Country of the Centre, Chinese contemporary art has gone from emergence to consolidation in the international art scene. It’s fitting, then, and logical, that Barcelona and Arts Santa Mònica stage this new exhibition, closing the circle that began with the first display of Chinese creativity to the Catalan public all those years ago. Catalonia, and specifically Barcelona, has always been a place alert to, and curious about, new realities, new encounters and new ways of looking at the world. This is a magnificent opportunity to explore a vision, like that of China, that has opted for integrating its major global contribution within a deeply traditional set of cultural references.
In the same way that Catalan culture oscillates between those two terms seny (so-
Clearly, the case of China cannot be compared with that of Catalonia in any
ber common sense) and rauxa (exuberant craziness) — and so does perhaps the
quantitative sense. Nevertheless, in a country like ours, whose emblematic cre-
whole Provencal medieval culture and, in modern times, Western culture in gen-
ativity must continue to be nurtured, it’s essential to observe both general and
eral — the binary opposites in Chinese culture of yin and yang, empty and full,
particular trends with great care. All experience is revealing and interesting for
micro and abstract, simple and complex, all make up an ideogram of the universe
us, enabling us to continue forming part of a whole, and to continue contribut-
of literary and visual creation. Despite the universality of visual signs, no-one
ing to the world of art and creativity with the distinctive talent we have to offer.
doubts the rootedness and particularity of different cultural and political histo-
It remains for me to congratulate everyone that has made this exhibition
ries, and of their referential signs and systems. On the one hand, an undertow of
possible through their initiative and work. I warmly invite everyone to enjoy the
conflict between the collective order and individual passion; on the other hand,
way in which these singular visions on display here — pure, or otherwise — help
between the thing represented and the method.
us understand today’s world with its mixed visual languages, a world in constant evolution, building bridges between peoples and cultures.
I will always remember a fragment of the “Discussion on the basics of painting”, from The Mustard-Seed Garden, that treatise of Chinese painting from the seventeenth century. It was Imma González Puy that provided us with this text when we published one of the first samples of contemporary Chinese art in Europe in the journal Àrtics, the multilingual quarterly of arts, in December 1988. Three hundred years before, Lu Chai was teaching students to avoid the tendency to lean too heavily on details, or, at the other end of the spectrum, on excessive expressiveness. These were similar sentiments to that classic avant-garde Catalan poet, J. V. Foix, a leading light in the early years of twentieth century experimentalism, and who later served as a bridging figure for the first generations of early Spanish democracy. He insisted: “We have to limit ourselves, from the very beginning, to follow precise and unchanging rules.” Only afterwards, can we transcend those forms and
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achieve a total transformation. Lu Chai concluded: “The culmination of all
pu r e v i ews . t r a nsfor m at ions of ch i n ese con t em por a ry a rt
methods is the non-method.”
Lu Peng, Chief Curator of MOCA
It is by means of such shared assumptions that Eastern and Western art widen and extend their expressive pathways. And it is on this basis that Professor Lu Peng has put forward the suggestive title “Pure Views”, an open, evocative term, full of multiple meanings. It invites us not only to contemplate that which is generally expressed in the spirit of shared modernity, but also all that is idiosyncratic or classical in Chinese art. All the remains, the trophic strata and the rubble of the past serve as the material, form and method for the present itself. Chinese artists’ gestural forms and calligraphy take concrete anonymity — the same concrete anonymity as Joan Miró sought in primordial and durable elements — as a basis to conform artistic personalities and works that are extraordinary, unforeseen and independent; works that are both in dialogue with, and breaking
Eighteen years ago, the exhibition From the Country of the Centre: Artistic
from, their own tradition and circumstances, both colliding with, and in harmo-
Avant-gardes in China, curated by Imma G. Puy, presented the Spanish public
ny with, the cultures of the world.
with the face of Chinese contemporary art in a special period when Chinese art-
It was the poet and memoirist, Marià Manent, who, with L’aire daurat (The
ists had just recovered from a confused and perplexed mental state. Early in the
Golden Air, 1928) and Com un núvol lleuger (Like a Light Cloud, 1967), and work-
1980s, those artists, together with critics who shared the same ideas, had launched
ing from the English, produced various versions and interpretations of Chinese
a critical Modernism campaign directed against the socialist realism which had
poetry in Catalan which viewed it as a mixture of the history of mankind and the
predominated in the previous three decades, holding a chaotic carnival of Mod-
history of nature. As in this exhibition, these works blend old themes with new
ernism in the official National Art Museum of China in February of 1989. Short-
nuances, noting: “The windscreen and the arrow — referring to the blood of
ly afterwards, owing to changes in the country’s political background, the hustle
their battles and sieges — would be a good title.” (“Painted word” or “silent poet-
and bustle of Modernism was suppressed, and critics and artists left the coun-
ry” would be too, I’ve always thought). In the art show actually suggested by Pro-
try, putting an end to the energy and rush of that period. After a while, the artists
fessor Lu Peng, we see once again Chinese art as a set of modifications that run
went back to work in the old ways… and then the changes began. In the spring of
between continuity and rupture, between essence and exteriorisation; we see, in
1992, the country’s highest leader Deng Xiaoping called on people not to both-
short, the problem of seeking out limits.
er themselves with past ideological debates, put the political issues aside and place
Today, the world’s ancient focal point, and the brilliant global power of
their energy and resources into the development of the market economy. Dur-
the near future, returns to a little arts centre at the southern end of Barcelo-
ing this period, people could engage in any activity based on the legal concept of
na’s mythic Rambla. A few years ago, this was the same pioneering arts centre
the market. In October of that same year, the Guangzhou Biennale, organized
that first received Chinese art in Europe. Today, with the same intellectual am-
jointly by fourteen critics, was held in the southern city of Guangzhou, and some
bition, and albeit rather modest economic means, this space once again puts the
works which would later be labeled as “Political Pop” by the critics began to show
biggest in dialogue with the very smallest. This is surely the lyrical and political
up in this exhibition. In 1993, Zhang Songren from Hong Kong and the critic
power of culture.
Li Xianting from Chinese Mainland jointly planned Post-89. Chinese New Art, which, with five sections, classified the new art which was being produced and had already happened in the Chinese mainland, and Chinese new art was brought
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to the world in itinerant exhibitions with different titles in different countries. In
tually suppressed the artistic Chinese heritage itself and the exploration of tra-
the first half of the 1990s, people could see Chinese contemporary art in Sydney,
ditional civilization. A large number of cultural relics and ruins were destroyed,
Berlin, Venice, St. Paul and other Western cities. Therefore, we can regard the
and traditional thinking, ethical knowledge, literature and manners once writ-
exhibition held in Centre d’Art Santa Mònica in 1995 as the beginning of Chinese
ten in the history books were regarded as decadent feudal culture and were aban-
contemporary art and its integration into the international community, as well as
doned. Until December 1978, the Communist Party of China called on the peo-
an integral part of many Chinese contemporary art exhibitions which were quite
ple to center on economic development, and all those destructive behaviors based
influential worldwide. In the exhibition of 1995, we could find a kind of art which
on the traditional Chinese culture basically came to an end. However, when the
emerged under a special historical and social background.
door was opened again, young people eager to learn about the world repeated the
Time passed quickly. Chinese artists’ creations, compared with those in 18
mistakes of their predecessors. As Western art had already stepped into the post-
years ago, have experienced great changes. The artistic phenomenon in which
modern period, the young Chinese artists almost accepted Western Modernism
artists reflected on their own civilization from today’s perspective gradually de-
and Postmodernism art at the same time. In the late 1980s, the works of artists
veloped into different artistic experiments: traditional art and its associated im-
such as Zhang Peili and Wang Guangyi were already obviously embodied with
plications and interest, which were not once paid too much attention to, could
the characteristics of contemporary art. The exhibition held at the Centre d’Art
be found in contemporary artists’ experiments, and symbols and images which
Santa Mònica in 1995 showcased the most representative Chinese contemporary
had been abandoned for decades once again returned, diverted into new works
art in the 1990s: Cynical Realism, Political Pop and Conceptual Art. Shortly af-
through modifications. The basic historical logic behind this trend is: Chinese
terwards, Chinese contemporary art exhibitions have been held in all possible
traditional art had been firmly established in the Song Dynasty and was trans-
cities in the world. Since 2000, the shapes, materials and means of presentation of
mitted to the Qing Dynasty effectively; however, the globalization process which
Chinese contemporary art have been fully connected to the global art concept,
started in the 16th century gradually connected China to the West. From the late
and any paradigm of Western contemporary art can find imitators and borrowers
Ming Dynasty, westerners (such as the well-known Matteo Ricci and Castigli-
in China. With their confluence with global contemporary art, Chinese artists
one) had already began to exert a cultural influence in the Chinese royal court
are beginning to reflect in their own studios about what the new art will look like.
and the imperial household. From the Opium War in 1840, Europeans forced,
Western audiences have a commonsense understanding of the European
through guns and cannons, the introduction of Western civilization into China
Renaissance, and those who had experienced and understood the Middle Ages
and before long, those Chinese intellectuals with strong traditional upbringing,
believed that a cultural essence capable of bringing about a new age could be
no matter how reluctant they were, were striving to re-examine their own civili-
found in ancient Greek and Roman cultures. At present, the situation facing Chi-
zation to varying degrees and learn from the West. In the 1920s and 1930s, quite
nese artists is more or less similar to that in Italy in the Renaissance period, for
a number of young Chinese studied Western paintings in Europe and, thanks to
they have found again that, when reading traditions, it is possible to come across
the freedom they enjoyed, were able to acquire new artistic knowledge from both
the resources of a special civilization in practices which had been buried and for-
European Academicism and Modernism. Those domestic artists, who contin-
gotten or severely disregarded. They have revisited well-known mountains, riv-
ued to use traditional tools, basically stuck to their own art, but they were also ea-
ers, lakes, seas and ancient garden villas which had been abandoned. They have
ger to find a way to open their own artistic creations to the influence of the West.
re-read about ancient periods in exhibitions, painting albums and literature.
Successive wars (including the Sino-Japanese War in 1937-45 and the Chinese
Such important contemporary artists as Fang Lijun, Zhou Chunya, Zeng Fan-
Civil War in 1946-49) almost stopped all artistic experiments, and then, for the
zhi, and Yin Zhaoyang have been collecting ancient calligraphy, paintings and
27 years from 1949 to 1976, China was closed off to the West. China’s political
relics for many years already. Gradually, Chinese contemporary artists feel, to
and official ideology not only prevented any modernist experiments, but also vir-
varying degrees, an inextricable link between the humanities and geography,
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while the most reliable condition for the expression of such a link is to understand
diences to have a comparative understanding of the Chinese traditional context
traditional upbringing and temperament. Therefore, when Western audiences
and the Western context, and may help them discover the differences and com-
see symbols and images they may be unfamiliar with (or very familiar, if they are
monalities between those different civilizations.
well acquainted with the traditional Chinese civilization) in their works, they
Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to thank Arts Santa Mònica:
should not be surprised. A Chinese contemporary art based on its own civiliza-
because of your support, today, the latest in Chinese contemporary art can be re-
tion has emerged and, meanwhile, those young artists, who have not been con-
vealed to the Spanish public, sounding a historical echo with the exhibition held
fronted with harsh political campaigns and ideological supervisory control and
eighteen years ago. Thanks to Imma: you were the first person to bring Chi-
have enjoyed better and better conditions as far as exhibitions, publications and
nese contemporary art to Spain, so that the audiences of this great country could
public education are concerned, have enjoyed a more relaxing and repression-
learn about the new art and social change in China. Thank you, too, Josep Soler i
free understanding of traditional civilization, and, as a result, have became the
Casanellas: with your contacts and initiative, this exhibition has been successful-
main force to continue the traditions of Chinese civilization.
ly held at Arts Santa Mònica, with all sorts of support. Also, I would like to extend
Based on my understanding of the three-decade development of Chinese Modernism and contemporary art, I organized the Exhibition of Chinese con-
my gratitude to all those participating artists whose works constitute a most important part of today’s Chinese contemporary history.
temporary paintings which was entitled Pure Views in London in October, 2010. In April, 2011, I again organized the second Pure Views exhibition in the
On the flight from Shanghai to Paris on December 19th, 2012
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, in the US. In November, the title of the Fifth Chengdu Biennale was also Pure Views and tens of Chinese critics conducted fruitful discussions on the issue of the future development of Chinese contemporary art. In January, 2012, I organized the third Pure Views exhibition in the Asian Art Museum of Fukuoka, in Japan, and the museum chose Start Off Again from Tradition as the subtitle. Now, I am holding the fourth exhibition with that title at the Arts Santa Mònica to let Spanish audiences enjoy the latest in Chinese contemporary art. Although each exhibition of Pure Views has selected different artists and works, it is also true that some artists have adopted an attitude of critical inspection, sharing the same basic idea of Start Off Again from Tradition. However, unlike the art movement, this is not a new trend in art, but an important transformation of Chinese contemporary art and a holistic change in it: making a rational and lasting integration between Chinese civilization and Western civilization, with the purpose of exhibiting a new art in the era of globalization. This exhibition provides the audiences who visited the 1995 exhibition with the literature of that exhibition, so that they can appreciate and read two exhibitions with some points of contact. The article How to See Pure Views by Mr Xu Sheng, assistant curator, makes a very professional and clear explanation of the historical context and basic meaning of Pure Views, which allows Western au-
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how to see pu r e v i ews
Xu Sheng
The two terms, East and West, did not come into being until the late European Enlightenment in the 18th century.1 Ever since, the two terms have become a kind of consensus and a description for the innate identity of two inherent cultures. All the foundations for this dichotomy are based on retrospection, which is to say on the experiences of the last two hundred years. No matter for East or for West, this retrospection and naming are self-reclusive, for they disconnect us from the past, put all fresh and live cultural experiences into a pre-prepared differentiation system and try to fill up the gaps in a rush. As a result, it is almost impossible to discuss cultures without this over-simplified precondition today. We can hardly remember the fact that actually there was no such thing as East or West in the beginning in this world, but only experiences and memories before such conceptualization. However, this pair of concepts — East and West — is obviously an interpolation of memory by theory. Reason sometimes can evolve into a dictatorship which suppresses experiences and makes that fresh, live memory, which is continuously growing under the heavens, rudely buried by cultural theories, like concrete buildings crush the natural, living world. Perhaps it is not so important to clarify this point, for this pair of concepts — East and West — has become a kind of new experience, so deeply rooted in the mind of many people, that it can only be accepted. But when we discuss this exhibition Pure Views, and if we can break down this barrier, we will find that Pure Views is not merely a cultural symbol. It will also give us a broader viewpoint.
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pu r e v i ews
—
con tex t of th e pa i n ti ng : its ti m e a n d space
scenery, just like the exhibition Pure Views itself is based on the imagination of
Pure Views, a Chinese ink-wash painting, was painted by Xia Gui, a painter in the
that same scenery.
Song dynasty, at the end of the 12th century or the beginning of the 13th centu-
Besides the challenge of determining the precise age in which it was paint-
ry, a Golden Age of Chinese painting. The painting has been carefully preserved
ed, the biggest difference between literati paintings and other artistic forms in
in the National Palace Museum in Taipei and is rarely open to the public, as the
the world is their preference for the theme of landscape, which is closely related
conservation of ink-wash paintings is much more difficult than that of wall paint-
to the mental picture which literati paintings attempt to sketch. The landscape
ings or oil paintings.
theme of literati paintings was born out of those landscape backgrounds in reli-
Nowadays, a scientific method has been developed for determining the age
gious paintings and its ideological source could date back to the Tao-te-ching and
of oil paintings and it possible to date them precisely. However, age determina-
its maxim: “Men follow the earth, the earth follows the heaven, the heaven fol-
tion for ink-wash paintings is still a problem, as even now we can only roughly
lows Daoism and Daoism follows nature.”4
2
determine the age of an ink-wash painting based on the seal prints on the work,
Here, it will be unnecessary for us to carry out a specific analysis of the men-
the preface and postscript and the official records. Until now, there are still some
tal appeal of Chinese landscape paintings from the perspective of cultural com-
scholars who suspect that the painting preserved in Taipei is only an imitation by
parisons; otherwise literati paintings would become again the closed system of
a certain painter during the Ming Dynasty, at least 100 years after the original
self-explanation they used to be, and we would lose their value as a present point
one was painted, as this painting reveals quite different brushwork and style from
of reference. Nevertheless, what is definitely worth our attention is the fact that
most of the paintings in the Song Dynasty. This painting is more like a draft by
when literati painters took landscape as an important theme to express their own
a Song-Dynasty artist or a creation by a Ming-Dynasty artist based on his im-
beliefs, the evolution of literati painting followed a completely different path
agination of Xia Gui’s work, for the depiction of lights, shadows and layers does
from European painting and, thus, it is on the specific situation of literati paint-
not seem quite appropriate. Some other scholars believe that painting styles were
ing that we should focus our discussion here.
diverse in the Song Dynasty, but even if this painting had been created in the
In Xia Gui’s era, European art was in a transitional period from the sophis-
Song Dynasty, it would not live up to the painting skills of the period and could
ticated Roman style to the international Gothic style. In its nature, it was equiv-
only be a second-class work at the most. This information seems to be too sub-
alent to Chinese temple art at the same period, such as the murals of the Dun-
jective but, in the world of art, nothing is more important than subjective experi-
huang Mogao Grottoes, the Buddhist sculptures, the inscriptions and the varie-
ences. As a matter of fact, the uncertainties concerning this painting do not only
ty of exquisite jewelry scattered around many parts of China. Chinese and Euro-
lie in its age, for it did not even have a name at the beginning: the title Pure Views
pean religious arts, though placed at both ends of the Asia Minor Peninsula, en-
was added later. What’s more, who added the name, and when the name was add-
joy some common ground which is worth our attention. However, the authors of
ed, are also difficult points to determine: some other painters like Wen Zheng-
these works, no matter whether they came from China or Europe, were viewed
ming, from the Ming Dynasty, also made paintings named Pure Views, so maybe
as low-social-status craftsmen engaged in a merely instrumental job. For a period
the name was added later, based on the creation by painters in the Ming Dynas-
of 100 years or even longer, their techniques had evolved down a continuous line
ty. As for the precise time when the name was added, it could be as late as the mo-
with very few changes. From then on, however, at both ends of the “Silk Road”,
3
ment when the painting was acquired by the National Palace Museum in Taipei.
the transformation of artists’ identity experienced completely different process-
Despite all the above, the name represents an ideal scenery or, in other words, a
es. In Europe, people continued regarding artists mainly as craftsmen until the
mental and emotional picture stemming from ancient times and which literati
peak of Renaissance or even later. From the point of view of the dominant ideo-
paintings eagerly pursued. There is no doubt that the man who added the name
logical system, we can say that, until the Enlightenment period, European art-
of the painting believed that it was in line with people’s imagination of such a
ists did not develop awareness of their own condition or acquire a spontaneous
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personal expression, and certainly they were unable to independently choose the
the sixth century, Chinese painter Xie He had already proposed the theory of
painting methods or system of values in their works. The neoclassical movement
the “Six Principles” of painting.8 In the 10th century, in the late Tang Dynasty,
and the romantic movement, for example, represented precisely such types of
Jing Hao proposed the “Six Elements” of vigour, rhyme, thought, scenery, pen
free choice on the artists’ side. This independence of choice, however, was not
and ink based on Xie He’s Six Principles.9 The theory of the Six Elements further
directly emphasized until the modernist period. As a result, European scholars,
highlighted the spiritual nature of objects and sceneries and also provided the
represented by H. Harvard Arnason, did not believe that Modernism had a pre-
theoretical foundation for literati painting, which constituted a new category at
cise starting date and viewed The Oath of the Horatii painted by Jacques Louis Da-
that time. Even today, there are still many disputes on the accurate definition and
vid as the first step toward Modernist art. From the perspective of artists’ liv-
scope of the application of the denomination literati paintings, both in terms of
ing environments, we might as well date the artists’ rise to independence at an
form and theme. Independently of where the formal and thematic boundaries lie,
earlier period. In the Renaissance, for instance, they could at least make a name
what is important for us is that from Wang Wei, Jing Hao and Su Shi on, a kind of
through the cultivation of strong personal traits, despite the fact that they often
conscientious art separated from its social functionality and belonging to the in-
felt concerned about their own identities. For the standards of the time, Renais-
tellectual elites emerged. Painting became a way for painters to express their per-
sance painters certainly increased their independence concerning the creative
sonal mental world — and the concept of literati paintings constituted no more
methods they used thanks to their great personal creativity and, consequently,
than an inductive approach to it. “Uselessness”, a term from Buddhism, means
they modified the rules governing their own lives, too.
that only when an existence is away from functionality and instrumentality can it
5
In China, literati painters had fully gained creative independence around
be embodied with higher spiritual values, which has also been considered as a la-
the 10th century. During the Tang and the Song Dynasties, China experienced
tent basic rule of literati painting. Right from the beginning, the creation and ap-
great advances in philosophy, science and technology, ideology and industry, as
preciation of literati painting had been restricted to a small group of the intellec-
well as strong economic development. The chaos caused by the war at the end
tual elite, and the literati artists themselves were also a part of such elite, or bu-
of Tang Dynasty and the foreign invasion at the end of the Song Dynasty led the
reaucrats and influential officials who enjoyed a very powerful right to speak in
literati, a highly developed cultural class, to having to make the decision twice
society. Their viewpoints were acknowledged and quickly followed and became
to consciously and positively alienate themselves from mainstream social trends
standard forms of expressing the spiritual world and ideals. These forms were lat-
and social reality. Wang Wei, born in the eighth century under the Tang Dynas-
er inherited, misunderstood and innovated on by later painters. In Chinese bu-
ty, was both a government official and a leading figure of Chinese classical litera-
reaucratic organization, many literati painters’ official positions had nothing to
ture. With the psychic tension which characterized his time, he created art works
do with art and there was never a painter who managed to get a prestigious of-
which defined a new category of painting both in terms of form and nature. His
ficial title, like Velázquez did, just by means of his painting technique. Instead,
Picture Roll of Jiang Gan’s Snow Stoppage raised landscape depiction to a new spir-
they could have their technique overpraised just because of the importance of
itual level. Another key point is that, before Wang Wei, the position of paint-
their official titles. However, among the greatest artists in Chinese history, there
ing among the arts was lower than that of literary writing in China, a phenom-
were some whose official title was beyond the reach of even Velázquez: the em-
enon which mirrored that of early European painting. Yet some time later, Su
perors themselves. For example, Zhao Ji, emperor of the Song Dynasty, was one
Shi, another literati painter in the Song Dynasty, clearly put Wang Wei’s paint-
of them, despite the fact that he was by no means a great emperor.
6
ings on the same level with poetry. The result of all this was that painting ac-
In global art history, circumstances made literati painting become main-
quired an independent standing in the cultural field. Promoted by Su Shi, Wang
stream in imperial China. Nevertheless, during that same period, literati paint-
Wei’s creations exerted an influence on almost all literati paintings in later times
ing fell far behind Chinese religious art in number of artists, audience and works.
and Wang Wei was also honoured as the originator of literati paintings. Early in
Since literati paintings enjoyed a very important position in their own time,
7
20
21
modern scholars have not only neglected the Chinese artistic colour of the pe-
China, the study and dissemination of literati paintings belong more to the pri-
riod, but have also overlooked the decorative arts or the religious art created by
vate sphere, for they were not like European classical paintings, which enjoyed
unknown craftsmen who actually displayed an extremely high artistic level. Chi-
fixed public exhibition places. As a result, literati paintings did not enter their
nese literati painting divided the world of art in that age into two extremes. The
mature phase until the 14th century, when China was occupied by the Mongo-
alienation of literati artists — and of critics belonging to their same social class —
lians. As far as painting methods are concerned, painters after the 14th century
from craftsmen’s art resulted in the fact that those craftsmen’s names were com-
paid more attention to the directness of brushwork and did not pursue the exqui-
pletely replaced by the names of literati painters. Presently, provided we are able
site depiction and realistic effects which prevailed in the Song Dynasty. Paint-
to finally give up such bias, we will find the peak of perfection in the religious art
ers like Ni Zan even gave up the pursuit of visual appeal to turn painting into a
of the time, an art which gradually faded from people’s memory. If we separately
kind of communication of purely private mental pictures. These changes were
compare it with the best European works of the same period, it was by no means
all based on these painters’ understanding of literati painting. In the Ming Dy-
inferior. Of course, those forgotten parts of Chinese art are outside the remit of
nasty, art critics like Dong Qichang also began to comb the development process
this article, but it must also be said that only when we properly understand their
in a systematic way. In order to further differentiate “craftsmen” from “paint-
existence and their value, will we be able to better grasp the special position of lit-
ers”, paintings in the Ming Dynasty strove to present a certain degree of “ama-
erati painting.
teurism”—although before the Southern Song Dynasty, at least, differentiation
It is not difficult to see that European modernist painters usually belonged
in terms of professions was not the most important.10 Therefore, just as we men-
to the minority group who “failed to be chosen” by a certain authority system,
tioned before, Xia Gui’s Pure Views, with its stronger emphasis on the directness
while Chinese literati painters more likely belonged to the few “chosen” ones.
of brushwork and expression, conformed more to the definition of literati paint-
However, regardless of their living environment, their creations are based on the
ing by scholars during the Ming Dynasty.
independence and the exile of a certain artistic personality. This process derives
As a matter of fact, just as we said at the beginning of this article, a proper
from a kind of spiritual consciousness. Here, if we set aside the specific histori-
mental picture of literati painting has only been fully achieved at present, many
cal time in which European “Modernism” developed and take it merely as a de-
generations after their creation. James Cahill, in his book The Painters’ Practice:
scription of a creative status, and if compare the overall circumstances of vari-
How Artists Lived and Worked in Traditional China, provided an in-depth discus-
ous artistic forms in their own time and space, we will find that literati painting
sion on Chinese literati painters’ social and creative status. It is easy to find that,
in the Song Dynasty, together with other arts during the same period, and their
in the 18th century, the most important issue for artists was no longer their works
relation with their time already possessed all traits of early “modernist” art. Un-
but how to demonstrate the inoculation between them and this mental picture.11
derstanding this may help us to gain an insight into our own situation at present
As a result, artists’ painting style, way of life, and even the choice in the succession
through this exhibition.
of teachings from a master must conform to a code of ethics and conduct dominated by the literati ideal. Independent artistic personality turned into compli-
pu r e v i ews
—
ti m e a n d space con tex t of th is ex h ibition
ance with the norm and the once-real mental picture also became the dogma of
As is the case with European modernist art, literati painting also experienced the
academicism. It was very difficult to differentiate spiritual nobility from a “pos-
same process from initiation to “canonization”. However, in the imperial era in
ture” which simply met those noble requirements, and this signaled the moment
China, limited information dissemination and travelling led to slow transmis-
when literati painting became a superficial, formal, conceptualized type of expres-
sion of painting techniques and concepts. Therefore, in terms of transmission,
sion. The completion of a picture also meant the loss of vigour to go on growing.
literati paintings were similar to European classical paintings in that they were
The past spiritual consciousness of literati paintings evolved into shackles labeled
produced at manual workshops and under a master-apprentice relationship. In
“consciousness”, leaving those immersed artists in a delusion of self-hypnosis.
22
23
If both European Modernism and literati painting started from a Utopian
ious continuous individual events, lacks a core and expands outward. The sup-
spiritual world based on consciousness, to date both of them have equally experi-
porting points are not inside the structure but on the surface layer, which is con-
enced a kind of rigidity of consciousness. Elsewhere, I made an analysis of this in
tinuously expanding outward.”14 While the artists at the beginning of modern-
terms of cultural strategy:
ist period still took works of art as their discussion objects and engaged in a sort of “inward” exploration, today’s artists focus more on “philosophy”, “society”
“God is dead;” society gradually lost the common spiritual order and art also entered
or “concept” as their discussion objects and carry out an “outward” exploration.
a period of fragmented individual exploration. As a result, (European) Avant-garde
This is a most dangerous signal, for it does not only mean that artists have lost all
art did not rely on those social mainstream groups any longer but, with a posture of
internal motivation based on works themselves, but it also means that art has re-
minority, depended on a small number of elites supporting it. […] All kinds of early
turned to the functionality and instrumentality before consciousness or rather
“doctrines” [of modern art] were still based on the exploration on art itself. But since
after consciousness was “standardized”, including social functionality, ideologi-
Dadaism, art completely entered the period when it would gain its influence by means
cal functionality and, more regrettably, capital functionality. This instrumental-
of social strategies — this conclusion was not based on artists’ inner choice but on the
ism, which is based on instrumental rationalism and takes external objects as its
appeal and characteristics of those artistic forms themselves. Their emergence and
target, produces most of today’s artistic creations, especially those artistic crea-
the standpoint itself has already acknowledged the fact that a structure of social strat-
tions which are at the vanguard of the times, and which fall into a mode of war
egy is being formed. This strategy is called a “social” strategy not because these works
economy in their own conceit: art has become an ever progressing consumption
are for the social public, instead, they emerge with a posture of elites and will con-
which aims at maintaining the existing internal system and must take external
sciously cater to the law of social development.
objects as its targets. What’s more, just like wars, this consumption does not care
12
about the results if only there is a reason, even this is only a lie. The “strategy” mentioned above does not refer to artists’ living strategy.
It is quite easy, of course, to point out the issue; but it is artists solitarily con-
After Modernism, the consciousness of “standardization” is propositional and is
fronting their own works who really encounter the challenge. The final question,
followed and complied with unconsciously. This kind of standardization trans-
and the answer, do not lie in the background but within us. However, on all ac-
forms the artistic consciousness into cultural consciousness, in other words, a
counts, beautiful things are just there, in those ancient classical works, and they
kind of conscious cultural strategy. This is exactly the trap set by the mental pic-
provide spiritual evidence for artists at present. Above all, the hypocritical part
ture of European Modernism for people in later times. Until now, there are still
in art comes from the parody of its noble part; while its noble part is born out of
many people who believe in a “cutting edge” of time and still want to become the
the sincere and honest exploration of the noble part of art. Therefore, it is quite
“Avant-garde” of the present. Consequently, innumerous “experiments” and “in-
easy to understand that there are always some artists who would seek inspiration
novations” are still proceeding in the name of “the contemporary era” only to
in ancient classical works. This is not the only choice but is the basis for the devel-
meet the demand of this strategy. It seems that Modernism is still progressing,
opment of the Pure Views series of exhibitions.
13
while those terms like “Postmodernism” or “the contemporary era” are mere—
ly “Modernism” in conceptual development — scholars are no longer patient to
pu r e v i ews
wait for names to be awarded by people from later generations, but they begin to
Today is not the first time in history that art encounters a dilemma. Learning
consciously create the identity of their own age.
from classical works started early in ancient times. In Europe, common cases are
t h e con t em por a ry sit uat ion of t h e cl a ssic a l
Although “contemporary art” is still a continuation of Modernism in terms
the Roman artists’ learning from Greek art and the Carolingian artists’ learn-
of cultural strategy, its development system is different from that of early Mod-
ing from Roman art. The Renaissance, of course, is also an example. This kind
ernism. I once summarized this as follows: “It is a structure which consists of var-
of learning did not have a name until “Neoclassicism”. In the system of Chinese
24
25
literati painting, this was also a basic way of creating and there were also similar
Pompeii and Herculaneum. Nevertheless, the mural paintings in Domus Aurea
names for this way, including “archaism”, “modeling the ancients”, etc. It seems
were already a decorative variant of Roman art and were full of boundless imag-
that the development of art constitutes an infinite cycle. But in the world, any ef-
inings and random adoptions of mythological images. They belonged to a vo-
fort to learn from classical works, regardless of their specific proposals, has never
luptuous age and could not be associated with the “noble”, “simple” and “calm”
fully retrieved the actual form of classical works, for they have always been “con-
Greek art which was advocated by Winckelmann. Although the mural paintings
temporarized” by artists from different ages.
in Pompeii were brought under the sun in 1748, scholars disapproved of them
In order to find evidence for this phenomenon, we have to discard all the ex-
because they knew that, already in Roman times, the scholar Pliny the Young-
terior symbolic disguises and cultural illustrations of this method and decode its
er had already criticized those paintings as depraved.16 As a result, the direct
inner structure. This inner structure is not the influence of their background
painting methods and simple colours found in these paintings could hardly at-
on artists, but the way in which artists deal with finite personal experience on
tract the artists’ attention. An additional, even more important reason was that
an infinite background. If today’s Chinese art still indulges itself in the cultur-
the historic sites of Greek art were then under the administration of the Otto-
al flourishing age or “traditional context” implied by Pure Views, it will be very
man Empire, so it was very inconvenient to visit the ruins and few people could
difficult to find a way out. What we need to do is to find, for personal experienc-
see them with their own eyes. Therefore, even the visible buildings and sculp-
es not for cultural attributes, a more distant and open coordinate. Since we have
tures were only scattered images in archaeologists’ imitations and the models
been living in the midst of a dense fog brought about by the modernist spirit, we
referred to by artists were usually prints which had been created based on these
should search in the artistic phenomena of “ancient models” before Modernism
imitations.17 Nowadays, in Europe we can find many such archaeological prints
or when Modernism was about to form a reference for experience under a differ-
which were more like graphical sketches of the features of the unearthed artis-
ent background. In that way, neoclassical art in the New Enlightenment age has,
tic objects rather than accurate descriptions of them. They are undoubtedly low
undoubtedly, provided us with an incomparable example.
in precision, let alone the quality of the paintings which were themselves even
Neoclassical art includes an extensive range of disciplines, from literature to
more difficult to imitate.
music, but it is Johann Joachim Winckelmann, an archaeologist, who exerted an
Under such circumstances, for those who advocate Greek art, the most reli-
early influence on visual art. In his book Thoughts on the Imitation of Greek Works
able reference is, instead, Raphael, from the peak of the Renaissance, and Nich-
in Painting and Sculpture, completed in 1750, he advocated an ideal prototype of
olas Poussin, a little afterwards. Jacques-Louis David’s works undoubtedly ben-
beauty which was derived from nature yet on a higher plane than nature itself and
efited a lot from them and owe a lot to Raphael’s solid and restrained theatrical-
described it as “noble simplicity and calm grandeur,” and he clearly stated:“The
ity and Poussin’s stable composition and rational colour. Arts from different ages
only way for us to become great or, if this be possible, inimitable, is to imitate the
seem to be blocked for future generations, as well, by a tragic wall which is diffi-
ancients.”
cult to cross. However, David finally managed to produce reliable contemporary
15
However, these staments can hardly be studied and realized in a systemat-
models which ended up displacing ancient models for Neoclassicism.
ic way, and the reason is very specific. The pioneers of neoclassical painting, in-
Jean-Auguste Ingres, David’s student, blazed a new trail with his choice of
cluding Anton Raphael Mengs, John Flaxman and Angelika Kaufmann, could
references, and he was severely criticized for this. His important work Napoleon
hardly find real Greek paintings and their references were mainly bas reliefs and
I on his Imperial Throne (1806), painted at the age of 26, was an example of this.
vase paintings which had lately been unearthed. For example, prints by Flaxman
The style of this painting derived from the “consular diptychs” of Roman art
were a reliable reference in vase paintings which emphasized lines rather than
at the end of the fourth century, but more from a variation found in Carolingi-
a learning of Greek lines. As for unearthed paintings, the earliest we could find
an art around the eighth century. He intentionally adopted discordant colours,
were Domus Aurea, by Nero, the Roman emperor, and the mural paintings in
bas-relief style character texture and ice-cold form lines. The painting seemed
26
27
to imitate a medieval piece with contemporary techniques, and Napoleon’s dig-
adigm were usually classified into the category of Romanticism which, to a cer-
nity was completely submerged in a medieval, sinister atmosphere. Maybe In-
tain extent, became the reverse side of Neoclassicism. To understand the oppo-
gres wanted to praise Napoleon with this style diversion in the way Roman art-
site side of a certain object may help us to perceive the object itself more deeply, so
ists eulogized consuls. Obviously, his idea was wrong. From the perspective of
it might be worth to comment here on some of the features of Romanticism too.
European scholars in the 19th century, European paintings, no matter if pro-
Isaiah Berlin precisely summarized the core appeal of Romanticism in general,
duced in the 4th century or the 8th century, were all medieval art which had lost
which, simply speaking, included at least the breaking of the Western “ration-
the Greek spirit, for their traits did not comply with those of ancient Classicism
al tradition”, of its “ethics”, and the “exploration of inner feelings and spirit”.20
advocated at the beginning of the 19th century. As a matter fact, the Carolingi-
In his book Romanticism and the Science, he further explained from the perspec-
an Dynasty had also proposed a renaissance of Roman art without realizing it,
tive of the relationship between oneself and the nature a way for Romanticism to
for the same reason that they were lacking any valid references. So, Carolingi-
get rid of all creative shackles: pay attention to one’s own spiritual world percep-
an art was only a confusing part of the Middle Ages and did not enter the ortho-
tion; what’s more, as far as the relationship between oneself and nature goes, Ro-
dox inheritance defined by the Renaissance, a posteriori. Pierre-Jean-Baptiste
manticism did not stress rational perception and control over nature, but empha-
Chaussard, a well-known 19th century French critic, commented on this Napo-
sized instead the emotional connection between oneself and nature and advocat-
leon painting by saying: “Mr Ingres simply wanted to make art regress by 400
ed comprehending nature by plunging into it.21 The defense of nature was not
years.” Chaussard believed that Ingres was imitating Jan van Eyck’s works.18
one of the basic premises of Romanticism but, from a methodological perspec-
That means that, at that time, the imitation of Jan van Eyck was considered to
tive, it attached importance to the “imagination [in order] to advocate the law of
be a retrogression of art, while the imitation of Raphael, from the south, con-
nature”,22 and it took the sublimity and aesthetics of nature as a new aesthetical
stituted a contemporarization of the ancient spirit. Therefore, we can say that
standards. Meanwhile, out of this respect for nature, romantic works usually laid
the painting by Ingres did not comply with the vision of the ancient spirit which
emphasis on subjective feelings, just as Caspar David Friedrich said: artists’ feel-
was recognizable to scholars in the 19th century and was, once again, deter-
ing were the law.
mined by Poussin, David and others, rather than by the direct inheritance of the ancient spirit.
From today’s perspective, the precondition for a neoclassical boundary to rise is the application of a certain sublime spirit deriving from ancient times to
Ingres’s interest in medieval art did not just fade. About ten years later, he
styled objects. Although Neoclassicism stresses inner spirituality, by nature it
again produced Raphael and “La Fornarina” (1814), Gianciotto Discovers Paolo and
constitutes an external exploration and imposition. In this “contemporary” cul-
Francesca (1819) and other paintings in the medieval artistic style. These paint-
tural form which is continuously expanding outward, we can no longer contin-
ings were very distant from his magnum opera but, because he already enjoyed
ue to expand such a boundary since, as an external object, no matter how far its
a very high reputation at the time, advocates of Neoclassicism did not criticize
boundary expands, its expansion is just catering to the “contemporary” struc-
them but directly classified them into the category of romantic art. As it is well
ture. The boundary of Romanticism, instead, is a kind of spiritual boundary ex-
known, with the emergence of Romanticism, an idealized expression of the Mid-
panding inwardly, although, as far as the the form of visual arts is concerned, it
dle Ages gradually took over as key features of the new movement and Ingres’s
lacks any persuasive requirements. Many works completed with classical tech-
works were classified into the category of “Troubadour Style”. It is easy to see
niques, such as Ingres’s works, which strictly complied with the sketched stand-
that, from the perspective of methodology and judgment standards, Neoclassi-
ards and techniques, were classified into the category of Romanticism just be-
cism had defined a boundary for itself: such a boundary depends on the artists’
cause of their themes. Therefore, Romanticism achieved a kind of spiritual de-
compliance with a set of established patterns and their emphasis on a specific cul-
scription rather than an integration of vision and spirit. In today’s artistic envi-
tural paradigm. At that time, artists who wished to break with this cultural par-
ronment, all these elements, including theme and media which are relevant to
19
28
29
form but cannot realize formal transformation, are usually isolated to be overde-
culties by themselves; and it is their work that will provide us with answers. As a
scribed and illustrated, which is what we have to avoid.
comment on this exhibition, an objective discussion of this phenomenon might
The “noble simplicity and calm grandeur” advocated by Neoclassicism depicted a blurry mental picture, and it actually did not conflict with the “imag-
prove valuable for those visitors who wish to deeply understand Chinese contemporary art and those artists interested in it.
ination to respect the law of nature” proposed by Romanticism. We can even —
find that these two proposals and the scenery depicted in Pure Views could de-
pu r e v i ews
scribe each other. The romantic view of nature, and the way of creating and ap-
The choice of “paradigm” is undoubtedly the first step for artists to deal with the
preciating beauty which stems from it, easily remind us of the early literati’s pro-
relationship between ego and id. But from a comprehensive thinking complying
posals represented by the Six Elements: pay attention to vigour, rhyme, thought,
with the principles of artistic creation, this step cannot be treated separately and
scenery and then pen and ink; which means that they focus on one’s emotional
it is almost a reflection of an artist’s recent overall reaction status. What needs to
exchange with natural objects and one’s instinct feeling towards them. What’s
be emphasized again is that not all the participating artists have consciously cho-
more, the core of these two similar approaches described in different ways lies
sen a type of paradigm exclusively based on the way of contemplating the work
in the “exploration of inner emotion and spirit”, and the means is the connec-
itself. As for the specific works, each participating artist’s “choice” is unique, but
tion between the beauty of nature and the inner world. More intrinsic common
in terms of the nature of the “paradigm” itself, we can still find some ways which
points can be found in that fact that both proposals emphasize the artist’s subject
can be used to classify them. To classify is not to compare, it just provides a way of
existence; and this sense of existence is based on active alienation from reality and
sorting out and appreciating these works and artists in the process of helping us
mainstream attitudes. This is also the reason why Romanticism exerted a more
better perceive them.
for m a l sit uat ion of pa r a digms
far-reaching impact on modern art. However, in today’s artistic world, long after “self” was liberated, it again became a new pair of shackles. Then, the paradigm
Paradigm as “Images”
of Neoclassicism became a reference for us to put aside our egos — even though
First of all, if we understand “paradigm” as a kind of symbol which can repre-
it is a dangerous reference.
sent Chinese “tradition”, we will be able to find symbolic images in some of the
It seems that, no matter when and where, the artists’ choices conform to an
participating artists. Such images have heavy inherent information or, in oth-
infinite cycle. But the artists’ experience becomes complex with the change of
er words, “flavour” and they firstly deliver a kind of emotion related to nostalgia
temporal and spatial contexts. What is most important is that the artists’ work is
which, however, is not the theme of these works.
not so simple as making choices. That’s why we can know what happened in the
Artists like Shao Wenhuan, Shen Na, Shi Jinsong, Yang Xun, Zhan Wang
past but we never know what tomorrow’s art will be like. Nevertheless, based on
and others (as there are many participating artists, artists’ individual cases are
the above discussion, we can realize at least that the relationship between “ego”
listed in each paragraph based on the first letter of their family names) all fea-
and “paradigm” is a continuing, indefinite and valuable experience coordinate. It
ture Tai Lake rock and classical Chinese garden as recognizable elements in
leaves us in a dilemma, yet it seems interesting just because of this.
their works. Chinese gardens first appeared in the Song Dynasty and used to
Perhaps this Pure Views exhibition will become a way of recognizing and
exert a great impact on European paintings and British gardens after the En-
finding out how the invited artists deal with this issue in their actual works. It
lightenment. They were like physical evidence of emotions being entrusted to
does not only include the relationship itself but also carries some implications on
landscapes. But based on the artificial nature of this kind of landscape, we can
the way we define “paradigms” themselves. Of course, artists did not, and did not
also say that those gardens themselves are environmental works to express their
need to, provide answers on this theoretical level. The answer seeking process is
owners’ mental status. In this way, gardens also make clear the artists’ positions
based on the form of the works themselves. Above all, it is artists who face diffi-
before Chinese art itself: they stand for a kind of aesthetic approach in China
30
31
but, meanwhile, their artificial nature separates them from the literati art’s more
ed work, Cao attaches great importance to the depiction of waves. In ancient re-
sincere emotion, which is purely based on natural scenery. Shao Wenhuan’s
ligious art, water was usually presented by means of lines; and time, change and
work integrates complex film processing with painting and, for him, photog-
the implied sense of power were all integrated into the use of lines. In Chinese
raphy is also a kind of painting, with photography emphasizing the use of light
ancient religious painting, lines almost represented the world. Cao also hopes to
and painting reflecting the existence of colours. In his newly exhibited works, he
find a kind of form to introduce abstract spirit in his paintings.
continues with the reorganization of spaces and has also begun to extend him-
In this way, some of Cao Jingping’s work chooses “water” and an approach
self in the details inside gardens and landscape. He seems to have transformed
based on the understanding and depiction of water as their paradigm, but not
gardens themselves into a “prisoner’s cage” starting with a concept and then try-
“the Summer Palace”. Other works by Cao Jingping do not take water as their
ing to pursue spiritual freedom. Shen Na hopes to communicate her vision of
theme, but introduce a certain pattern from Chinese literati paintings. This
another era based on the gardens’ inherent space principle mixed with narra-
complies with his understanding of the water theme. Thus, in Cao Jingping it is
tion and sceneries. Shen Na work bears a conflict between “cognition” and “de-
easy to find some common ground with works by some other artists too, which
piction”. On the one hand, there is her increasingly deep knowledge of ancient
will allow us to move to the second part of this section.
gardens, buildings and history; on the other, there is her modified narration of this cognition. Shi Jinsong hopes to build his own garden with discarded mate-
Paradigm as “Patterns”
rials excluded from all social functionality; what he focuses on is a certain di-
Images are not the only way of connecting artists with the literati art, and we can
viding line between “useless” and “useful” and the permanent absurdity stem-
even say that it is not even the most direct way, for the most direct way is the pres-
ming from it. Yang Xun attaches great importance to the depiction of details in
ence of a certain pattern which introduces the literati art in the work of contem-
dark areas. His work has portraits as its theme; the extension of objects indicates
porary artists. Here, “pattern” is not a contemporary, derogatory term, but an
that what he explores is not the object of a certain memory but the memory it-
objective existence from ancient art. It is difficult to summarize literati paintings,
self. Zhan Wang transforms the stone material of Tai Lake rock into different
but in this exhibition we can find that some participating artists have extracted
industrial materials. Stones can be considered as the embodiment of the earth’s
part of the features and introduced them into their own works as a kind of visu-
memory, so the Tai Lake rock made of industrial materials has a different mem-
al reference. Therefore, we do not need to summarize the characteristics of lite-
ory of nature, for its memory has been distorted by industrial civilization and it
rati paintings here, since we shall have a chance to include different references to
embodies a kind of memory related to civilization.
them for each different case.
A garden is only a kind of image paradigm. Zhang Xiaotao introduces fig-
He Sen directly quotes existing ancient literati paintings and recreates them
urative sculptures of Buddhism from the Dazu Rock Carvings in his paintings.
with oil paintings. He limits his restoration to the level of image, so that his work
The Dazu Rock Carvings are one of the most representative examples of Chinese
can retain a basic identifiability. In this way, he was able to further explore how to
religious art; although the original moldings and outlines of some of the rock
use of the features of oil paintings to achieve an expression effect similar to that
carvings there have been preserved, their details have an unique appearance be-
of literati paintings. His exploration started years before this Pure Views exhi-
cause of years of water, wind and sand erosion. Zhang’s appreciation of the beau-
bition and now he is working on a deeper study of painting methods. What Na
ty of Buddhist art has undoubtedly brought his ego to a perspective of literati art
Wei’s work quotes is not a scenic pattern but a pattern of the painting’s theme —
and he has used his appreciation of Buddhist beauty as a concretization of a spir-
“bamboo”. Based on the implications of composition in his work, his quotation of
itual orientation.
bamboos does not focus on bamboo itself, but on the form of “bamboo” in literati
Cao Jingping has chosen the lakeside view in the Summer Palace more than
paintings. Mao Tongqiang, Yang Mian and Yang Qian also quote ancient works,
once and then he has just focused on the water scenes in the lake. In his exhibit-
but they change the way of presentation and use a fixed method to create pic-
32
33
tures, which stresses a brand new visual experience. Yue Minjun rearranges the
Fang Lijun’s works have always continued his symbolic means of expression
patterns in ancient paintings and uses a parallel perspective which differs from
and his paradigm is elusive in his works. But those scenes which stress the sky and
the usual ones in literati paintings. This makes his work look like a garden map.
the earth imply a transition related to “heaven and earth” and his as-always iron-
He also distributed many characteristics of common objects or figures in ancient
ic attitude towards this transition. Paradigm exists in the form of “heaven and
paintings — not the images or figures themselves but a way of depiction in an-
earth” which is also a background for him to express his attitude. Li Chao select-
cient paintings — in his mazy picture. Some titles such as the Better be clumsy than
ed many representative details from “Chinese tradition” and then decomposed
be artful […], 2010, also come from the quotation of ancient painting theory, i.e.
them into trivial and narratable stories. As a result, the paradigm itself was dis-
a text pattern. Xie Fan’s work re-styles the visual experience brought to him by a
solved by these “stories”. And Hong Lei enhances the relationship between him-
kind of classical scenic pattern and he makes a neutral expression of a mental pic-
self and the paradigm by using different media in his narrations. Qiu Anxiong’s
ture with the method of imitating the pattern. Zhang Ya’s work is similar in this,
work in the exhibition is The Republic of China - Landscape, which emphasizes the
but he rearranged the composition details of sceneries and added very personal-
running away of time and spirit. The time of “the Republic of China” itself was
ized elements, making it a private expression based on a shared mental picture.
a very special period in Chinese history and it was full of preservation and mem-
23
The quotation of model patterns seems to be more aggressive in other
ories of cultural paradigms from the past. Thus, it also has become a paradigm
works. Quotations from both European classical painting patterns and Chinese
in itself for people to talk about. The “homesickness” expressed by Qiu Anx-
ancient stone tablets can be found in Li Qing’s work. His patterns do not aim at a
iong, which is due to his work’s openness, is not only a kind of nostalgia and com-
specific artistic category but focus on a certain broader connection between ego
plaint but also includes a hint towards reality. The two artists that form the artis-
and ancient art, a subject on which he tries to make his own point. Those high-
tic group They jointly created a painting and the paradigm for them is a blurry
lighted lines in Wang Guangyi’s work Great Illusions constitute an outline of an
and preterite spirit of time. Ye Yongqing’s series of Drawing a Bird continues with
ancient landscape painting, which, in a popularized style, simplifies literati art to
his graffiti-like means of creation and the graffiti itself reflects his creative atti-
the degree of being barely identifiable; meanwhile, every square stresses a kind of
tude towards a dignified cultural heritage. His imperturbable stance comes from
mental experience related to, but abhorrent of, today’s experience and it delivers
this creative accumulation; he is not lightly dealing with tradition, but relaxedly
it to the audience through spatial vision. Differing from all the other works we
thinking about his own relation with the past.
have just mentioned, his work emphasize the different opinions on the “ego” in
Mao Xuhui and Zhang Peili’s works do not introduce in any form the para-
different time levels and the corresponding thinking levels. As a result, these two
digm mentioned in this article and they just highlight the existence of the ego.
artists’ works may have a different relationship with other exhibited works, which
Consequently, their works seem to be the most distant from the theme of Pure
leads us to the third part of this chapter.
Views. However, the exhibition theme itself has to be illustrated in one way or another by the participating works. In this exhibition, due to the presence of
Paradigm as “Objects”
paradigms themselves, their works become a kind of abolition of paradigms.
What “objects” highlight is not the paradigm itself but the existence of observers
This means that “paradigm” in their works becomes an object which has been
as “egos”, and the expression of such egos as a more visible opinion on a form in a
abolished — they did not do this consciously, the abolition was determined by
certain paradigm. This type of paradigm is not fixed and it is only an expression
the structure of the exhibition, which indicates that even in this show of Pure
of a certain subjective opinion — ideas or concepts. These works are apparently
Views, which takes paradigms as its core, the expression of a paradigm is not
more positive but, since the discussion we have presented in this chapter is based
the most important thing, since a “paradigm” as an object is easy to abolish and
upon what has already been discussed as a dilemma, the expression of ego here
what is hard to abolish is the ego. In the experience of Chinese ancient art, to in-
does not involve a so-called “better” prejudice than any others.
tegrate the ego with nature seems to be a kind of abolition or, at least, a way to
34
35
weaken the ego, and on speaking of nature, we have just entered the next sec-
tween ego and object. This requires a kind of state in which the artist recognizes
tion in this chapter.
and persists in trying out different approaches which support these methods in order to reach an understanding of nature and the object.
Paradigm as “Nature”
Zhang Xiaogang’s recent most representative work is Red Plum and Sofa. In
The question of what is “nature”, like the one of what is “reason”, is a permanent
China’s literati art, plum blossoms represent the unyielding spirit involved by their
topic. But the “nature” mentioned in this article is a kind of scenic nature, which
blooming in the middle of the cold winter. Therefore, plum blossoms are a kind
is based on nature; it is not “artificial” but is based on the knowledge of nature in-
of positive expression of his mental state. He takes the natural plum as a reference
herited from Chinese culture. Nature, as a method to abolish ego, seems to be in
to compare it with the artificialilty of the sofa, but a plum is also a representative
contrast with the former sections. However, nature and ego seem to stand in a re-
image from literati culture. As a result, the paradigm from which he produced his
lation we might describe as one of interdependence. In ancient literati art, their
work takes us back from “natures” to the “images” with which we opened the pre-
relationship is one of complete mutual formal transformation, not one consisting
sent chapter. And thus, the discussion in chapter has also come full circle.
of “abolishing” and “being abolished”. Therefore, it’s the natural scenery depic-
In fact, among the four paradigms mentioned in this chapter, the boundary
tion method itself, not the patterns of landscapes in existing works, that becomes
between nature and image was originally blurry — and nature, as a comprehen-
another paradigm of ancient art.
sive concept, is also a kind of image. On the other hand, the comprehension and
Jin Jiangbo’s early photographs have always stressed objective representation
the depiction of images always gives rise to a certain kind of pattern. And the un-
of cultural or natural sceneries. His recent work, though, reflects his unique per-
derstanding of such pattern will inevitably lead to the differentiation between ego
spective on nature. Modern travel has given us a new experience of landscape. As a
and objects. Nature is an effective way to reconcile both sides and make artists re-
result, in his work, as far as patterns are concerned, nature is different from those
turn to a new understanding of images. From the analysis of the artists above, it
mountain and water paradigms in the literati art. And yet he spiritually continues
is easy to see that, in this circle, each phase is connected to all the other phases.
the way of appreciating and experiencing nature advocated by the literati art. Li
Zhou Chunya’s work is a recently completed Taihu Stone (Tai Lake rock). It
Rui also takes natural landscape as depiction objects, but he adds some small white
is a subject he used to paint years ago, and he takes it up again after the new expe-
words in his landscape, which highlights the ego’s observation of nature.
rience gathered with the depiction of the green dog and the peach blossom. Actu-
Tu Hongtao immerses himself in different ways to approach the depiction of
ally, artists’ creation is always in a continuous process of synthesis, for artists will
nature. For him, nature has become a theme which can help get rid of distracting
eventually face barriers in terms of perception and not theory. Due to this per-
thoughts, but the choice of this theme is not based on a rational analysis of natural
ceptive condition, each phase in the creative cycle may probably include the ex-
property, but on his own personal feelings towards life and nature. This personal
perience and understanding of all other phases.
experience has become a driving power in his experimentation with basic paint-
“Pure Views” may refer to a piece of work, an image, a state or a depiction of
ing elements including colour, lines, etc. As a result, he has not only achieved
a kind of real landscape; it can embody “paradigms” of different natures, which
an ideological exchange with nature, but he has also gone back to the painting
constitutes exactly the most attractive part of Pure Views. Just as those para-
method itself and has tried to find an approach capable of giving shape to this
digms mentioned above, it will also become a purely abstract reference in the
exchange. The same as Tu, Zhang Jian likes to produce scenic sketches, but his
end. To understand this reference, we should first enhance our understanding of
works are most often reduced to plain sketches. Nowadays, sketching seems to be
the ego, which is the reason why Pure Views is able to keep growing.
only a basic painting skill, but it actually constitutes a permanent spiritual training. From an abstract perspective, sketching can help artists to better communicate with the depicted object and infuse in his work a unique relationship be-
36
notes:
1 John M. Hobson made a detailed argumentation in his book The Eastern Origins of Western Civilization (see
further details in the third part of the book: “The West as a late developer and the advantages of backwardness:
37
oriental globalization and the reconstruction of Western Europe as the advanced West”), translated by Sun Jiandang and published by Shandong Pictorial Publishing House in 2009. 2 Victoria Finlay gave us a detailed description of the Age Determination Method for oil paintings in the first chapter of her book Color—A Natural History of the Palette, translated by Yao Yun and published by SDX Joint Publishing Company in 2008. 3 Most information I include on the painting Pure Views, including its author, identification and title, mainly come from my verbal communications with some scholars, without a reliable written text, which means it is not so accurate as to be used as reference for further study. Here, I would like to thank Mr Qi Lan for his help all the same. 4 See the 25th chapter of Lao Tzu’s Tao-te-ching. Taken from Lu Peng’s quotation from Tao-te-ching in the first chapter of his dissertation Pure Views — History of Landscape Painting in Two Song Dynasties and the Taste Transformation. Here I would like to thank Mr Lu Peng for the electronic version of his dissertation. 5 H. H. Arnason, History of Modern Art: Painting, Sculpture, Architecture, Harry N. Abrams, 1998. 6 John M. Hobson described and assessed the overall situation of the Song Dynasty by comparing it with Western civilization in his book The Eastern Origins of Western Civilization (see Note 1), which constitutes an important reference. Anyway, this is more a general conclusion from the reading of different historical research on the Song Dynasty. 7 See Su Shi’s preface and postscript for “To Mo Jie ‘Misty Rain Drawing of Lan Guan’”: “Appreciating Mo Jie’s poetry, with painting found in poetry; viewing Mo Jie’s painting, with poetry found in painting.” 8 In his book Six Principles of Chinese Painting, Xie He proposed the following ones: charm and liveliness; painted frame; natural depiction of objects; colour adherence; composition, and replication. 9 Jing Hao proposed, in his book Strokes in Mind, that there should be six elements in a painting: vigour, rhyme, thought, scenery, pen and ink. 10 The amateurism of painters has always been an important topic about Chinese paintings and Lu Peng made a detailed description of it in his doctoral dissertation, Pure Views — History of Landscape Painting in Two Song Dynasties and the Taste Transformation. For more details, see chapter 3: “Formula Landscape: The Transformation of Painting Thoughts and Taste”. 11 See James Cahill’s book, The Painters Practice: How Artists Lived and Worked in Traditional China, SDX Joint Publishing Company, 2009.
12 Xu Sheng, “What is Calling Up”, in Art China, Vol. 82, 2012. 13 Susanne Neuburger and Eva Badura-Triska, together with Edelbert Kob, the curator, completed an exhibition named Bad Painting in the Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig Wien in 2008. They elaborated the dilemma caused by modernist utopias in their own articles published in the exhibition catalogue: Bad Painting, Good Art, MUMOK, Dumont, 2008. 14 See Note 12. 15 Johann Joachim Winckelmann, Thoughts on the Imitation of Greek Works in Painting and Sculpture, Open Court Classics, 1987: 1-20. 16 Lawrence S. Cunningham & John J. Reich, Culture and values: a survey of the humanities, Wadsworth, 2009: 44. 17 Illustrations on these situations come from the materials mentioned in Note 16 and from Stephen Dyson, In Pursuit of Ancient Pasts: A History of Classical Archaeology in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries, Yale University Press, 2006. 18 The original text is: “Mr Ingres’s intention is nothing less than to make art regress by four centuries, to carry us back to its infancy, to revive the manner of Jean de Bruges.” Cited and translated from: Philip Conisbee and Gary Tinterow, Portraits by Ingres: Image of an Epoch, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1999: 70. 19 As to the fact that Ingres’s works have been classified into “Troubadour Style”, this information comes partly from the catalogue in Note 18 and the entry “Troubadour Style” in www.en.wikipedia.org. 20 In Berlin’s summary of Romanticism, these words seem most representative. See Isaiah Berlin, The Roots of Romanticism, Princeton University Press, 1999. 21 Andrew Cunningham & Nicholas Jardine, Romanticism and Sciences, Cambridge University Press, 1990. 22 This proposition was brought up by the English romantic poet William Wordsworth about romantic poetry. But it does not merely refer to the production of writings, but it represents the spiritual orientation which can be shared by all romantic artists. It comes from the Preface of his 2nd edition of Lyrical Ballads, which was re-issued many times. Our citation comes from a later version: William Wordsworth & Samuel Taylor Col, Lyrical Ballads, Penguin Classics, 2007. 23 The full title is: Better be clumsy than artful, ugly than flowery, fragmented than smooth, frank than intended, quoted from the summary of experiences of Fu Shan, a famous calligrapher in the late Ming Dynasty period.
r et u r n to t h e cou n t ry of t h e cen t r e ,
18
y e a r s l at er
Imma González Puy
Beijing, April of 1989. The end of the 1980s is near; people are in the streets and a mix of euphoria, solidarity and hope in the face of possible changes marks the scene. A slide show for a small and eager gathering of Catalans at a flat in a diplomatic complex near the central Chang’An Avenue. It’s one of the flats that, during the early 1980s, held sessions called yang shalong yishu, literally “Western apartment art”. This was a country lacking commercial art galleries, where artists were primarily civil servants earning state-paid salaries and dependent on the protection of the danwei.1 In such a country, where the few museums dedicated to modern contemporary art would only choose pieces with the “official stamp” of artwork still “in service to the people”, the rebellious attitude of these initial artists who advocated for independence — such as the members of the group The Stars, which included the charismatic Ai Weiwei — stirred the expatriate residential community, expectant of changes occurring in a place that until then had been both static and hermetic. Those journalists, diplomats and company executives who made up the meagre foreign community were taking on, quite by accident, the role of patrons of an art which was beginning to reclaim freedom of expression through its own means. Impressed by the freshness of these productions, they began to organize exhibitions in their homes or to acquire works, thus shaping an embryonic Chinese contemporary art market and facilitating contacts for some of these artists to break out to Europe, the United States or Australia. This was the scene at the end of the 1980s. And, specifically, in that very flat on Chang’An Avenue, the now internationally-consolidated Zhang Xiaogang had, until recently, presented an impressive series of works in paper: his first individual exhibition.
38
39
The visitors to the exhibition that spring afternoon, including Josep Miquel
Three years later, at last we set the date for the inauguration of the exhibi-
García, then director of the Centre d’Art Santa Mònica, found themselves sur-
tion at Centre d’Art Santa Mònica for June of 1995. After those intense years the
prised by the strength of the images; demonstrations by The Stars group in fa-
scene had changed completely and so the discourse also had to change. If 1979
vour of democracy and freedom of expression with their works hung on the gate
had marked the beginning of economic reform and an opening to the exterior,
of the impenetrable National Art Museum of China — now better known for
accompanied by a radical change in the expectations of the Chinese, 1989 was a
its acronym NAMOC; productions of the “art of the wounded”, marked by the
dramatic turning point, signifying a new break in attitudes: the arrival of acri-
sinister years of the cultural revolution and the frustration of a lost generation;
mony, disappointment, scepticism and a sense of impotence. From the 1990s on-
powerful performances of Xu Bing staining the Great Wall, his tattooed pigs
wards new movements, such as Political Pop or Cynical Realism, arose around
copulating live in an industrial space in the heart of the capital, the mockery of
the entire country, seeking escape through derision. The artists slowly aban-
his undecipherable characters, which extolled the absurdity of language as an
doned their metaphysical and philosophical positions to become much more
instrument of power and the means of transmission of propaganda; artists’ col-
pragmatic and sarcastic. They made fun of themselves, of their own history, of
lectives in full flux dispersed throughout the country with Dadaist manifestos;
Maoist icons and the values of their parents, while ironically examining the new
ground-breaking conceptual actions… But how is it possible that this rebel art,
symbols of a culture of luxury and wealth. Their works would become impreg-
unstoppable, defiant, challenging, dissident and original, was only just becom-
nated with this irony, indolence and provocation, and they would be marked by a
ing known here, practically behind closed doors? And I am asked further ques-
fierce individualism.
tions about this now-historic exhibition of January ’89, which had barely got
Meanwhile, from the end of the 1980s and beginning of the 1990s the first
started before it was shut down on its opening day, the 5th of February, 1989.
commercial galleries also arrived on the scene in Hong Kong, due to the active
China Avant-garde was, without a doubt, the first important exhibition of in-
involvement of Chinese critics deviating from official institutions, such as Li Xi-
dependent Chinese art which had managed to penetrate the inaccessible temple
anting or Gao Minglu, who would act as promoters in China of a clandestine cul-
of the NAMOC. Clashes among the commissioners notwithstanding, and evi-
tural movement which was still happening underground. The galleries saw an
dencing a lack of uniformity in criteria pertaining to the discourse of the exhibi-
easy ground for the commercial promotion of this ironic art; the artists signed
tion, and even the quality of the works, the exhibition brought together abstract,
draconian contracts with their new patrons and they ceded their works for indef-
figurative, and conceptual pieces, as well as performances from nearly two hun-
inite lengths of time. Nobody knew of them outside of China, it was all just be-
dred artists from around the country. It was Dialogue, a performance installa-
ginning. In 1993, the unofficial participation of Chinese artists in the 45th Ven-
tion by artist Xiao Lu, in which he shot at his own work, that caused the police
ice Biennale took place for the first time, commissioned by Achille Bonito Oliva.
to intervene and close down the showing immediately, essentially a warning of
Some of the artists also participated in the Sao Paulo Biennale (1994), in spite of
what was about to occur. The rebel artists were expelled from the fortress that
the perplexity and discomfort of official institutions and the resulting problems
had been so difficult to conquer and much time would pass before the NAMOC
for export and, in particular, re-import of the works.
would open its doors to them again.
Some of the artists that were pioneers in the vindication of independent art,
Our visitors wondered, “How is it possible that all of this is happening here
like Xu Bing, Huang Yongping, Cai Guoqiang or Gu Wenda, had left the coun-
and now, while we continue to look away from a far and distant China?” The gam-
try and were already living abroad. Therefore, this progressive integration of art
ble by Josep Miquel García was resolute and immediate, although along the way
originating out of China and into a global, international context had to be reflect-
he would come up against the consequences of what was to take place a few days
ed in the discourse of the exhibition that we were putting together.
later in the streets and the square. There was no choice but to postpone the pro-
Nevertheless, it was the first time that Barcelona (and Catalonia or Spain)
ject but the idea of bringing this new, fresh art from China to Catalonia still stood.
had come into contact with Chinese art that differed from the official represen-
40
41
tations, and it seemed essential to me to include within the display, albeit briefly,
some of the international commissioners who, like Bonito Oliva, expressed inter-
a retrospective aspect in order to understand the process and the present time: I
est in them. The works could not be returned, at least for the moment, and the
wanted to bring to Barcelona pieces that would be a testimony to this spectacular
only way for the artists to be able to get them back would be to return them to an-
coming out of the closet of Avant-garde Chinese art. These works would explain,
other destination.
in and of themselves, how those active and disperse communities of artists of the
For that reason, even after locating and choosing the pieces that would form
1980s had managed to maintain their creativity and transcend in a place that was
the retrospective part of the exhibition, in the end those collectors didn’t dare to
in no way conducive to creative independence, with hardly any economic means
sign them over to us. It is worth pointing out that some of the productions that
due to the lack of a market, and with few opportunities for obtaining visibility be-
weren’t able to travel to Barcelona in 1995 later formed part of a large collec-
yond their borders. We must also remember the difficulty inherent in the 1980s
tion of contemporary Chinese art belonging to the Ullens barons, owners of the
and at the beginning of the 1990s for any Chinese citizen trying to obtain a pri-
UCCA,3 auctioned at Sotheby’s Hong Kong for astronomical prices in 2011.
vate passport and visa to exit the country.
Given the complex situation, I chose some pieces of the same period which
I was able to locate some of the emblematic pieces that had marked the dec-
were already in international collections as substitutes, such as the case of the
ade of the 1980s: some of them had even been exhibited in the NAMOC show
sculpture Silence by Wang Keping (1979), Madonna & Child by Wang Guangyi
in January of 1989. After the hasty closing of the exhibition China Avant-garde,
(1987) of the Pacific Asia Museum in Pasadena, or the famous gloves of A Report
many of the artists from outside of Beijing looked for mentors to take charge
on the Hepatitis A Infection by Zhang Peili (1988). The rest of the retrospective had
of their works because they didn’t even have the means to cover the cost of re-
to be reconstructed from photographic and text documentation.
turn transport to their departure points. Paradoxically, not a single museum ex-
The loan of the more recent pieces was much easier: the artists were fairly
pressed interest in them — and how they are regretting it now! In the end, friends
prolific; as such there was a vast collection of works of art from which to choose,
or colleagues from Beijing agreed to “collect” them, as a favour, at a low cost for
without exportation problems as they were already in Hong Kong or elsewhere.
symbolic prices.
Also, some of the pioneer gallery owners who were working with China offered
I contacted some of them. They agreed. The only thing they requested of
to mediate so that the works could travel to Barcelona without difficulty. I also re-
Arts Santa Mònica is that afterwards they would be returned to their owners in
member some artists, as in the case of Zhang Jin, despite knowing that his pieces
Beijing. But we couldn’t guarantee them this because it would be difficult for the
would not be returned to Beijing, decided to donate them to Arts Santa Mònica.
pieces to leave China through the main door. Avant-garde art in China continued
These peculiar complications, in the end, clearly added to the concept of
to survive in a state of confrontation, expressed through clandestine channels. It
the exhibition and were representative of the singular time that China was go-
was a victim of the dichotomy between an exportable and recognised official cul-
ing through, of its conflicts and contradictions. However, during the genesis of
ture, which, incidentally, was not of much interest outside its borders, and a cul-
From the Country of the Centre it was quite a bit more complicated to define the
ture which was considered “marginal”, the fruit of the genuine preoccupation
participation of the artists that proposed site-specific installations. Those art-
and disquiet of its creators and independent artists, with neither ties nor bonds
ists that had already been living abroad (in the USA, Japan or France) for several
to official institutions, critical and much more powerful and original. In this
years were getting used to working with a great display of resources and provok-
case, the penetrating and sarcastic productions of Political Pop or Cynical Real-
ing controversies of all kinds, and it became extremely difficult to adapt their pro-
ism could not be representative of the reality of the country. As such, if we want-
jects to the modest budget and the specific cultural politics of Arts Santa Mònica
ed to present this side of the coin, the works could never count on the blessing of
at that particular juncture in the mid-1990s.
2
Beijing for a temporary exhibition, in much the same way that the artists had not
In principle, as part of the project, I had included Cai Guoqiang, with his
obtained it for their presence in the international biennales, despite the efforts of
fireworks display in the outside space of the museum, but the technical difficul-
42
43
ties and the financial limitations alone blocked even initiating contacts to ask
al shipyards). The project consisted of a ship that had metaphorically arrived to
him for a specific proposal. A similar thing happened with a performance by
the port of Barcelona laden with goods from China, the new colonization. The
Xu Bing — already known in Spain because of his presence in Cocido y Crudo
problem in this case was the budget, and the project was once again limited to
— who proposed a live reproduction of the famous copulation of pigs tattooed
the presentation of documentation.
with illegible characters reflecting intercultural clash. Due to reasons not so
Zhang Peili, Wang Guangyi and Wu Shanzhuan did manage to see their
much economic as ethical, and owing to animal-protection laws, instead we
projects produced. In the case of Zhang it was a video camera installation about a
showed a video on a huge screen in the main hall. Even more controversial was
perverse Orwellian obsession for control, while Wang Guangyi worked the top-
Gu Wenda’s project. He had lived in New York since 1987 and was one of the
ic of identity, emigration and cultural prejudice among those who were facing
pioneers in exploring new interpretations from traditional calligraphy tech-
the Chinese community abroad. Wu Shanzhuan and his companion Inga Svala
niques, especially controversial for his use of human materials such as hair, pla-
Throsdottir tackled the controversial topic of the boundless consumption which
centa or menstrual blood. Gu’s original proposal involved recreating an instal-
had began to invade China, setting up a shop selling various sundries, with a
lation with tampons and sanitary napkins in Barcelona that had recently been
wink that both invited and confused the visitors arriving straight from the vesti-
shown in the States, but the idea was rejected. Then, he offered a second, no-
bule of the Centre d’Art Santa Mònica.
less complex option: a Catalan station of the work in progress, United Nations,
Despite other exhibitions of contemporary art from China held in Europe
an ambitious series of installations that was being repeated in various locations
or the United States having avoided, for some reason, the new interpretations
and which emphasized the unity of human experience and the global commu-
around traditional paper and ink techniques, I wanted to include them in the
nity. In the United Nations series, Gu Wenda used human hair from donations
Santa Mònica exhibition. I thought it would be interesting to present how some
of people of all continents to compose unreadable calligraphy on monumental
artists were taking another look at calligraphy through new support mediums,
banners. For Barcelona he proposed gathering hairs from Catalan hairdressers,
such as installations, video, body art, performances and mixed techniques. The
later to be strewn around the floor of the MacDonald’s at Canaletas, while cus-
space was limited but one example which stood out was the video piece by the
tomers ate Chinese noodles in bowls and he arrived in aboard an ambulance.
conceptual artist Qiu Zhijie, which brought about a return to the original stain
The project turned out to be as costly as it was grandiloquent and was impossi-
of the ink through its repetition of the master work Preface to Orchid Pavilion by
ble for the museum management to take on. We presented documentation and
the fourth century calligrapher Wang Xizhi; or the interactive installation of
sketches of this last series of installations, which emphasized the unity of hu-
Wang Namin, where his own pieces of calligraphy had been crumpled into balls
man experience and the global community.
of wrinkled paper which the public could collect.
One of the most notable absences was that of Huang Yongping, an artist
But in spite of all efforts to locate and obtain these works for a final happy
who had been very active in the 1980s. He was one of the first to immigrate to
arrival in Barcelona, I must admit that the exhibition did not have the impact on
Paris, and he decided not to return after participating in the prestigious Les
the public and the media that we had all hoped for. Nor did it travel to other cities
Magicines de la Terre organized by the Centre Pompidou in 1989. Huang ar-
in Spain. The fact is that in our country at that time, China didn’t raise the same
rived in the spring of ’95 to Barcelona to see the museum and soak up the city.
interest, curiosity, expectation and even appetite that it does now. We knew very
As an artist whose works were always controversial, site-specific productions, he
little about it and the truth is that we were not very interested. We still thought
was looking for an intimate connection to place-specific history and reality. Af-
of it as a distant and remote place that would never have anything to do with us.
ter a few days of strolling around the Ramblas and its surroundings, he designed
Nevertheless, I remember well some of the more lucid critiques, such as that of
a magnificent project called Bo lai pin (Goods Arriving from Other Shores), in-
Rosa Martínez, in which a premonitory reflection was made of this powerful art
spired by the local statue of Colón (Columbus) and by the Ataranazas (Roy-
that was beginning to take off timidly on the international scene.
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Time passed and eighteen years later, a number which could well symbolize
Because of all of this, Arts Santa Mònica is doubtless deserving of great rec-
reaching a coming of age with respect to our appreciation of China, this country in
ognition for having been a pioneering, brave, lucid forerunner at a time when
the Centre has become the world’s second-largest economy and is now the first in
Chinese contemporary art was a rather shaky bet, not only in Spain but also in a
terms of art collectors. Obviously, the tremendous dichotomous and schizophren-
great part of Europe. Among the 35 artists who formed From the Country of the
ic framework supported by the country between what was considered “official cul-
Centre, many were included that today have become important internationally-
ture” and the alternative “independent culture” has vanished. This emergent, dy-
recognized names in contemporary art. Their works have been collected by the
namic, fresh, refined and original art, after receiving high praise in the interna-
most prestigious museums and they are presented in million-dollar auctions to-
tional galleries also gave rise to, curiously enough, a boomerang effect in the local
gether with Andy Warhol, Francis Bacon or Kiki Smith. The exhibition formed
markets. Despite the rejections of the early years, where it had only been sustained
part of the Aperto of the Venice Biennale that year, and the conceptual group Xin
by a few accidental western collectors and by a few Hong Kong gallery owners,
Kedu saw its works reproduced in Cave Canis magazine, promoted by Vicenç Al-
whose clients were both museums and Western collectors, the wealthy Chinese
taió, now director of Arts Santa Mònica, who had previously published a special
classes, eager to invest and previously centred on domestic traditional and modern
issue in Àrtics dedicated to China. After the show itself had closed, the catalogue
art, have been acquiring works of contemporary art for more than a decade.
of From the Country of the Centre sold out. It is now a rare reference piece, re-
Little by little, from the top, there was also a desire to turn things around
quested by researchers of this historical process. And it is of no coincidence that
and a reflection on how to achieve a better projection of its image to the out-
now, eighteen years later, Arts Santa Mònica is renewing its dialogue with the
side world. In order to do so, intellectuals of a previously borderline cultural life
Chinese Avant-garde, with new and creative bids, hand in hand with an emblem-
who had been the object of misgivings because of their critical spirit, were legit-
atic commissioner like Lu Peng, one of the pioneering analysts of this fascinating
imized to work as mediators of this change. Names like Fan Di’An, Chen Dan-
evolution of Avant-garde Chinese art.
qing or Xu Bing were brought in progressively under the institutional umbrella to occupy public positions in museums or key art institutions in China. Other artists returning at the beginning of the 1990s, such as Ai Weiwei or Huang Rui, decided not to form part of these official institutions and they became involved in, among other things, the rehabilitation projects of cultural spaces from factories or rural lands, like the 798 or Chaochangdi, which have frequently given rise to heated debate.
1 Danwei, literally “work unit”. In China at that time, one depended on a work unit for absolutely everything, not only for a salary, but also to gain access to healthcare, to living quarters, for coupons to buy clothing or grains. It was necessary to earn danwei for marriage licenses, for permission to have children, for the education of those children, to board trains or planes to get around the country and, of course, to obtain a passport or to travel abroad.
2 This situation not only affected the world of fine arts, but was patent in the entire cultural scene and was especially evident in cinema. We can recall how some of the first films by Zhang Yimou or Jia Zhangke were screened clandestinely and were not given official permission to be shown at festivals. 3 Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, in district 798 of Beijing.
Today, with more than 500 million cybernauts in spite of the restrictions on the use of Internet, the Chinese are better informed than ever. Their collectors and dealers know the international art market well and they buy in auctions in Hong Kong, London or New York. With the economic world crisis affecting the West still at a distance, there are currently more than five hundred commercial art galleries in Beijing and, in this new order, artists from the rest of the world are now looking at how to become known, valued and collected by this large market, even if the general profile of the Chinese art collects still remains extremely conservative and particularly nationalistic. For now, if the Chinese acquire pieces from abroad, they are only looking for well-consolidated names.
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on orga n i z at ion a n d f r i en dsh i p
Josep Soler Casanellas
Very difficult, very challenging and difficult. Even more difficult than learning Chinese. I would never have thought, back in March 2010, while we were having a drink at the bar on the 25th floor of the luxurious hotel in Chengdu where we were staying, and before having dinner at a “hole” in the street, just around the corner, full of huge open, burned pots, at least sixteen, and a dozen plates full of food, sitting on a bench on the street just covered by the rooftop planks, rain overhead, cold, wet, and dark, with rolls of toilet paper for napkins, white plastic boards, tables and small wooden stools, everything open-air, and badly lit by a fluorescent bulb just behind… that it would be so difficult to set up a high profile exhibition of Chinese contemporary art in Spain and Europe. (The food was excellent, by the way!) Lu Peng had just asked me to look for a Museum in Europe where we could hold the most important exhibition of contemporary Chinese art ever organized in that continent. A major contemporary art exhibition of artists unknown in the West, eight of them among the hundred contemporary artists with the biggest auction sales in recent years; from an unknown country with only a couple of celebrity names; virtually no presence except at three or four annual exhibitions outside China since the mid 1990s; yet, since 2010, the largest art market in the world and still with only Ai Weiwei in the list of ArtReview Power 100. All this could only prove to be interesting for a public institution. Add to that the fact that, despite the funding cuts suffered by the the big European museums, the exhibition already had funding, it should have been easy to find an institution or museum where to mount this show.
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I knocked on many doors in Catalonia, in Spain, and some also in Europe, and it was a shock for someone like me, with long experience in the private-sector
friendship beginning in 2007. It does not seem much, but in terms of Chinese social and economic development, it counts for much more.
marketing, unused to the ways in which public cultural institutions work, to ac-
We built an exhibition with the aim to extend knowledge of Chinese art be-
cept the absurd responses I got. I realized that either you already are in this world
yond the four walls of the Museum to the public itself, avoiding any temptation
with your friends or it is impossible to get in. Armed with Lu Peng’s 5 kg presen-
for inward looking, and proving that, by opening eyes and doors, it is possible to
tation book, I did not lose faith. A year went by before crossing paths with Vicenç
make things happen. Our high-level proposal rests on the hope that the exchange
Altaió and Arts Santa Mònica, who showed excellent foresight in agreeing to host
between China and the West will nurture the flourishing of ideas, and allow the
this exhibition and putting the entire centre at the disposal of the event.
people of China to enjoy the freedom we enjoy. We wish to express our gratitude
Also, thanks to Arts Santa Mònica the concept “Pure Views” evolved: from an exhibition focusing on paintings, we have been forced to search for other
to the host of the exhibition, and with special thanks to Lu Peng’s team. We remain in the West, but they must go back. Let’s not forget that!
techniques’ expressions to explore the concept “Pure Views” and, consequently, to expand the selection to young artists, with the added difficulty of China’s
January 2013
size and the vastness of choice. The exhibition invites us to a deep reflection and a relaxed look on our environment, what we are, what we do, what we do there... From my point of view, though, the most important is what is not there. Yes, art is supposed to push the boundaries, but this is not easy in China, as it is not easy to build exhibitions that make us think and that provoke us. It is even more difficult if we consider that contemporary art in China is a drop in the ocean in that huge country of 1,300 million people; ignored by the official media, for which only traditional art is rated; best known by tourists rather than Chinese themselves. Only 11 years have gone by since Beijing’s 798 District opened, with only four galleries to visit when we first saw it in 2005; a single Party that just a few months ago renewed its 18th Congress with the slogan “A great leap towards development”, but do not know where they are going; with a growth rate already slowing, down to 7.8% in 2012 from 12% in the 1st quarter of 2010; a society in which people still cannot speak or express themselves freely; the country of “the Great Firewall” where information coming from the West is limited and many websites, like mine, are not accessible; and where it is difficult to create without suffering censorship. Where they (like us!) do not have the right to decide. Beyond all this, the exhibition focuses on a theme that Lu Peng and I have been discussing for years, one which crops up only in Chinese art: the split that existed between two art techniques, traditional ink vs contemporary acrylic or oil. It was following his effort to bring contemporary artists closer to traditional techniques via the the Sanya Collection that I started looking for Lu Peng, a
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Cao Jingping
Comment on Fan Kuan (Northern Song Dynasty), Travellers among Mountains and Streams The first time I saw Travellers among Mountains and Streams was in 1993, while I studied at the Department of Oil Painting, Sichuan Academy of Fine Arts. It was in the classroom of History of Chinese Art where grey-haired Mr Li Laiyuan expounded the characteristics of Northern Song painting in his resonant and honest voice. The slides shown were much better than contemporary printed reproductions, and I was astounded by the profound beauty, majesty and grandeur. But details in the projected pictures could not be seen, merely the whole impression. It seems that I preferred the dramatic, choppy strokes in Li Tang’s Wind in Pines among a Myriad Ravines. Afterwards, I went to Beijing in 1997 to get a visa for exchange study at Kassel Academy of Arts in Germany. My anxiety while waiting was alleviated by idling in the city. One day, after visiting the well-known historical sites, places of interest and museums of the capital, I encountered Yan Huang Art Museum, where Chinese ancient paintings duplicated by Erxuan Society were being displayed. The reproductions were of such high quality that they could virtually be taken as the originals. I maintain a fresh memory of the visual and even spiritual impact when facing the masterpieces of Chinese arts hung throughout the exhibition hall. I had planned to stay there just for one or two hours, but I became so absorbed that I stayed until closing and could hardly tear myself away. Travellers among Mountains and Streams was one of the pieces. This time, I was able to discern the
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heavy volume of the mountains, accumulated by Fan Kuan’s calm and steady brushwork, as if looking at the genuine original. An artistic conception of quietness and solemnity could be felt in the drawing. Compared to the works by Li Tang, Ma Yuan and other painters, I spent most of my time standing before Travellers among Mountains and Streams. A few days later, upon arriving in Europe, I was immediately attracted by the Western original works, ancient, modern and contemporary. My studies were primarily in Western art, after all, and it had long been my dream to see the Western originals, among which Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel ceiling in the Vatican was my favorite. The impact of Chinese traditional arts from Yan Huang Art Museum gradually sank to the bottom of my heart until my painting style changed in 2006. I recall that 1997 was a key point in my life, when I saw the precise reproductions of Chinese ancient paintings by Erxuan Society as well as a number of original Western art works which significantly exerted influence on my path of art. Now, I frequently unroll my reproduction of Travellers among Mountains and Streams by Erxuan Society. As my understanding of Chinese ancient arts deepens, my comprehension of Travellers among Mountains and Streams is different each time. Let me express my feelings about it with Tao Qian’s verses: “In this I sensed a genuine meaning; I wanted to expound on it, but forgot the words.”
Cao Jingping, born in 1972 in Chongqing, graduated as a specialist in oil painting from Sichuan Fine Arts Institute, receiving his Masters in 1999. He now lives in Beijing and Chongqing. Cao Jingping holds that what the “body” of a camera “sees” cannot substitute the reality of our visual sense, nor can it replace reality with works from our mental impressions. He tries to deal with form, with spirit, creating contemporary works through an experimental exploration of reality and exploratory diffusion, and using features similar to traditional ink and wash paintings together with more modern techniques. He aims to furnish viewers with a closer experience of reality.
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wat e r n o
1
Acrylic on canvas, 180x250 cm, 2012
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wat e r n o
3
Acrylic on canvas, 150.5x222.5 cm, 2012
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wat e r n o
2
Acrylic on canvas, 150.5x222.5 cm, 2012
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wat e r n o
5
Acrylic on canvas, 180x250 cm, 2012
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Fang Lijun
Comment on Anonymous (Song Dynasty), The Red Cliff I feel sorrow and grief just like recalling the first lover.
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Fang Lijun was born in Han Dan, Hebei province, in 1963. He graduated in Fine Arts, majoring in Ceramics, from the Hebei Light Industry School in 1983, and then from the Printmaking Department of the Central Academy of Fine Arts in 1989. He is now living and working in Beijing. Fang Lijun is one of the leading figures of Chinese cynical realism. His images, with their critique of society, have attracted wide attention from the public, making him one of the most representative figures of Chinese contemporary art.
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s p r i n g 2009-2012
Oil on canvas, 120x270 cm, 2009-2012
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untitled
Oil on canvas, 140x180 cm x3, 2012
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He Sen
Comment on Xu Wei (Ming Dynasty), Miniature Portrait The miniature portraits by Xu Wei of the Ming, like many Chinese landscapes or flower-and-bird paintings, are about human beings. In many paintings, depiction of nature only hints at the existence of human beings. But in this piece, the human figure constitutes the key element of the picture. A lone wise man or hermit against a scenic background: human vulnerability, mournfulness, and anomie are placed in a setting of natural grandeur. In this work, the brush technique is free-flowing yet understated. A few unhindered strokes manage to reveal a human being’s hopes, purpose, resignation, and ultimate concern. This work has powerful spiritual appeal and artistic infectiousness.
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He Sen was born in Kaiyuan, Yunnan province, in 1968, moving to Chongqing with his parents in the same year. He graduated from the Sichuan Fine Arts Institute (normal school) in 1989, and now lives in Beijing. He Sen’s works offer a reaction against standards and a pursuit of comprehensive expression. He is both fascinated with drawing, and at the same time dubious about the meaning of drawing. Exploiting differences in terms of time or space, or even left and right, he sets out to present his investigation of Western cultural standards and Chinese contemporary art with different productions. Visual and ideal creations are a means of enabling the artist, who lives in this particular time and reflects on the various references of that time, as well as the artist’s inner investigator, who seeks artistic development and researches the background of his own civilization, to continue their experimenting, overreaching themselves ever further.
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b a r e w i l l o w s a n d d i s ta n t m o u n ta i n s
peach blossom stream
Oil on canvas, 150x150 cm, 2012
Oil on canvas, 150x150 cm, 2012
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s c e n e ry o u t s i d e t h e b o o k
beyond the mist
Oil on canvas, 220x220 cm, 2012
Oil on canvas, 220x220 cm, 2012
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Hong Lei
Comment on Dong Yuan (Five Dynasties), Stream Bank Scene Dong Yuan is an elusive figure about whom there are conflicting opinions. It is hard to be sure that all the paintings purportedly by Dong Yuan are really by the same person. The three Xiaoxiang scrolls all share a characteristic “Jiangnan” [South of the Yangtze] feel; all have gradual slopes and lush groves; and all have ink applied with pima [overlapping layers] texturing, yet in each case the stroke used differs. In Xiaoxiang, the strokes are round; in Summer Mountain they are ragged; and in Waiting for a Ferry under Xiajing Pass the strokes are curled. Moreover, the brush technique does not compare with his Stream Bank Scene. On several trips to New York, I have gone to the Metropolitan Museum, but I have never gotten to see Stream Bank. Putting aside whether or not Stream Bank was painted by Dong Yuan, I once happened to see a highresolution print of this picture at a friend’s house, and I felt like I had taken a punch that almost bowled me over. You can see serried peaks and cliffs, with mist spread along the low stream. There is a somber grayness that tells us rain is coming from the mountains. In the thatched pavilion, a hermit is gazing out at the water, with his wife and attendant beside him. At the margin of the stream, pine trees are near the restless waves. Be-
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hind the pavilion there is a chasm with a cataract jetting down. Distant peaks are partly in and partly out of view, with ink laid on thickly. This painting has a definite narrative thread, and it is wholly steeped in a Wei-Jin period atmosphere. It thoroughly manifests the literati spirit. A great deal of research proves that Stream Bank was undoubtedly painted in that transitional period between the Tang and Song, known as the “Five Dynasties”. A body of interpretative texts has accumulated around Dong Yuan. He is the conceptual source for the creative construct of Dong Qichang’s work. He is significant for the paintings that were grouped under his name, for instance the three Xiaoxiang scrolls. Stream Bank, especially, is an irreplaceable zenith of landscape painting, and it was treated in later eras as a model. If we believe that there were two schools of landscape painting, the northern and the southern, then Stream Bank is a combination of them both. Later, landscape painting in the Song did not surpass this level of attainment. Dong Qichang lived in the late Ming and the “Dong Yuan conception” was held up as sacred in the Qing. As to whether the attribution of paintings to Dong Yuan is true or false, I feel this is fundamentally unimportant.
Hong Lei was born in Changzhou, Jiangsu province, in 1960, graduating from Nanjing University of the Arts in 1987, and studying printmaking in the Central Academy of Fine Arts in 1993. He is now living in Changzhou. Summing up his own work, Hong Lei says that he employs metaphors from literal arts in the past, the use of objects that already exist, expression through digital technology, the application of fashion images, the simulation of historical stories and fresh interpretations of historic issues. Hong Lei has shown how his unique ideas and thoughts in using historical images express not only his understanding of Western art but also his nostalgia of the culture and art of the past, and his attempt to provide an alternative interpretation of history.
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hiding in the lion woods
Textile pigment on silk, 175Ă—130 cm, 2010
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Jin Jiangbo
Comment on Mi Fu (Song Dynasty), Xiaoxiang Wonders When I was in college, I majored in traditional Chinese painting and I was also immersed in ancient painting techniques, taking the charm of painting style as the essence of traditional Chinese painting. When I was imitating Mi Fu’s Xiaoxiang Wonders, however, I found that his few lines depicting the misty rain in Xiaoxiang seemed to be not so satisfying. Afterwards, I was doing art for many years but had never managed to complete a piece with pen and ink, and it seemed that I had already forgotten the world of the misty mountains and ink clouds created by those painting techniques in the Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. I am already very used to employing computers, cameras, camcorders and comprehensive materials to build my mental world and express what I want to say. The year before last I was in the University of Auckland in New Zealand as a visiting scholar and I wanted to take the opportunity to experience the elegant and graceful sceneries in New Zealand. As a result, when I was standing in front of the scenes in the movie — The
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Lord of the Rings, what I behold was not about the movie itself but a dynamic version of Xiaoxiang Wonders: Dense clouds were rolling in and the distant mountains and hillsides could be seen indistinctly. With the flowing and changing of the floating clouds, the mountain shapes gradually became visible, unfolding wavily, ridges and peaks far away eventually appearing behind innumerous layers of white clouds. It suddenly dawned on me that the time when I was studying traditional Chinese paintings of landscapes seemed far away, but the “reality” reflected and the “insight” encompassed in Mi Fu’s Xiaoxiang’s Wonders had already been deeply rooted in my mind. There is an ancient saying “principles are subject to nature”, which does not only embody our attitude to study art but also makes us understand the spirit of landscape paintings, which is to respect nature, stay aloof from it, experience the principles and enjoy it, and express our ideas through images.
Jin Jiangbo was born in Zhejiang province in 1972, graduating from the Department of Chinese Painting, of the Fine Art College, Shanghai University, and receiving his Master’s degree in Digital Art Research in 2002. He received his Doctoral Degree from Tsinghua University Art College in 2012. He is now living and working in Shanghai. Jin Jiangbo combines features of Chinese ancient art with the interaction and innovation of multimedia art in his study and his works. His multimedia works integrate the character of traditional aesthetics with modern technology, enabling viewers to consider the relationship between tradition and the contemporary as part of a pleasing experience. He has also embarked on a major photography project associated with natural scenery.
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a n o t h e r s tat e o f n at u r e
New media interactive image work, 2012
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Li Chao
Comment on Huang Gongwang (Song Dynasty), Sunshine after Snow The general appearance of Sunshine After Snow is of paint by light-ink, (except the red sun) depicting a scene in the chill of winter. What this picture shows is the mountain view after the snow has stopped and the sun came out. The artist used a soft and gentle brushwork for expressing the massive, steady rocks. The cinnabar sun just sets off the snowy mountain and its strong sense of chill. This kind of marked contrast is perfectly applied here.
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Li Chao was born in Nanjing, Jiangsu province in 1983, graduating from the Department of Mural Painting of the Central Academy of Fine Arts in 2007. He received his Bachelor’s degree in the Lu Xun Academy of Fine Arts in 2003. He now lives in Beijing. With an emphasis on narrative and a lighthearted style, Li Chao emphasises the spiritual and strongly playful characteristics of his work.
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pa c i f i c o c e a n
untitled
Oil on canvas, 160x200 cm, 2012
Oil on canvas, 160x200 cm, 2012
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lemon
s pa c e c r a f t
Oil on canvas, 160x200 cm, 2012
Oil on canvas, 160x200 cm, 2012
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Li Qing Comment on Ma Yuan (Song Dynasty), Ornate Lanterns at the Emperor’s Banquet In order to critique Song and Yuan paintings, I could have stayed in the most suitable of places — my current home in Hangzhou — where the little streams and mountains served as Muses for many Song and Yuan paintings. But, at this moment, I am in Madrid: in order to put on an exhibition called Adrift. In other words, I am adrift right now myself. An alien in this country, I drink water from the snowy mountains of Spain and think of faraway streams and mountains. This is intriguing, a bit like poeticizing about drifting floss among the whirring machines of a down jacket factory. (This happens to be an installation I set up at my Madrid exhibition.) Suddenly I discover that this sort of thing is suited to my taste: distance triggers a sense of beauty. It is good to be in Madrid, because Velázquez is here, and I am devoted to him. What compels my admiration most of all is not his splendidly dressed princes and dukes, but the clowns, dwarves, and the lonely Aesop rendered by his brush. He was the only court painter who solemnly portrayed such lowly figures. Perhaps the role of a court painter is something like that of a clown. Both of them are marginal figures, so he could use his brush to portray his own solemn aloneness. I took along a copy of John Berger’s Keeping a Rendezvous. In the essay titled “Madrid”, he wrote about the teacher who awakened his interest in painting: “Taylor pulled a sketchbook from his pocket and began drawing a palm tree in the lobby. At that moment, as he began to draw, I took note of the weight of his loneliness. Loneliness becomes a weighty, moving footnote to painting.” In 1974, the once politically radical Berger left England for France. He settled in the mountain village of Quincy in Haute-Savoie Province, and occupied himself with lonely pursuits. In later life Berger divested himself of his sharpedge intellectualism. He would no longer agree with the determinism of social conditions which he read into artworks in Ways of Seeing. Rather, he would speak more of the inner laws of art—like the spontaneous way that palm fronds radiate outward as they grow. However, let us get back to Song painting. Like Velázquez, Ma Yuan of the Southern Song was also a court painter, and he brings out a different image of loneliness in his paintings. Ornate Lanterns at the Emperor’s Banquet, perhaps due to his duties as a painter in the court’s Painting Academy, was produced to record the emperor’s high-
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toned, refined sensibility. Yet Ma Yuan’s mind was clearly on other things: he only lets viewers glimpse the palace dwellers’ activities from a distance. Officials in deferential poses attend the emperor at his revels, and palace women strike appealing poses. Yet even the tiles on the roof are rendered with more solidity and serious attention. Outside the palace, branches on trees in a grove slant in striking poses. They are painted sooty black, and their hard, slender forms are like bent iron. They have a certain brio, yet they observe discrete forms; their firmness and yielding qualities are balanced; they are visually compelling yet pared down; the branches are slanted outward. This is why he was called “Branch-Extending Ma Yuan”. Ornate Lanterns at the Emperor’s Banquet is one of the few Chinese landscape paintings in which lanterns are shown. It is hard after all to depict lamplight with black ink on silk. Ma Yuan does no more than use an incremental ink wash around the lanterns, to give an idea of lamplight in the mist. Then he goes back to his painstaking treatment— the dusky streaks of mountains and an expanse of cold forest. The splendors of lamplight do not enter into his pictorial ideal. Even though they are the emperor’s lanterns, they must be set apart in open, quiet space. Great painters like Velázquez and Ma Yuan do not treat painting merely as an accomplishment which can be bargained for wealth and recognition. They know what painting signifies. The bodies of kings and nobles will end up returning to the dust, yet even a few feet of thin silk will traffic with eternity. During the act of painting, all painters are like the solitary soul-snatcher in Edgar Allen Poe’s story The Oval Portrait. Ornate lamps and splendid banquets have practically become a normal setting for modern life. Bright lights and video screens are everywhere, and they are much more eye-catching than the thin silk of the Song and Yuan. But Berger’s image of the lonely artist drawing a palm tree as if no one else were about is set off against a luxurious banquet at Madrid’s Hotel Ritz. The artist’s head was lowered, so it did not matter if the ornate lamps were there or not, and by the time he turned to leave, the splendid banquet was winding down. Another kind of life, parallel to the everyday, makes its advent when you wish for it. And painting is just a medium for this. Banquets have appointed hours, streams and mountains have no end.
Li Qing was born in Huzhou, Zhejiang province, in 1981, graduating from the Department of Oil Painting of the China Academy of Art, in 2007. He is now living and working in Hangzhou. Li Qing, accepting the ideology of art of the modern age in China’s institutes, is influenced by the global historical trend of contemporary art. Starting from intelligence, he relentlessly expresses ideology by focusing on the logical veneration of art history in his works, verifying the possibility of the continuous expansion of painting in terms of both visual and formal shape.
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room
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museum
Mixed media on canvas, 39.5x92 cm (with frame 60x113 cm), 2012
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d i s s e c t e d s c e n e ry
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b o at i n t h e n i g h t
Photo propene colour, oil painting on canvas, 25x36 cm, 127x170 cm, 2012
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d i s s e c t e d s c e n e ry
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sheep herding
Photo propene colour, oil painting on canvas, 27x36 cm, 130x170 cm, 2012
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Li Rui
Comment on Ju Ran (Five Dynasties), Asking the Way in Autumn Mountains Chinese landscape painting is the essence of traditional painting, rich in connotations of Chinese culture, effectively incorporating writing into drawing. It is, however, never merely a simulation of nature but sublimates human sense and sensibility of natural mountains and rivers into a conception; this combined with emotions and imagination, and is further sublimated to a spiritual realm. It is able to express a painter’s inner world, which gives it rich intellectual content. Although Chinese painting does not use chiaroscuro, objects are limned in responsive lines agreeing with feelings of mind. It can lead us to a plane of cultural freedom and spiritual transcendence, and thus has become an important expressive mode, belonging to the xieyi [“free rendering”] genre. It is a genre which deepens from expression of form to inner philosophic principles. When you appreciate Ju Ran’s work Asking the Way in Autumn Mountains, you can see its distinguished conception, its quiet, elegant air. The whole picture depicts a scene of serried peaks and groves of trees, clusters of boulders, a thatched shelter half-hidden in a bower, where an elder sits cross-legged enjoying his leisure. This painting renders a profound conception with moist ink and brush, balancing thin and thick, withered and thriving. Coming back to my own composition, I have been able to seek meaning and place through image-forms, by which I render what is inside. I have taken interest in tentative conceptions, looking for the proper feeling within a general atmosphere but at the same time exploring doubt and negation. This is carried out repeatedly, the Chinese stylistic elements included subconsciously. For example, I represent a pastoral style with horses in the landscape but without anything to spoil the mood. There is merely a slight melancholy which is directed toward my unknowing days in the past, because they will eventually fade from my Utopian memory. Sometimes, such a feeling cannot be easily articulated.
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While gathering creative materials from my life, I often bear an idea in mind as I go along, that I will perceive the beauty in life. The beauty in life often has a strong attractive power. I feel that I have a fondness for life. I have trained myself to deal with feelings and have worked out ways to cultivate myself. The ability to perceive these things is an important factor in the conception of painting. I like to take note of my immediate environment; I like to discover beauty in unremarkable, everyday things. I let my rational sense and my recollections permeate my creative works. I often like to recover things which have been discarded, or things that were once popular, because many things that were popular will fade into the past. And things that were popular yesterday may become tomorrow’s fashion. I like to merge “yesterday” and “today”. For example, “yesterday” I grew up in a rural village; “today” or “tomorrow” I live in a city. It doesn’t matter how the space changes! There are universal characteristics, namely memory and record-keeping, which always have their symbols. I keep using new angles to choose written words and cultural information fit for carrying onward. I incorporate these into my pictures, and they become traces. In my pictures, I have been strengthening the influence of life, and making my colours purer, more uninhibited! Because this is the realm of dreams and recollections. I want to highlight that realm of Chinese painting where the brush follows wherever the intention moves. I’m experimenting with rhythm in freely rendered landscapes, and in my understanding of forms. I try to impart a virtualized ambience to the air and light effects. I want to have organic connections among all segments: I want them all to obey the demand of spirit resonance and rhythm. I enter a free creative realm, so feelings show themselves naturally, endearing and vigorous, full of life’s energy.
Li Rui was born in Honghe, Yunnan province, in 1983. He graduated from the School of Art and Design, Yunnan University, in 2008, and is now living and working in Kunming, the capital of Yunnan province. Inheriting the tradition of maintaining intimate connections between Yunnan’s contemporary art and landscape, Li Rui tries to lead viewers to a silent world of his own, casting aside all the social characteristics of the people and nearing a state of id in the picturesque boundary. The artist attempts to establish a mental territory of his own by interpreting nature. As Li Rui comments: “We may not like to describe that connotation and state in words, as writing can never be more penetrating than what you have in mind.”
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quiet rocks
ethereal
Oil on canvas, 150x150 cm, 2012
Oil on canvas, 150x150 cm, 2012
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green
r e i n c a r n at i o n
Oil on canvas, 150x150 cm, 2012
Oil on canvas, 120x120 cm, 2012
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Mao Tongqiang
Comment on Li Cheng (Northern Song Dynasty), A Desolate Temple among Clear Mountains This painting is complete, with strong intentions, and with an overall arrangement of white spaces supplementing each other, and different layers corresponding with each other. The painting lines are high, rhythmic, creating a sense of difference and texture among the pavilions, terraces and open halls, mountains and trees. The turning of the brush and other added details seem to be natural and integrated, making subtle differences in a changing unity. The famous crab-claw branches are distinctive, strong and forceful. The overall atmosphere and breath of the painting is rustling, etherealized and full of vitality.
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Mao Tongqiang was born in the city of Yinchuan, in 1960, graduating from the Department of Fine Arts in Ningxia University in 1980, and now working in Yinchuan. With his recent focus on the combination of traditional Chinese fine arts and modernity, his works in this exhibition borrow elements from Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains, a famous picture by Gongwang Huang of China’s Yuan Dynasty, as well as maps of Huang’s mountainous landscapes, complete with contour lines. By doing so, Mao hopes to introduce new perspectives into traditional Chinese landscape paintings, and to help interpret landscape with modern eyes.
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s u r v e y i n g a n d m a p p i n g t h e p i c t u r e o f l i v i n g i n f u c h u n m o u n ta i n
Mixed material, 110x600 cm, 2011
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Mao Xuhui
Comment on Shi Tao (Qing Dynasty), Unvoiced Sound of the Mountain and Water I woke up from a sound sleep on the sofa. I had just taken some Radix Bupleuri for a headache… Before sleeping, I read Balsam Pear Monk’s [Shi Tao, 1642-1707] paintings [The Complete Works of Chinese Paintings, Vol. 26] and felt suddenly that I could hardly paint. Balsam Pear Monk did not listen to rock music or jazz, did not watch movies and did not go online and he neither rode an elevator nor took a taxi… Hehe, but his paintings are amazing! I find in them a tragic sense of the hate over a state, and the wild vigour of experiencing mountains and rivers. The dynamism of Searching All Grotesque Peaks to Make Drafts is shocking [like the music by Death Metal]. He did not have his brother Zhu Da’s coldness and desolation and he was always full of vigour. Through his masterpiece — Searching All Grotesque Peaks to Make Drafts, you can even hear his heartbeat, like the drumbeats by Blakey [Art Blakey Jazz Musician]! In a time when cultures are highly integrated worldwide, I can still experience the shaking power of Balsam Pear Monk’s paintings.
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Balsam Monk said: “Painters shall follow the heart.” Or: “A method of painting is self-reliance.” He used to write: “I am myself and there must be a reason. The beards and eyebrows of ancient people cannot be found on my face; The heart of ancient people cannot be placed inside my body, so I can only speak from my own voice and reveal my own appearance.” Reading the stunning words above, I seem to have heard Nietzsche’s call which is the declaration of Pro-life Individualism. Balsam Pear Monk is the originator of Prolife Individualism and Expressionism and I regret I did not meet him sooner. It is really amazing to hear such a voice from the end of the 17th century or the beginning of the 18th century in China. Balsam Pear Monk’s words are like the Tao-te-ching of painting!
Mao Xuhui was born in Chongqing in 1956, moving to Kunming, Yunnan province, with his parents when he was young. He now teaches at the second studio of the Fine Art Department, in the School of Art and Design, Yunnan University. He is now living and working in Kunming. Mao Xuhui is one of southwest China’s veteran contemporary artists. His works are famous for the motif of huge scissors, sometimes abstract sometimes realistic, indicating metaphysical and intangible existence. His paintings today continue his philosophy of implications.
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b l a c k - h e a d e d g u l l s f l e w o n t h e p l at e a u
Acrylic on canvas, 195x195 cm, 2012
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forever night cloud
Acrylic on canvas, 130x250 cm, 2012
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Na Wei
Comment on Wen Tong (Song Dynasty), Bamboo Picture The taste of the ancient peoples seems to be a little bit incompatible with today’s urban life around us; however, looking at ink works, free or refined, people will slowly relax and sense the perspective of viewing the world in them, the stories as well as the values of those eras behind them, and that they are not only a kind of influence in a historical sense, but also leave a reflection of that history. Let's look at the diverse situation at present: What are we doing? How should we do it and why?
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Na Wei was born in Liaoning in 1982 and received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degree from the Oil Painting Department of the Lu Xun Academy of Fine Arts in 2006 and 2009 respectively. He is now living in Beijing. Since 2005, his trademark strips of “blue and white” have become an important symbol of Na Wei’s works, not only as an expression of concern for vulnerable groups, but also as a social reflection of human relationships. Developing his creation further , “blue and white clothing” has evolved into an internal component of his works, spreading to include other elements across his output. This has enabled him to gradually generate a system of independent discourse.
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untitled
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being squeezed
Oil on canvas, 150x200 cm, 2012
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comfort the scorpion
Oil on canvas, 200x150 cm, 2011
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f e r ry i n g a s t o n e
Oil on canvas, 150x120 cm x3, 2012
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Qiu Anxiong
Comment on Huang Gongwang (Yuan Dynasty), Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains (partial view) Among the four famous painters in the Yuan Dynasty, I most love Huang Gongwang and his Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains, and it’s not because I offer some deep reflection on this painting, but I just enjoy the tranquil, old, strong, moist painting style when looking at this long volume of landscape. It makes me feel very comfortable. I have been to Tonglu, wanting to have a look at the scenery on both sides of the Fuchun river and get a sense of dwelling in the mountains. I went along the river to the south from the city of Hangzhou and I found that the hills in the south of the Yangtze River are not like those in Sichuan province which are wild and unbridled, or those in the north which are dry, cold and boundless. I could only see shallow hills and low ridges. Moreover, there is not so much change in summer greenness, either but just a heavy scent. When I arrived in Tonglu, I could sense in the twilight mist the scenery of “long, far mountains, green dawn mountains and chaotic cloud mountains.” And the ink colour in Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains seemed to have nothing to do with the scene in front of me. Gaohu Lake was blocked by the dam on the river and only the withered stream with rock patches could be found downstream. Although there
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was the Yan Ziling fishing platform, which could be used to think of the ancients or ancient events, this seemed somewhat doubtful, for it was highly likely that the ancient fishing platform had already disappeared under the water surface. Nowadays, the fishing platform and fishing islands all are related to the safety of the ancestral temple of the ruling house and they are by no means a place for seclusion. Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains is, after all, a hometown to which we can never return and although people at present want to find a way there from the painting, it is impossible to reach the destination we desire just by taking measures without attention to the changes in circumstances. The Yuan Dynasty was a troubled time and its paintings all tried to withdraw from society. Modern time is also full of trouble with no way to flee and we can only face the reality and try to find a way out. I am looking forward to a time when we can slaughter the donkey, for it has done its job at the mill, when peace reigns over the world, when all corners of the country enjoy pure transparency, when we can enjoy idle mountains and fresh water and when we can focus our pen and ink on secularity.
Qiu Anxiong was born in Sichuan province in 1972, graduating from the Sichuan Fine Arts Institute in 1994 and later gaining a Master’s degree from the University of Kassel, Germany, as a Fine-Arts major. He lives in Shanghai and teaches at the College of Design at the East China Normal University. With a unique style and perspective, his video and installation works outline the development of both Chinese and global civilization, illustrating the relationship between that development and its art. Qiu is also the sponsor and principal designer of the Museum of the Unknown, an emerging art organization in contemporary China that focuses on exploring the unknown boundaries of art, as well as inquiring into how art and science can cooperate.
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the republic of china
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garden
Acrylic on canvas, 150x200 cm, 2012
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the republic of china
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jewel cap buttion
Acrylic on canvas, 150x200 cm, 2012
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the republic of china
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nanking snow
Acrylic on canvas, 150x200 cm, 2012
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the repulic of china
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landscape
Animation, B&W, 14'27'', 2007
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Shao Wenhuan
Comment on Wen Tong (Song Dynasty), Two Zen Masters Regulating Mental Activities It is amazing that the interaction among these chubby “people”, these firm and tenacious “mountain” outlines, the ferocious “tiger” and docile “cat” can be realized through this real, and at the same time unreal, loose ink. And I can smell metaphysics here. In the lurking image, we can find activeness in tranquillity and the state of being about to move — but not moving, which makes me believe such unbelievable credibility, and experience the images beyond images of pine tree shade scattering all over the ground.
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Shao Wenhuan was born in Hetian, Xinjiang province, in 1971. He later moved back to his hometown in Zhejiang province to teach at the China Academy of Art. He is now living and working in Hangzhou. Shao Wenhuan’s works combine photography and painting skills. He develops and processes his photographs in a very personal style, reprocessing them by drawing. He not only pays attention to the content and object of his photography, but also on the process itself. Rather than being treated as photographs, he prefers his works to be viewed as paintings completed by photography.
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wa r m i n g s e r i e s
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garden
Mixed materials (photograph, photosensitive silver salt painting on linen), 180x200 cm, 2012
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wa r m i n g s e r i e s
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landscape
Mixed materials (photograph, photosensitive silver salt painting on linen, acrylic), 180x200 cm, 2012
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enzymic green
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compromised landscape no
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Mixed materials (photograph, photosensitive silver salt painting on linen, acrylic, oil), 180x200 cm, 2012
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enzymic green
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compromised landscape no
1
Mixed materials (photograph, photosensitive silver salt painting on linen, acrylic, oil), 200Ă—200 cm, 2012
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Shen Na Comment on Xu Yang (Qing Dynasty), Prosperity of Gusu “Jiangnan is very fine, with landscapes I knew well in prior days.” Let’s open the long scroll of Prosperity of Gusu by Xu Yang, and go into the prosperous Suzhou of 200 years ago through the old ink colours, and we will be likely to hear the clipped sound of sculls moving in the old canals, and the melodious music of silk and bamboo instruments (the traditional stringed and woodwind instruments), and the noise of downtown streets. Prosperity of Gusu was originally titled Flourishing Life in a Thriving Age. It was a huge picture by Xu Yang, a court painter of the Qing period, depicting the characteristic scenes of his native Suzhou. By the early Qing Dynasty, Suzhou had become the most economically and culturally developed city in the country. In the Qianlong reign, the commodity economy was developing rapidly. From the right to left of this picture, there is Lingyan Hill first, and going east one goes from Mudu Town, past Heng Hill, Stone Lake, Shangfang Hill, and Shizi Hill, from villages to the city, then through the most bustling Pan Gate, Xu Gate, Chang Gate, through Qilishan Pond, and then this Suzhou landscape ends at Huqiu Hill. In the Spring and Autumn period, in the state of Yue, when Wu Zixu was founding Suzhou, he surveyed the land, tasted the water, peered at the images in heaven, and gauged the topography. He chose a site 30 li northeast of Gusu on which to build Helü City. The city covered 47 square li, and had eight gates symbolizing the eight winds from heaven, and eight sluice gates symbolizing the eight trigrams of the earth. A small adjacent city was also built which covered 10 square li. Helü City subsequently developed into the city of Suzhou we know today. At that time Wu Zixu opened up the north-west gate as the first gate, giving it the name Changhe, which meant that the gate would reach the gate of heaven directly. In those days Helü, the king of Wu King, lead his main forces out from this gate, and named it Breaching Chu Gate to express his decision to defeat the state of Chu. Chang Gate has been the incarnation and epitome of Suzhou, hence it enjoys great fame. In the Tang dynasty the Wu Chorography noted: “Confucius climbed Mt Tai, gazed toward Chang Gate and sighed, ‘There are white horses like a strip of silk over the Wu Gate City Wall.’” The white horses like silk, as he put it, referred to the clouds dancing in the wind like a strip of silk over Chang Gate. In Confucius’ eyes, Chang Gate had a quality suggestive of poetry or painting. The description of Chang Gate in Dream of Red Mansions is well known. And for descriptions of Chang Gate‘s pros-
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perity, Tang Yin wrote these lines in his Impressions of Chang Gate: “The land of happiness in this world is the state of Wu; within it there is Chang Gate, and its martial prowess is known. Three thousand beauties go up and down the multi-storied buildings; a million pieces of gold float back and forth on the river. The markets do not end until the dawn, and dialects from different places mingle. If you have a painter draw it, he will say he cannot capture it.” We can see how prosperous Chang Gate was from this poem. This summer, fleeing the hot World Expo in Shanghai, on the way to Suzhou, I found myself at Chang Gate unexpectedly. The gate tower has become a teahouse, and I drank tea while gossiping with my colleagues. “So it is here that Tang Bohu idled about all day to run after girls.” “It is said that it is here that Zheng He launched his ocean-going flotilla.” “The waterway is so narrow, how could it contain dozens of big ships? Maybe just a ceremony to start the voyage was held here.” “White horses like a strip of silk? If Confucius was in Shandong, did he have a telescope to see so far?” “You are joking. In that era, Confucius had gone everywhere north to south.” While we laughed, we glanced over books about Chang Gate, and its prosperity in past times appeared in my head, in an indescribable blend of sorrow and excitement. This August an exhibition is planned in the UK, in which every artist will choose an ancient painting to reinterpret. Originally I had wanted to choose a picture from the Song Dynasty. But I don't want to do the same as Qianlong, whose handwriting and poems are both bad, but who liked to put his seal on everything and so defaced good pictures and works of calligraphy. But Xu Yang rendered this expansive landscape portraying the southern destination visited by two emperors — Kangxi and Qianlong. After this picture was finished, it was hidden in Qianlong’s study and was admired again and again. I could not forget Chang Gate, so I chose Prosperity of Gusu. The Chang Gate has been admired ever since it was built, and was famed for its prosperity over the one thousand years from the Tang dynasty to the Qing, having been described in many poems. Is it not a history text in itself? If there is no Chang Gate tower, where would Chang Gate be? If nothing but a pile of ruins were left, it is unbearable to think that this would be the only evidence people had of its existence. This gate reaches straight to heaven. So what is heaven like, after all?
Shen Na was born in Guangyuan, Sichuan province, in 1979, graduating from the Oil Painting Department at Sichuan Fine Arts Institute in 2004 with a Master’s degree, and where she taught for a period. She is now living and working both in Chongqing and Beijing. Her work has centred on the naturally insecure nature of girls in society. From 2008, though, her pictures are mainly landscapes, full of fragmentary, strange rocks, deadwoods and pavilions, and peopled with fewer and fewer figures. These works not only demonstrate the other side of the artist to us, but also redescribe the traditional landscape of the literati. The transformation of subjects embarks a new journey in Shen Na’s mind.
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1912
snow
Oil on canvas, diameter 80 cm, 2012
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three ladies
(mrs
long)
Oil on canvas, 200x150 cm x3, 2012
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Shi Jinsong
Comment on Mi Youren (Song Dynasty). The Mi’s Landscape Painting If landscape is a kind of spirit, Mi’s cloud mountains may be the landscape painting closest to landscape we can find. Although we can still find some remaining traces of ravines and pitching tools, after crossing to the south, mountain and water become further away and the atmosphere among the mountains and water becomes a legend. Or it is just an ever-changing form, a phrase full of interest and charm; ink play.
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Shi Jinsong was born in Dangyang, Hubei province, in 1969, graduating from the Department of Sculpture at the Hubei Institute of Fine Arts. He now lives and works in both Wuhan and Beijing. In his installation works, rubble and other waste materials are transformed into rockworks, aged trees, tea sets: all important aesthetic elements in the Chinese tradition. Such vivid displays form the essence of his works and his artistic view, which he sees as an attempt to transform the world with one’s mind. According to him, a mind filled with garbage sees a world of garbage, while a mind with beauty sees a world of beauty.
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tea bar
Construction waste, trees, stainless steel screws, etc., varied size, 2012
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They
Comment on Ni Zan (Yuan Dynasty), Rongxi Study This is one of our favorite paintings of Yuan Dynasty painter Ni Zan, in his typical style. Appreciating Chinese traditional painting when younger, I liked complicated and realistic works like Along the River During the Qingming Festival. Ni Zan seemed too simple and empty to understand. Now I’m more mature and capable of understanding and appreciating the spacious realm in Ni Zan. The work, Rongxi Study, is a typical, three-part composition of Ni Zan, depicting spring scenery in the Southern Yangzi River. The brushstrokes are scarce and graceful; the ink colour, pale. With very few gestures, he manages to present vividly the image of everything waking up in the spring, woods, grasses and stones, the rustle in the air and the warming river bringing liveliness. A single thatched pavilion and a warm river — it shows such profound imagery through such scarcity in brushstrokes. It affects heart and mood heart deeply.
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They is a collective composed of two artists, Lai Shengyu and Yang Xiaogang. Lai Shengyu (Lai Sheng) was born in Shaoyang, Hunan province in 1978, graduating from the Printmaking Department at the Central Academy of Fine Arts with a Bachelor’s degree in July 2001, and obtaining his Master’s degree in July 2004. Yang Xiaoguang was born in Ningxiang, Hunan province, in 1979, graduating from the Printmaking Department at the Central Academy of Fine Arts with a Bachelor’s degree in July 2001, and obtaining his Master’s degree in July 2005. Both live in Beijing. They critique the egotism and individualism flaunted by their own generation, adopting montage-like compositions, pop-art forms and surreal ideas. They aim to offer a philosophic juxtapositioning of reality and the surreal, the real world and fantasy, calm and anxiety, objects and symbols.
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solitary island - the island of white snow, acrylic on canvas, 100x250 cm, 2011 solitary island no 3, acrylic on canvas, 100x250 cm, 2011 the island of ice, acrylic on canvas, 140x270 cm, 2012
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colour of the night
Acrylic on canvas, 100x250 cm, 2012
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Tu Hongtao
Comment on Liang Kai (Song Dynasty), Immortal in Splashed Ink I am very fond of Immortal in Splashed Ink, a masterpiece by Liang Kai of the Southern Song Dynasty. At first this love was simply because of its free style. After some examination, I was impressed by its solidity in form. The unchained and scribbling strokes did not hamper the careful arrangement of all elements. The ink on the face links the body. All the strong colours are used to render the walking gesture of the figure in the painting, which is at the same time dynamic and solid, like what we often see in mountain and water paintings. The subject matter is the immortality imagined or felt by the artist. Qian Long of the Qing Dynasty, in his inscription on the painting, explained that an immortal person came into the artist’s world, who is unknown by others. That indicates the possibility that the figure in the painting was the artist himself. I went through the writings of literati in the Southern Song Dynasty, and the topic was almost the same. In other words, communication with the immortal was a source of making art, for which reason the practice of exploring and learning from the objective world give way to learning by introspection since Southern Song Dynasty, when China achieved a pretty high level of technological and material development. It was during the same period that the Western world began its voyages of exploration, ushering in the ensuing changes in world power. It is hard to judge which way is better. But traditional culture is not reduced to a form, to some images awaiting iconological analysis, or to a symbolic existence.
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Tu Hongtao was born in the City of Chengdu in China in 1976, graduating in 1999 from the Department of Oil Painting at the Chinese Academy of Art. He now lives and works in Chengdu. Three years ago, abandoning his widely recognized People-in-Mass series, Tu returned to inner reflection: on life and on painting itself, turning to everyday plants and scenery as the themes of his works. A popular artist of the younger generation, Tu paints with rigorous openness, continuously updating his creative skills and his knowledge of painting by taking on challenging new topics in his field.
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treasures burried in autumn grass
Oil on canvas, 150x330 cm, 2012
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a tiny flower represents a chiliocosm
a tiny flower represents a chiliocosm
Oil on canvas, 130x100 cm, 2012
Oil on canvas, 130x100 cm, 2012
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Wang Guangyi
Comment on Fan Kuan (Northern Song Dynasty), Travellers among Mountains and Streams Fan Kuan’s work gives me a sense of transcendence, looking at rivers and mountains.
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Wang Guangyi was born in Harbin, Hei Longjiang province in 1957, graduating from the Oil Painting Department of the China Academy of Art, in 1984. He is now working and living in Beijing. Wang Guangyi is one of the representatives of Political Pop in Chinese contemporary art. Based on the propaganda figures in Chinese “red culture�, which he combines with appropriating from pop art, his work reflects on Chinese society and political reality. He is also one of the most representative figures of Chinese contemporary art.
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g r e at i l l u s i o n s
Synthetic materials, 300x1200 cm, 2011
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Xie Fan
Comment on Fan Kuan (Northern Song Dynasty), Travellers among Mountains and Streams Originally my understanding of Chinese traditional painting was almost on the same shallow level of the Chinese people's perception that Western oil painting equals Impressionism. I only knew several modern masters of the Chinese traditional painting, whom almost everyone knows because they are frequently talked about. As a Chinese who had been interested in painting since childhood, I should feel ashamed; yet I didn't; because no artworks in our education can move me and attract me deeply. But later when I saw for the first time the high simulation of Travellers among Mountains and Streams produced by Nigensha, a kind of inexplicable power grasped me. I know what attracted me was not the emotion expressed through brush and ink, what I admired was not even the profound skill of Fan Kuan; I didn't have a traditional art training, so I had nothing to say then. Yet I still wanted to express what it was that attracted me so much, so I started to do some research on this piece. Firstly, I did the research purely from a visual perspective: I spent a lot of time viewing it from top to bottom completely. After several times viewing and pondering, I realized that it is not a two-dimensional image, but rather a linear narration similar to film! The relationship between black and white in the picture is adjusting the comparison along with the changes of spatial distance and climate condition. From the top to bottom,
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and from the far to near, all through to a dense forest at the left corner in the bottom, which is the most splendid part highlighted by the grand mountains; clear logic astonished me. I can't even find any single piece of mistake in the forest I'm studying slowly. Because one important thing in ancient Chinese painting is to clarify the spatial relationship through leaving spaces rather than adding layers upon layers to the picture like Western oil painting did; therefore, this must be done after the careful calculation of the painter! I slowly discovered the reasons why I'm now so seduced by ancient Chinese traditional painting, and ashamed at why it took so long: it is the mindset of this painting, one that can embrace the whole universe. Now I completely understood that it is logic, rather than the emotional brush and ink of Chinese traditional paintings, that are the really great thing; it is the logic behind brush and ink! Later I found such a plot in the film Inception: the hero looks for an outstanding dream maker who can not only create a visual space, but also invent a virtual world that is logical; so logically, all kinds of pipelines and facilities hidden behind the virtual city needed to be made as well. After watching this film, I felt an eagerness to look at Travellers among Mountains and Streams again; standing before this painting, I found a proper identity for ancient painters of China like Fan Kuan: dream maker!
Xie Fan was born in Jiangyou, Sichuan province, in 1983 and graduated from Sichuan Fine Arts Institute in 2005. He now lives and works in Beijing. Xie Fan began a shift from oil painting on canvas to silk canvas in 2009. This seemingly simple decision may look like a return to Chinese traditional paintings, but is based on his consistent direction of form at the visual level. Compared with his previous oil-on-canvas works, the translucent silk-base canvas brings out a clearer incorporeity of the visual. Xie Fan creates a materially diffused space, jointly created by a light, silk frame as well as pigment, which physically exceeds the conventional figure-ground relationship in painting forms.
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m o u n ta i n l o w e r r i g h t
Oil on silk,100x100 cm, 2011
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d i s ta n t h i l l
Oil on silk, 110x190 cm, 2012
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Yang Mian
Comment on Guo Xi (Northern Song Dynasty), Early Spring Scene Today the main method to reproduce the world by means of a flat surface is CMYK four-colour printing. Along with the many uses of four-colour printing, Mr Sasson of the Kodak Company invented the first digital camera and download system in 1975. After the first selffocusing camera Konica C35 AF was produced in 1977, automatic digital cameras developed fast, and it became easy and cheap for people to get high-accuracy images of anything on earth. Moreover, the improvement of peripheral computer systems meant less need for production of original images. The originality of traditional images becomes difficult and meaningless. Today the term “original images” has practically come to mean a creative touch in editing images. In traditional painting methods, because interpretive vision was valued over realistic drawing, vision became the soul of Chinese painting. “The conception is before the brush, and where the painting ends the conception is still present.” “There is feeling in the landscape, and there is landscape in the feeling.” One example is Guo Xi’s Early Spring Scene: this picture consists of panoramic upward, outward, and downward distance. It is a representative, tripartite composition, a magnificent treatment of high mountains and great chasms in the early spring. There are big stones and huge pines in foreground, leading
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into a middle shot of boulders strewn on the slope, and through the cloud and mist, two mountain peaks break out in a distant view, standing in the middle, looking down at the abyss, with grand palace halls and buildings. This is the representative procedure of a Chinese landscape painting: there is no realistic drawing in the whole work, because it is supposed to be the landscape of early spring in Guo Xi’s heart. Unlike other ancient painted works, I find that this work gives a strong sense of being lined up as a single scene, making it somewhat different from those Chinese paintings with floating perspective. In the history of art, perhaps Lang Jingshan’s photo technique provides a link to Chinese contemporary art. Comparing the method of CMYK with Early Spring Scene by Guo Xi, it is not difficult to realize that modes of recognizing and handling images have undergone a revolutionary change—from image in the heart to image in reality, from giving priority to human subjectivity to giving priority to the mode of automatic images. In my new work system CMYK, I use CMYK colours in a manual way to leave images in our memory; I use the handcrafted images to interrogate the stability of automatically produced images. I use images produced with low pixels to remind viewers of the art industry hoax pulled off by high-pixel images.
Yang Mian was born in Chengdu, Sichuan province, in 1970, graduating from the Oil Painting Department of the Sichuan Fine Arts Institute, in 1997. Since then, he has taught in the School of Art of Southwest Jiaotong University, in Chengdu. He now lives and works both in Chengdu and Beijing. Yang Mian breaks the restriction of immediate images, and mixes psychological factors into the layout, so that the immediate images are transformed. His new images derive from the untrustworthiness of the images themselves, and relate to basic judgments underpinning human civilization. “My latest works, all sharing the same tone, are an investigation into the security of images.”
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cmyk
1597,
el greco, a view of toledo
Acrylic on canvas, 200x175 cm, 2012
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cmyk
1621-1624,
d o n g q i c h a n g l a n d s c a p e a f t e r wa n g m e n g
Acrylic on canvas, 200x125 cm, 2012
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cmyk
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1918,
joaquĂn sorolla y bastida, cosiendo la vela
Acrylic on canvas, 250x320 cm, 2012
cmyk
1952,
huang binhong landscape
Acrylic on canvas, 250x68 cm x4, 2012
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Yang Qian
Comment on Gu Kaizhi (Eastern Jin Dynasty), Ode to Goddess Luo I am very fond of Gu Kaizhi, who ranks number one in the ten greatest artists of China’s history. In the art of the past two thousand years, I think no other artist can overshadow him. The artists in following generations were more or less influenced by him. His Ode to Goddess Luo is a vigorous piece of narration and magnificent composition, perfectly combining figures and mountain and water, foreshadowing artistic taste in China in the years to come. Today, after two thousand years, Chinese inkand-wash painting is still proceeding in the direction of ink on paper. This fact raises a question for me as I take this old tradition as the reference of my art: what is the future direction of Chinese art?
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Yang Qian was born in Chengdu, Sichuan province, in 1959, and now lives and works in Beijing. He graduated from the Department of Oil Painting at Sichuan Fine Arts Institute in 1982 and later from the University of Florida, USA, in 1988. He paints by taking elements from various images, of fashion or celebrity. Recently Yang has turned to elements from traditional Chinese landscaping paintings, adding stippled effects, hence elaborating his re-thinking of traditional Chinese elements.
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n e w v e r s i o n o f a pav i l i o n i n a u t u m n f o r e s t
(duplex
Magazine paper scraps and linen, 80x600 cm, 2012
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pa i n t i n g )
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Yang Xun Comment on Guo Xi (Northern Song Dynasty), Early Spring Scene The renowned Northern Song-era painter, Guo Xi, was also a scholar, a man of lofty character, full of cultural imagination. His landscapes demonstrate a way of gaining insights into art that transcended his times. What we perceive in such landscapes is an embodiment of the painter’s self-definition, reflection, and quests. Yet such embodiment is not straightforward but empathetic. The process of cultural imagination and self construction is completed when the images embody an ideal picture of the painter’s life goal. One can use the most convenient tool available in his age to achieve self-identity and build his spiritual home. The composition and images of traditional Chinese landscapes and their actualization are associated with the painters’ aptitudes. Guo Xi’s paintings are my favorite, the ones in which I have been able to achieve utmost understanding. Perhaps its charms correspond to some of my sentiments, or his moods under some circumstances resonate with mine, even though I look at them through the long tunnel of more than a thousand years. Guo Xi’s work, cherished and conserved through all these years, is a representation of snow and cold forest scenery, as well as a typical painting in which “the beauty of the spring mountains is like smiles.” The light and shade of the four seasons are clearly represented in his landscapes. The way Guo Xi creates changeable space, and contrasting mountains and rivers, has had direct influence on my composition and representations of artistic beauty. Probably as a result of age, however, in what I look at, I perceive stern detachment, or a sense of exclusiveness as a result of absolute completion of the picture. Such perception enables me to see the self-isolation of history or culture. Our openness to assuming that we are able to feel and touch past cultures, appears to be so insolent. Subsequently, I begin to doubt the emergence of the idea the picture intends to convey. Such a doubt turns into an ever-stronger refusal of access to the picture I paint. I give emphasis to rays, light spots, and light sources, and make them what they are in an effort to reveal the original meaning from a hermeneutic perspective. The light spots, rays, and light sources in my painting are multi-symbolic, and such multi-symbolism represents the random nature of imagination and the relativity of cultural phenomena. The relativity of cultural phenomena, the stability of cultural signs, the possibility of appropriation, the potential of doubt, and the special quality that reveals history enable the antennae of my thought to extend into the dis-
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tance. I am therefore enchanted by artistic imagination, graphic truth, and the certainty of value. Exposure is a way to access things. To present details of an object, appropriate exposure is a necessary technique of photography. Yet when a judgment is slightly influenced, overexposure or underexposure will happen. The use of overexposure shows the intent to capture the object accurately, but the photographer fails because of his intentional use of overexposure. Such a failure may be a result of insufficient familiarity with the object, the distance between the photographer and the object, and some other factor connected with the surroundings. In my picture, I try to deliberately convey a sense of overexposure. This is not only to explore the cultural-symbolic meaning this technique produces, but also to emphasize a special quality I would like to create in my painting. When I get too close to it, or when a sense of doubt grows in me, the way I perceive it is affected, and lapses and mistakes inevitably become a cultural confusion. Misuse and intentional use of exposure in my painting, therefore, implies the means of cultural interpretation that any cultural strategy of our age must face. I approach it, but I cannot grasp it. This is the distance between truth and reduction. Yet such doubt and intentional reduction constitute an effective reference for the revelation of culture. This may be the more socialized value of my intent. It enables us to see the other, real side of the things we know too well; or to see a strange state of mind, providing us with an opportunity to reflect on our surroundings and collective unconsciousness, and thus promoting the possibility that individuals can hold on to the certainty of more real knowledge. I think this is valuable in two ways: in defining and creating values of our culture as a whole, and for us as individuals. Maybe it is just the hustle and bustle that brings me a step closer towards self interrogation, making my essential attitude toward art more detached and rational. I believe in the greater value of a more composed and minute way of thinking and the power to think in a world with its make-up removed. As I approach the idea I intend to express in such a world using cultural-symbolic imagination, the feeling of being pierced by thought will shine in my paintings in a more enduring way. The light spots of thought are sharp antennae that illuminate and dwarf everything in their path. The firmness of thought, like the light spots, has enabled me to feel and touch myself. Such touching and feeling are self-perceptions that go deep into my thought, nearing the border of my soul.
Yang Xun was born in Chongqing in 1981, graduating from the attached middle school of Sichuan Fine Arts Institute in 2001, and is a graduate of the Oil Painting Department, Sichuan Fine Arts Institute, in 2005. He is now living in Chongqing and Beijing. The details in Yang Xun’s works have become an independent existence with “insignificance”. Light is a typical feature of Yang Xun’s works. Highly concentrated, Rembrandt-style light creates a vapory sense of history and a vague air of secrecy. These “lights”, instead of originating from aesthetic meanings, aim to generate a sense of distance in the mind of the viewers, affecting our visual memory and judgment, delivering the message that young artists’ attitudes to history are based on vagueness, indifference and alienation.
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pav i l i o n
-
ta l l b u i l d i n g s i n n i g h t m a p
Oil on canvas, 200x160 cm, 2011-2012
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luminescent stone
Oil on canvas, 200x130 cm, 2010-2013
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apperception no
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Oil on canvas, 200x130 cm, 2010
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apperception no
2
Oil on canvas, 200x130 cm, 2010
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Ye Yongqing
Comment on Liang Kai (Song Dynasty), Immortal in Splashed Ink At Dali, where people are closer to nature, we can better understand ourselves. For a similar reason, figures in Chinese mountain and water paintings are always small. In the paintings of the Song Dynasty, men dressing like scholars wander in the forest in the fall, looking up at the boughs and branches. It is a good thing to feel small sometimes. Living in the sprawling city filled with skyscrapers, we tend to develop a parochial arrogance. One cure to this is to recline on the top of the mountain, look at the people in the faraway city of Beijing. They bustle about like ants, intrigue against one another for territory, position or a chance to perform. Those things appear really silly when viewed from this angle. The Chinese believe that a trip into the mountains could release the tension, helping us get rid of some stupid ambitions and unnecessary worries.
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Ye Yongqing was born in Kunming, Yunnan province in 1958, graduating from the Oil Painting Department of Sichuan Fine Arts. He has been a professor at the Sichuan Fine Arts Institute, and is now living and working both in Beijing and Chongqing. Ye Yongqing is one of the main representatives and promoters of Sichuan contemporary art. His works express a variety of styles ranging from expressive to graffiti, to today’s Draw a Bird series. The eclectic range of his works illustrates his insightful understanding of art.
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landscape in ocher
d r aw i n g a b i r d
Acrylic on canvas, 150x200 cm, 2012
Acrylic on canvas, 100x80 cm, 2012
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Yue Minjun
Comment on Fan Kuan (Northern Song Dynasty), Travellers among Mountains and Streams Fan Kuan’s work has heroic, emotive force: it always makes me think of Mondrian’s paintings.
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Yue Minjun was born in Heilongjiang province, in 1962, and graduated from Hebei Normal University in 1989. He now lives and works in Beijing. Yue Minjun is a leading figure of Cynical Realism in Chinese contemporary art. In recent years, Yue Minjun has not only held personal exhibitions at important art institutions both at home and abroad, but has also participated in important international exhibitions like the Guinness Biennale special exhibition, Vancouver Biennale and Gwangju Biennale. His work Wildly Laughing Face has become one of the representative works of Chinese contemporary art.
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n i r va n a
Oil on canvas, 292x220 cm, 2011
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a ta o i s t i s a r o b b e r
Oil on canvas, 200x400 cm, 2011
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Zhan Wang
Comment on Su Shi (Song Dynasty), Dead Wood and Absurd Stone Because of its conceptual need, Dead Wood and Absurd Stone can also become a theme in literati paintings, for they are not only symbolic but also indicative. We can imagine that there will be probably only dead wood and absurd stone left at the end of the world. They stand lofty and firm, which can only be a way of imagining life itself. Here we find we are thinking about destiny, and also a reflection as to the nature of one’s own spirit on earth or the meaning of existence itself. We can only find such ultimate expression in literati paintings. Although the picture is simple, the scope of the idea can be expanded boundlessly.
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Zhan Wang was born in Beijing in 1962, and graduated from the Sculpture Department of the Central Academy of Fine Art, in 1988. He is now living and working in Beijing. Zhan Wang’s representative works are the Taihu Rock series. He completed the shaping of Taihu rock with industry-quality material, combining Chinese aesthetic tradition and characteristics of industrial culture, expressing his consideration of ancient civilization’s place in the modern world. His other works have frequently been created around the relationship between traditional Chinese culture and modern industry or technology.
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r o c k e ry s t o n e n o
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Stainless steel, 520x150x110 cm, 2007
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r o c k e ry s t o n e n o
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Stainless steel, 70x50x26 cm, 2006
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Zhang Jian
Comment on Dong Yuan (Five Dynasties), Waiting for a Ferry Beneath Xiajing Pass In Dong Yuan’s paintings there is a detached, expansive quality. This is why I like them. In his depiction of daily life he reduces character and story to a minimum. Technique-wise, he makes moss spots with a gentle brush and with texturing strokes captures the landscape of the south. His ink is diluted and his atmosphere has a faint haze. I express water with expressionist techniques; I try to handle it with restraint, so that it approaches abstraction.
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Zhang Jian was born in Beijing in 1968, graduating from the Mural Painting Department of the Central Academy of Fine Arts. Zhang Jian’s works strike a note of “tranquility” which has embedded itself in Chinese contemporary art. This tranquility, so different from other artists’ pursuit of struggle, exaggeration, or striking sensory stimulation, he sees acting like a massive rock in a great tide: profound and full of strength. His art, largely uninterested in current pop culture, is full of simplicity and purity and close to the meaning of drawing itself.
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hard stone
Oil on canvas, 250x150 cm, 2010
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landscape no
1
Oil on canvas, 200x150 cm, 2012
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landscape no
2
Oil on canvas, 200x150 cm, 2012
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landscanpe no
3
Oil on canvas, 200x150 cm, 2012
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Zhang Peili
This page is required to be left blank by the artist himself.
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Zhang Peili was born in Hangzhou in 1957, graduating from the Oil Painting Department of the China Academy of Art, in 1984, and is currently teaching at the China Academy of Art. He lives and works in Hangzhou. Zhang Peili is one of the earliest practitioners and representatives of Chinese contemporary art. His works not only have a close connection to the reality of the times and Chinese society, but also overstep reality to produce a metaphysics with a sense of abstraction. He is currently embarked on various painting and installation projects.
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scenic outside the window
Single channel video projection, sound/colour/6'43�, 2007
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Zhang Xiaogang
Comment on Wang Meng (Yuan Dynasty), Streams and Hills in a Storm Without thinking, I leafed through Wang Meng’s landscapes, and through his paintings of pines and plum trees, discovering that it was all quite familiar, yet quite distant from me. There had been a qualitative change in the inner feelings that were roused by these mountain boulders, plums and cypresses. Still, I felt that they have penetrated into my blood. The rapid shifts in the times in which we are living and my own perspective compel me, whether I want to or not — I want to face these things again…
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Zhang Xiaogang was born in Kunming, Yunnan province, in 1958 and graduated from the Oil Painting Department of the Sichuan Fine Arts Institute in 1982. He is now living and working in Beijing. Zhang Xiaogang is one of the representatives of Sichuan contemporary painting and Chinese contemporary art. His works, including the Big Family series, are unique and a typical reflection of Chinese contemporary art, conveying a collective memory and feeling for the period. His other major works include Family Portrait, Tian An Men and Bloodline.
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r e d p l u m a n d s o fa
Oil on canvas, 73x91 cm, 2013
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Zhang Xiaotao
Comment on Li Tang (Song Dynasty), The Soughing of Pines in Innumerable Valleys Heart light in dark night, beacon course for hundreds of generations.
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Zhang Xiaotao was born in Chongqing in 1970, graduating from the Oil Painting Department, Sichuan Fine Arts Institute. He is currently teaching in the New Media Department of the Sichuan Fine Arts Institute, and living and working both in Beijing and Chongqing. Previously, Zhang Xiaotao’s works focused mainly on painting. Around 2010, he gave priority to animation works but continued engaging in painting along similar lines. His animation works illustrate grand, absurd scenes by applying computer effects, depicting the conflicts and the sophistication of people’s hearts in such a real world. His latest painting works look back to traditional Chinese aesthetics and sense of history, shifting back to a sense of calm after conflict.
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sanqing shan
untitled
Oil on canvas, 250x150 cm, 2012
Oil on canvas, 200x150 cm, 2012
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untitled
Oil on canvas, 200x150 cm, 2012
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liangliang’s adventures
Animation, 5'23'', 2012
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Zhang Ya
Comment on Guo Xi (Northern Song Dynasty), A Ping Yuan View of the Trees In Guo Xi’s paintings, the tree is a kind of unique scenery, especially in A Ping Yuan View of the Trees. In the picture, the tree becomes the main object of painting. The dead trees in the foreground are especially vivid in posture. They are harmoniously enhancing each other’s charm, as if intimately conversing. Vines hanging on the tree trunks are depicted with light and clear lines, looking like freely flying ribbons. In terms of the painting language, the calligraphic nature of traditional ink and brush are vividly, incisively and perfectly represented on the branches. The taste in composition as well as the vigorous brushstrokes show the subjectivity in depicting nature. The whole painting is peaceful and graceful; trees, mountain rocks, boats, cottages and walking figures construct a simple and pristine pastoral scene. The pure artistic conception revealed in the picture is full of the interest of literati painting; it is transcendent, with the kind of sensibility prized in the Northern Song dynasty. There are no grand mountains, vast landscapes or splendid buildings in this picture; rather, it shows a kind of self-experience about nature, livelihood and life; and a kind of extension of the artistic conception of landscape painting as well.
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Zhang Ya was born in Luzhou, Sichuan province, in 1988 and now lives in Chongqing. Zhang Ya’s grew up in a time when Chinese contemporary art was glowing with new, exuberant vitality. Thirty years on, her unique ideas are casting new light and especially colour on Chinese art. Her colour concept contains fracture, continuation, trace and even experiment. Zhang Ya’s works are a dialogue, an artist’s consideration of coexistence, of self-existence, and the world. They are a psychological, intention-related phenomenology, depicting a state of artists with a certain psychological complex combined. In addition, her feminist perspective makes the expression of her works more implicit and graceful.
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f a n ta s y w i t h w o n d e r l a n d n o
2
Acrylic on canvas, marker pen, 175x250 cm, 2013
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gift
Acrylic on canvas, 150x93 cm, 2012
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Zhou Chunya
Comment on Xia Gui (Song Dynasty), Pure Views Remote from Streams and Mountains Not long ago, I bought an album of landscape paintings which David Hockney painted in rural America during his later years. Compared with his previous, urbanthemed paintings, these landscape paintings revealed more of the artist’s calm and peaceful attitude. In a traditional sketching manner, he depicted a road’s changes, and a tree's colours, during four seasons. At this age, he might not have the strength to create grand paintings, while still aspiring to make the impact occasioned by a large-scale work. Therefore he executed a number of smaller works and integrated them into the larger works. In the bright colours of these paintings, we could still feel the youthful power in the artist’s inner world. With the expansion of urbanization, today’s Fuchun Mountain can no longer give us the scenery of boundless mountains and surrounding pines, and the sentimental scene of several thatched cottages hidden in the mountain as before. In Waterside Village by Zhao Mengfu, the father of Chinese new landscape painting, we can see the indistinct distant hills, vegetation and waterside plants in the vast landscape. To this day I am still enchanted by this scene and yearn for it. And when I looked at
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Xia Gui’s Pure Views Remote from Streams and Mountains again, I found that the structure of the landscape painting was so rigorous. People in the 21st century can never retrieve this elegant and tranquil scenery. In their anti-decorative and anti-realist landscape paintings, artists such as Huang Gongwang, Ni Zan, Wu Zhen and Wang Meng made great breakthroughs in Chinese landscape paintings during the late Ming Dynasty. At the same time, on the other side of the world. the European Renaissance commenced. Today is a creative era of constant innovation. Great industrial and scientific revolutions have pushed the ideas, materials and styles of art into new areas of innovation. Countless art students graduate every year from art colleges around the world, and due to the fierce competition today, it seems that many artists have no patience to deal with those pines any more, compared with those few literati painters and court painters of the 14th century. Fortunately, in this ever-changing world, there is still something that remains unchanged — humanity, and natural landscape is an unfailing and eternal theme in the world’s art history.
Zhou Chunya was born in Chongqing in 1955, graduated from Sichuan Fine Arts Institute in 1982 and from the Liberal Arts Department of Kassel University. He is now living in Chengdu and Shanghai. Zhou Chunya is one of the representatives of contemporary paintings in Sichuan province and also one of the representatives of China’s contemporary art scene. Zhou’s works are not only blended with the aesthetics and the techniques of Chinese ancient paintings, but also with the charm of European painting. His works are full of rich cultural attainment, directly appealing to the heart. With his unique style and rich content, Zhou also experiments with new themes and methods.
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sexualised stone
Oil painting on paper, 152.5x102 cm, 2012
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ARTS SANTA MÒNICA BOOK SERIES
The editor considered appropriate to provide a chronological reference of the dynasties relative to the classical artists in order to help the reader’s understanding. Five Dynasties (906-960) Southern Song Dynasty (960-1127) Northern Song Dynasty (1127-1279) Eastern Jin Dynasty (1115-1234) Yuan Dynasty (1279-1368) Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) Qing Dynasty (1644-1912)
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