Liu Liguo 刘力国
The Symbolism of That Era 符号化是那个时代的艺术痕迹
Liu Liguo
刘力国
Liu Liguo’s works is the representation and reflection of a Chinese form of ego, lost within consumer society & whose principal manifestation is a usual combination of elements particular to modern China- Religion, Folklore, Consumerism & the image of Mao Zedong. Whether it’s a vase of a painting, everything is materially opulent, dripping with sensuality and abundance. In his works, popular and folkloric are consciously accentuated, saturated by faith in progress, memories of the revolution and a modern form of quasi-religion; a spirit investment inspired by developments made within society. On a formal level, Liu Liguo has sought out an avant-garde variation on Chinese traditional arts. His vision took shape as early as the mid-nineties in a series of ceramic ‘buttocks’; at first an attempt to express the duality and paradox existing between the vigour of the changes taking place and the cultural vulgarity that resulted from the consumer society that was achieved. Liu Liguo has attempted to modify the form of commercial statuary s o that it might express the way in which modern culture has found form in China; to make of it an apt material for the manifestation of that modernity- both its failings and its innovative power- within which, despite everything, criticism and satire are able to maintain their essential meaning. Even more importantly, critical attention is given so that meaning is allowed to immerge in its integral truth, without neglecting the feelings of identification that we necessarily have out of fear of losing the characteristics of the twentieth century Chinese ‘ego’.
何：这种荒诞感是否也来源于更为内在的原因，即人们在社会急速转型的 背景下，在社会——文化心理上所产生的焦虑，或者说一种不适感？90年 代初的社会转型，以及消费社会的兴起，在价值方面，一个明显的社会症候 是，早期集体主义的、形而上的生活方式，向一个世俗的、消费的、形而下 的生活转变。你的作品实质也有一种对消费社会本身所展开的思考。
符号化是那个时代的艺术痕迹 ——何桂彦与刘力国的对话 何桂彦：20世纪90年代初，伴随着“新生代”、“政治波普”、“玩世现实 主义”的崛起，当代绘画有一个明确的转向，那就是远离宏大叙事，远离启 蒙意识，并积极地介入现实。你早期的作品创作于1993年前后，它们主要是 一种什么风格？
刘：当时的社会转型对我们的冲击很大。过去，我们活在集体化的意识 里，我们被集体主义、宏大叙事的价值观所塑造，所支配，比如，我们从小 的教育就是爱祖国、爱人民、爱伟大的领袖，但没有一个价值导向是教我们 如何真正的独立思考，独立的生活。改革开放后，西方的价值观进来了，我 们认识到个体要自由，个人要独立。但是，我们似乎又从一个极端走向了另 一个极端，有点矫枉过正。在那个转型的时代，很多东西都是错位的，而 且，我们在思想上也没有做好准备，因此容易极端化。 何：你当时的那批作品还是保留了90年代当代绘画的一些共同的特征，例 如平面化、图像化、波普化、艳俗化。《太阳花系列》从一开始在视觉上就 向图像和符号转变，而不是像80年代现代主义风格那样注重形式与语言的探 索。
刘力国：风格上仍保留了80年代的一些现代主义特征，也受到了90年代初 波普化表达的影响。 何：1993到1995年的作品有一个较大的转变，集中体现在《太阳花系 列》中，一个是具有浓郁的艳俗氛围，另一个是出现了“屁股”的形象。这 种转变基于怎样的考虑？ 刘：当时的感觉是，因为中国国门刚打开，西方的东西一进来后，给人的 反差特别大，心里有一种失落感。此时，出现了一边倒的情况，只要是西方 的都是好的，而我们的都是不好的，都该全部扔掉。但在我看来，传统中其 实有很好的东西，为什么我们要遗弃，难道它们一点存在的价值都没有吗？ 于是，在创作中，我希望放弃那种极端的态度。我的作品大多会给人一种诙 谐、调侃、喜气洋洋的感觉，像方力钧那批艺术家的作品中有时还有一些比 较强烈的情绪，我的比较温和，可能跟我的性格有很大关系，我做不出那种 血腥、暴力、激烈、对抗性的作品。我希望在诙谐、调侃的氛围下给予一些 善意的提示。“屁股”这个形象在当时是很不雅的，但这个屁股就像人们对 待传统时的态度一样，以为它是丑的，是羞于被人看到的。不过，一旦将它 和“花束”并置在一起时，就会出现一种荒诞感。“花束”是雅的，而“屁 股”则不雅，在视觉上，它们既熟悉，又陌生，但当两个东西，两种符号并 置到一块，滑稽与荒诞就弥散出来了。
刘：我们都希望作品有个人符号，而且越典型越好。符号化是那个时代的 痕迹。
刘：我们都希望作品有个人符号，而且越典型越好。符号化是那个时代的 痕迹。 何：你是怎么选择，最终确定你的个人符号的，当时基于怎样的考虑？ 刘：当我在选择“屁股”这个形象时，直觉就是这个符号必须要有典型 性。如果这个形象一开始就是人们陌生的，那么，它就需要大家花很长的时 间去了解、去熟悉。一旦这样，这个符号的选择就失败了。在我看来，艺术 家要正确理解自己的能量，它不可能太大。所以，我要找一个最熟悉的符 号，所有人都知道的符号，然后再把它移植到作品中，使其典型化。面对这 个符号，不管你是白皮肤、黄皮肤，只要你看到就能认识。只要达到这种程 度，这个符号才是靠谱的。“政治波普”中，艺术家开始用各种“文革”符 号，再比如，方力钧的那个光头，当时国外的报道就把它看作是“无声的呐 喊”。很显然，明确的符号能强化作品的表达力度。当然，对于艺术家来 说，当你选择好符号后，还要对它进行形式与语言上的转换。在我的作品 中，“屁股”的形象大多做了陌生化的处理。
何：当时艺术家的意识中还普遍保留着80年代那种运动意识，就是大家要 制造一个新的艺术趋势、一种现象，一种风格，引领某种潮流。 刘：是的。所以大家要在一起讲，在一起聊，甚至还要做笔记，你讲的什 么，我又讲了什么，然后大家讨论。当时也翻艺术史，现在想来挺好玩的， 有那么一点乌托邦的感觉，也有点集体化的运动意识。
何：你是什么时候将架上绘画中的图像、符号转化成瓷质雕塑的？ 刘：选择瓷器，主要是因为它是传统文化的一个载体。97年我就在做方 案，但完成是98年的事情。当时在准备一个关于艳俗的展览，时间特别急， 我记得参展的艺术家有李路明、孙平等。这个展览是由廖文、栗宪庭策展 的。李路明当时是湖南美术出版社的社长，他正在策划一本关于艳俗方面的 书，也希望把这个展览的作品放在里边。我那时在潮州，而不是在景德镇， 后来就做了那批瓷器作品，后来也收录在李所编的书中。 何：从90年代中期的《大众样板》、《艳妆生活》，再到1999年天津泰达 美术馆举办的《跨世纪彩虹——艳俗艺术》展，艳俗艺术成为了90年代中后 期一个重要的艺术潮流。 刘：在当时身边的朋友中，栗宪庭是艳俗艺术最重要的推手。还有一个年 轻的批评家杨卫，他在90年代中期也画一些具有艳俗风格的作品，后来就慢 慢转向策展了。实际上，那个时候的展览、批评氛围跟今天很不一样。比如 说今天的策展人、批评家要写东西了，他才会去找艺术家要相关的资料。但 我们那时做作品彼此都商量，我要做什么，我会跟你讲，让你给我提意见， 我也会告诉你，这个作品该怎么去做。当时那批年轻的批评家，如朱其、黄 笃、高岭跟大家都很熟，在一起玩、吃饭，讨论艺术问题。
何：你早期绘画中的艳俗风格一直延续在你的瓷器作品中，而且，从题材 上看，2000年以来的作品在内容上含量更大，这集中体现在《满汉全席》 、《经典系列》中。同时，这批作品充斥着浓郁的民俗气息，仍然追求“戏 拟”与“反讽”的表达。 刘：瓷器这个材料满足了我当时的表达，它们很华丽，光彩照人，比较符 合我作品的表达，就是要喜气洋洋，就是我们过上好日子了，我们成为万元 户了——作品要表达的就是那种自我的满足感。但是，从材料的物理性能 看，尽管很华丽，但瓷器本身易碎。因此，用瓷来表达，讽刺的就是那种极 其浮躁的暴发户心态。比如，买一瓶人头马一口就想把它喝完，虽然消费得 起人头马，但心理上还是农民。你过去不要瞧不起我吗，看，现在我有钱 了，我很厉害吧，人头马都买得起。就是这样一种心态。记得我上大学的时 候，刚刚看到彪马、阿迪达斯的鞋子，太贵了，我们买不起。
为了有一种满足感，我们在鞋上画一个同样的商标，虽然是造假，但可以满 足自己的虚荣心。瓷器表面的华丽与自身的易碎性刚好能隐射出那种虚幻、 自我膨胀的欲望。我曾经在中央美院做过一个讲座，谈材料的独特性，不要 说你随便就可以做一个瓷器、做一个铜雕，做一个树脂，它们只是手段，相 反，一个成熟的艺术家会驾驭语言，让材料自己说话，让材料与你要表现的 主题很好的结合。
何：改革开放以来，咱们的整个文化情境完全是错位的，是一种混杂的现 代性使然。在你的作品中，我们也会看到一种混乱、无序的存在状态。
何：要在语言与观念之间找到一个契合点。后来的作品又有什么样的变 化？
何：从你最近三年的作品风格上看，已经跟早期的波普与艳俗拉开了距 离，但在图像叙事与符号表达方面，仍有一种内在的联系。
刘：2005年的时候，我开始做《榜样系列》。我本身不是学雕塑的，但经 过几年的摸索，突然感觉民间有很多资源可以利用，比如民间的那些塑像。 不过，挑战也很大，因为它们的个性和形式感都非常强，如果改动大了以后 就没有了，如果改动小，你自己的观念就无法表达，你自己的风格就给它吞 了。我当时就提了“粗俗的民间语言和民间雕塑”。中国民间雕塑的特点是 有很强烈的形式感，做得很像，追求神似。不过，如果按照西方雕塑的标准 去比较，它们就全不对，结构不对，透视也不对，比例更成问题。但是它们 很像，做得也很好、很流畅，这是很有意思的。我当时就用这种方式，将“ 毛”的头与佛的躯体结合起来。当时主要考虑的是，中国是一个政教合一的 国家。我以前去过西藏，发现一个独特的现象，老百姓供养的是毛主席，左 右则供着班禅和达赖。为什么会如此呢，是50年代共产党解放西藏后，让 原来的农奴过上了自由的生活。所以他们认为“毛”是最大的佛，然后才是 班禅、达赖。如果从艺术的眼光去看，这些造像非常有意思，民俗味很浓。 但是视角不同，也会产生一种错位感。比如，在“毛”身上彩绘，在民间看 来，这是非常美好的，会寄托很多吉祥的意义，但是你也会觉得在一个伟人 身上涂绘很不合适。不过，在普通人的眼中，这似乎没有太大的区别。所 以，后来我就借用这种民俗化的方法来创作，就是把渺小的东西做得伟大， 把伟大的东西做得平民化。
刘：有一些关系。比如，这个作品描绘的是斑点狗和长颈鹿在故宫里边的 婚礼。画面是超现实的，但作品的叙事则由各种图像来完成，你会看到在这 个作品中，出现了很多汽车，有很早生产的卡迪拉克、中国的国产汽车…… 它们都同时出现在一个画面上。这个国产汽车的广告很奇怪，画中的女孩是 从乡下招来的，她们是活体广告，旁边的模特却非常的时髦，汽车是纸做 的，所以女孩们可以拿着它在大街上走，这是一种很好的宣传方式。从图像 逻辑看，它们比较荒诞，有些无厘头。事实上，乍一看，我们的社会很多现 象其实很荒诞，有点无章可循，但它很有活力，充满各种可能性。
何：透过这个佛像，也可以看到，中国老百姓最日常的生活中也渗透着意 识形态。不过，你不忌讳别人会说使用“毛”的形象仍然是走中国符号的老 路，仍然基于一种后殖民的策略？ 刘：不忌讳。中国当代艺术本来就是舶来品，是向西方学习的产物。我记 得有一个批评家曾说过，我们还没有准备好，现代主义来了，还没有消化现 代主义，后现代主义又来了。我们就是在这样的环境中生长的。使用“毛” 的形象，这是我们的社会语境造成的，至今，“毛时代”的意识仍支配着大 部分中国人。
刘：我们就生活在这样的环境里，这样的文化情境中。原本就如此，有时 甚至比表象更混杂。而我作品中的杂乱、矛盾、无序只是对这种社会症候的 反映。
何：在一个“后发性”的现代化国家，出现混杂而鲜活，错位而荒诞的现 象是很正常的。但从图像叙事的角度看，当把这些片断化的场景同时置入作 品时，就会形成一种新的图像景观。 刘：这种景观化的表现跟我自己的专业相关。我是学舞台设计的，在戏曲 学院，早期还参与一些电影和电视剧的拍摄。我比较喜欢象征主义戏剧，比 如苏联的斯坦尼斯拉夫斯基，德国的布莱希特，在我的作品中，我会下意识 的呈现这些东西。 何：除了刚才谈到的来源于现实的图像外，还有一部分是超现实的、想象 的、虚构的，但它们似乎仍有图像学的来源，跟今天图像化时代的批量生产 有关系。你是怎样选择的，并将它们融入一个虚幻的场景中。 刘：我个人比较厌恶摆拍的那种方式。这些图片大部分来自于网络，我在 搜集资料的时候，没有想把它做成什么，而是先把这些图像储存起来。选择 时也没有什么标准，第一反应是它有意思我就存下来，就这样，我存了很多 的图片。这些图片可能存上两年、三年都不会用到，但偶然间，我会想我要 表现一个什么感觉的主题时，就会想到这些图像，就会自然地把它们放在我 的作品中。由于每一张图像都有自身的特点，所以我会在风格上进行处理， 使其统一化，纳入到一个共同的叙事框架里。
要让一张照片或图像具有你的味道，实际很难，也很有挑战性，但也是我最 开心做的。
后，艳俗艺术是否有新的推进，或者出现了新的变体？你怎么看待你个人创 作脉络的变化？
何：这次的展览叫“贩卖想象”，在我看来，这种“想象”实质是由图像 与场景引发的。但是，从图像的原初生产来说，它们从一开始就会被注入一 种意识形态，或者是西方人的价值观，以及关于未来的想象和乌托邦的东 西。你在使用那些外来图像的时候，考虑过图像背后隐含的意识形态话语没 有？
刘：90年代的文化情境出现了一边倒，西方十分的强势，而西方关注我们则 充满了猎奇。虽然说那时已经全球化了，但从国际的角度出发，我们的艺术 仍然没有脱离地域性，所以无法回避“后殖民”的眼光。但是，今天的情况 不同了，中国已经完全融入全球化的浪潮中，我们跟西方是平等的，都在同 一个世界舞台上。所以，我希望我们能用一种国际化的语言进行表达，而不 是那种地域化的，只有语言呈现出它的开放性、包容性，才能真正体现文化 的开放性。但是，面对快速多变的国际艺术潮流，不单是我一个人会感到困 惑，对于大多数我这个年龄段的艺术家，都是一个巨大的挑战。从“艳俗” 走过来的艺术家，每个人都需要“转型”。有的人可能转得比较好一些，有 的人可能转过来最终又转回去了。其实，这种创作状态可以适用于所有艺术 家，但我更喜欢有创造性的艺术家，比如达明安·赫斯特，像火焰山一样， 激情四射，每年都有新作品，新花样。大部分中国艺术家都做不到这点，这 里边既有创造力的问题，也有受艺术市场支配的原因。“艳俗艺术”已经过 去了，它是那个特定时代的产物。和过去不一样，那时的艺术偏向于潮流， 但今天的艺术充满了太多的可能性。当然，这里确实有风险，一个新东西的 被认可需要一个时间，一个过程，但我喜欢这样，愿意这么去做。我完全可 以按照我原先的线索去画，没有问题，但我不喜欢这样，它会让人难受。 虽然过去我们取得了一些成绩，但艺术家要勇敢的挑战自己，艺术本身是个 体的劳动，是自我价值的显现，所以，需要不断去超越，这也是我坚持不断 创作的最大动因。
刘：我没有从意识形态的角度去考虑，相反，我认为图像本身就是一个复 合体，里面有很多信息，关键是艺术家如何去利用，改造它们。 何：在最近的这批作品中，少了艳俗的味道，多了一些中产阶级的情趣。 刘：早期的时候，“艳俗”里头有一个很大的东西，就是有些“土”。我 的骨子里很错位，就是有点小知识分子，布尔乔亚那种酸溜溜的东西让我受 不了，所以我的作品有一种游离感，既有喜庆的农民似的趣味，又有点小资 般的感觉，不确定性穿插其间。这种感觉可能更符合我的个性，骨子里有一 种小资情结，无意识地就会在作品流露出来。有一段时间，我完全被艳俗的 概念所束缚，很难放开创作。后来，我尽量让作品打开，让所有的东西进 来，尽量去找我内心需要的那种感觉。 何：联系到你早期瓷器作品中的“屁股”的形象，再看你近期的作品，你 仍然比较关注性和情色的东西。 刘：这个感觉一直是有的。不过，最近两年的作品考虑得更多的还是语 言。我希望它们在风格上不要太跳跃，为啥会采用一些象征主义或波普的手 法，是尽可能地削弱绘画自身的特点。我希望打动观众的首先是纯视觉的呈 现，而不是绘画自身的技巧，肌理，因为它们仅仅是手段。在我的作品中， 图像与景观的意义要大于绘画自身的技法与语言上的价值。 何：希望让作品返回到图像本身？ 刘：对，回到图像自身。 何：从艺术家个人创作脉络的发展来说，这批作品能从一个侧面，反映90 年代以来“艳俗”的一个变化轨迹。从对90年代以来的大众文化、消费时代 的语境的回应，到面对全球化而来后殖民浪潮的冲击，我的问题是，“跨世 纪的彩虹”展览以后，“艳俗”是不是就划上了句号？换言之，2000年以
2011年1月15日
thinking that it is ugly, ashamed to be seen. However, with the “bouquet” and juxtaposition, there will be a sense of absurdity. “Bouquet” is elegant, and “ass” indecent, visually, they are both familiar and unfamiliar, but when the two things, both symbol and set to one, ridiculous and absurd to diffuse out.
The Symbolism of That Era
A Conversation With Liu Liguo. Words by He Guiyan
He Guiyan: The early 1990s, along with the “New Generation”, “Political Pop, Cynical Realism,” saw the rise of contemporary painting and a clear shift away from the grand narrative, away from the Enlightenment sense of and active involvement in reality. Your early work was in 1993, and looking back, before and after, do you say you have a primary style? Liu Liguo: I’d say the style still retains the characteristics of 1980s modernism, but also has that influence by the Pope expression of the early 1990s. He: A large shift in the 1993-1995 work and embodied in the “Sunflower Series”, one is full of flashy atmosphere; the other is the image of “the ass”. What lead to such a change? Liu: It was mainly because the Chinese door just open, “Westernization” came in, giving us the contrast is particularly large, and in my heart there is a sense of loss. At this point, on the one side the view was; as long as the West is good, and we are bad, throw it all away. But in my opinion, the traditional fact, there are good things, why should we abandon them, do not they point to the existence of no value? Thus, in the creation, I want to give up the kind of extreme attitude. Most of my work give people a witty banter, festive feeling, like Fang Lijun, sometimes there are some strong emotions, my relatively mild, may have a great relationship with my character I can not do the kind of bloody, violent, intense, confrontational works. I hope to give some good tips in the atmosphere of humour, ridicule. “Ass” image at the time it is very elegant, but this ass just like people treat traditional attitude,
He: Does this absurdity also come from a more intrinsic reason that people, in the context of rapid social transformation in the social, cultural, or psychological, produced anxiety? Social transformation in the early 1990s and the rise of consumer society, in terms of value, a social symptom, early collectivism, metaphysical way of life, to a secular consumer, and the physical life transitions. Your work in real terms is also thinking of launching a consumer society itself. Liu: The social transformation at the time had a big impact on us. The past we live in, the collectivization of consciousness, shaped by our values of collectivism, the grand narrative dominated childhood education, for example; to love the motherland, love people, love a great leader, but not to have independent thinking, or independent lives. Reform and opening up to Western values came in, we recognized that as individuals we had to be free, to be independent people. But we seem to vary from one extreme to the other extreme, and it has the sense of a little overkill. In that era of transition, a lot of things were misplaced, and in terms of ideology we were not prepared. He: Your more recent works retain some common features from the 1990s, such as flat images, the Pope of flashy technology. “Sunflower Series” from the outset in the visual images and symbols change, instead of 1980s modernist style, focus on the exploration of form and language. Liu: We all want to work with personal symbols, and the more typical as possible. The symbols are our links to that era. He: How did you choose the personal symbols you retained from those eras? Liu: When I select the “ass” image, the intuition is that this symbol must be typical. From the beginning I thought that people would be unfamiliar with the concept, that it would take a long time to understand, to become familiar with.
In my opinion, the artist needs to understand and control his or her own energy. So, I looked for one of the most familiar symbols, everyone knows that the symbol, and then applied it to my work. No matter your race or skin tone, you would understand the symbol. To such an extent that this symbol is the fly. “Political Pop”, the artist began to use a variety of “Cultural Revolution” symbol, for example, Fang Lijun’s bald, foreign reports put it as the “silent cry”. Obviously, a clear symbol can strengthen the expression of the intensity of the work. Of course, for the artist, when you choose a good symbol, but also its form and language conversion. In my work, “ass” image most of the strange handling.
Liu: Yes. Therefore, we want to talk together, talk together, and even to take notes of what you speak; I speak what, and we discuss it. Was turned to art history, and now want fun, a bit utopian feeling a little collectivization movement awareness.
He: For your images and symbols, do you prefer paint or porcelain?
Liu: Porcelain completely suits my expression style, it is gorgeous, glamorous, more in line with the expression... Therefore my work is beaming, and allows me to express the kind of self-satisfaction. However, from the physical properties of the material, although it is ornate, but the porcelain itself is fragile. Therefore, the porcelain expresses, ironically, the kind of extremely impetuous upstart mentality. For example, buy a bottle of Remy Martin one wanted to finish it, although the consumer can afford to Remy, but there is the psychological side to it as well. The past, you do not look down on me, watching, and now that I have money, I am very powerful, and I can afford Remy. It is a state of mind. I remember when I was in college, just to see Puma, Adidas shoes, they were always too expensive, and I could not afford them. In order to have a sense of satisfaction, we drew a similar trademarks or logos on our own shoes, although it is false, but to meet their own vanity. The gorgeous porcelain surface with its own fragility could just hidden injection kind of illusory self-expanding desires. I once did a lecture at the Central Academy of Fine Arts to talk about the unique nature of the material, do not think you just can make porcelain the same way one makes bronze or makes a resin, they are only a means, and on the contrary, a mature artist will control language, let the material speak for itself, so that material to show with your theme is a good combination.
Liu: Porcelain, mainly because it is a carrier of the traditional culture. 97 years to do the program, but completion of 98 years of things. In the preparation of a flashy exhibition, a particularly urgent, I remember participating artists Lee Road, Sun equal. This exhibition is by Lio Man Xianting policy development. Lu Ming Lee was the president of the Hunan Fine Arts Publishing House, he is planning a book about the flashy aspects of this exhibition of works on the inside. I was in Chaozhou, rather than in Jingdezhen, later made a batch of porcelain works, was also included in the book edited by Lee. He: “Volkswagen model” from the mid-1990s, “Gaudy Life”, and then to the Art Museum in Tianjin TEDA in 1999, Century Rainbow - Gaudy Art “exhibition, gaudy art became one of the important artistic trends of the late-1990s. Liu: It was her friends the, Xianting Gaudy Art is the most important push hands. There is a young critic Yang Wei, also painted in the mid-1990s with flashy-styled works, then slowly turned to the curatorial. In fact, at that time of the exhibition, the atmosphere was very different to what we’re used to today. For example, today’s curators, critics write something, he would go to the artists to be the relevant information. But back then we had to do work with each other to discuss what I will do, what I will tell you, you give me comments, I will tell you how to do this work... But now there’s the batch of young critics, such as Zhu Qi, Huang Du, kaolinite with whom you are very familiar with. Ho: The artist’s consciousness has also retained awareness of the kind of 1980’s movement; to create a new artistic trend, a phenomenon, or style.
He: The flashy style of your early paintings has continued in the porcelain works, and from the theme point of view, the works since 2000 in the content on the content of greater embodied in the “Feast”, “Classic Series” in. And at the same time, these works filled with a strong folk flavour, and still pursue the expression of “parody” and “irony”.
Ho: It is always a challenge to find a meeting point between the language and concepts in art. How have you been able to do this, with regards to your later works? And what kind of changes have you implemented? Liu: In 2005 when I began to do “example series. I studied sculpture, but after several years of exploration, suddenly feeling the public has a lot of
resources available, such as civil statue. However, the challenge, because of their personality and sense of form is very strong, if you didn’t change, if you couldn’t make small changes to your own concepts, or couldn’t express your own style, you were swallowed. I did mention the “vulgar folk language and folk sculpture”. Chinese folk sculpture is characterized by a very strong sense of form, has done similar aims at spiritual. However, if in accordance with the standards of Western sculpture, to compare, they are all wrong, the structure does not, not right perspective, or the proportion of a problem. But they like doing things very well, very smooth, it is very interesting. I thought in this way, the combination of head of hair and the body of the Buddha. The main consideration and influence is that China is a theocratic state. I’ve been to Tibet and found a unique phenomenon, people dependent Chairman Mao, left and right for the Panchen Lama and the Dalai Lama. Why so, after the 1950s, the Communist Party of the liberation of Tibet, so that the original serfs had on the freedom of life. So they think that the “hair” is the largest Buddha, then is the Panchen Lama, the Dalai Lama. From an artistic point of view, these statues are very interesting, very strong folk flavour. But the perspective is different, also have a misplaced sense. For example, in the “hair” on the painting, folk opinion, that this is very good, and it has pinned a lot of auspicious significance, but you will find a great man who painted a very inappropriate. However, in the eyes of ordinary people, this does not seem much different. So, then I borrowed this folk method to create the small things do great things done to the civilian population. He: Through the Buddha, you can also see the daily life of Chinese people also permeated with ideology. However, you do not taboo others will say, “Mao’s image is still the old road with Chinese symbols, still based on a post-colonial strategy? Liu: Do not taboo. Chinese contemporary art has always been exotic, is a product of learning from the West. I remember one critic has said, we are not yet ready for modernism, and have not yet digested modernism, and postmodernism again. Our growth in this environment. The “Hair” image, which is caused by our social context, so far, the sense of “Mao era” still dominate the majority of Chinese people. Ho: Since the reform and opening up, our entire cultural context is entirely misplaced, is a mixture of modern dictates. In your work, we will also see a chaotic and disorderly state of existence.
Liu: We live in such an environment, such a cultural context. And already the case sometimes even more than the appearance of mixed. My work looks at the messy, contradictory; the disorder is only a reflection of the social symptom of this. He: From the point of view of your work style in the last three years, with early pop and flashy widened the distance, but in the image narrative and symbolic expression, there is still intrinsically linked. Liu: There is some relationship. For example, this work depicts the Dalmatians and giraffe in the Forbidden City, inside the wedding. The picture is surreal, but the narrative of the work done by a variety of images, you’ll see in this work, there has been a lot of cars, the early production of the Cadillac, China’s domestic car ... they are at the same time appear on a single screen. Domestic car ads is very strange girl in the painting is attracted from the countryside, they are the in vivo ad, next to the model is very fashionable, the car is made of paper, so the girls can take it walking in the street. From the image standpoint, they are absurd, some do not make sense. In fact, at first glance, our society a lot of the phenomenons are very absurd, a bit out of nowhere, but they are very dynamic, and full of possibilities. He: In a “modern country mixed and fresh, dislocation and absurd phenomenon is normal. However, the image narrative point of view, when the scene of these pieces when placed in the works, it will form a new image landscape. Liu: The landscape of the performance comes from my studies. I studied stage design at the College of Performing Arts, and I was also involved in the shooting of movies and TV shows. I prefer the drama of the symbolism, such as the Soviet Union, Stanislavsky, Brecht, Germany, in my work, I will subconsciously showing these things. He: In addition to just talking about comes from the realistic images, as well as part of the surreal imagination, fictional, but they seem to still image source of the image of the era of mass production today. How do you select them into a fantasy scene? Liu: I personally dislike the shot put that way. Most of these pictures from the network to collect information at the time, I did not want to make it into what, but the first image storage. Nor what criteria selection, the first
reaction was that it was interesting to me to survive, so I saved a lot of pictures. These pictures may be kept on for two years, three years and will not be used, but by chance, I would think I want to show a sense of the subject, they will think of these images will naturally put them in my work. An image has its own characteristics, so I will be in the style of treatment, so that they can be unified and integrated into a common narrative framework. To make a photo or image to your taste, practically it is difficult, and very challenging, but I am most happy to do. He: The exhibition is called “trafficking imagine, in my opinion, this” imagination “in real terms is triggered by the images and scenes. However, from the original production of the image, from the outset that they will be injected into an ideology, or Western values, as well as on the future of the imagination and the utopian things. When you use those external images, consider the image behind the ideological discourse does not? Liu: I do not have an ideological point of view to consider, on the contrary, I think the image itself is a complex, there is a lot of information, the key is the artist how to use and transform them. He: In these works, the less flashy taste, more than some middle-class taste. Liu: In the early days, “gaudy” inside a big thing, some “soil”. My bones dislocation, a little intellectuals, bourgeois kind of sour things so that I cannot stand, a free sense of my work, both festive farmers like fun, a bit petty like feeling uncertain during which sexual interludes. This feeling may be more in line with my personality in essence, a Petty complex, the unconscious will show itself in the works. For some time, I was completely flashy concept bound; it is difficult to let go of creation. Later, I tried to make the works more open, so that all things come in, try to find the feeling of my heart. Ho: Your early porcelain works in “ass” image, look at your recent works, you are still more concerned about sexual and erotic ideas. Liu: This feeling has always been, yes. However, the recent two years of work to consider more on language. I hope that the style should not be too different, why would some symbolism or pop approach, as far as possible to weaken the characteristics of the painting itself. I hope to impress the audience is first of all pure visual rendering rather than painting techniques, texture, because they are merely means. In my work, image and landscape
significance is greater than the value of the painting techniques and language. He: The development of the creative context of individual artists, these works from one side to reflect the “flashy” a change in track since the 1990s. From popular culture of the 1990s, the context of the consumer era response to the face of globalization from post-colonial impact of the wave, my question is; after the exhibition of the century rainbow “,” gaudy “is not coming to an end? In other words, after 2000, has Gaudy Art evolved, or hast there been an emergence of new variant? How do you view the changes in the context of your personal creation? Liu and cultural context: the 1990s there have been one-sided, the West is very strong, while Western concern that we are filled with adventures. That had been globalized, but the international point of view, our art is still not out of the locality, so I cannot evade the “post-colonial vision. However, the situation today, China has fully integrated into the wave of globalization, we are equal with the West, are the same on the world stage. So, I hope we can use an international language to express, not the kind of geographical, language showing its openness, inclusiveness, in order to truly reflect the culture of openness. However, in the face of rapidly changing international artistic trends, is not only a confused artist for most of my age, is a huge challenge. “Gaudy” came to be an artist, everyone needs to “transition”. Some people may turn better than some people may turn to eventually turn back. In fact, the creation of state can be applied to all artists, but I prefer to have creative artists such as Damien Hirst, like the Flaming Mountains, passion, every year, new works, new tricks. Most artists cannot do this here side of both creativity and dominated by the art market. Gaudy Art “has passed, it is a product of that particular era. Not the same as in the past, when the art is biased in favour of trend, but today’s art is full of many possibilities. Of course, there does have the risk of a new thing to be recognized needs a time, a process, but I like it, willing to do so. I can follow my original clues to paint, no problem, but I do not like it, it will make people uncomfortable. Although in the past we have made some achievements, but the artists to be brave enough to challenge their own art itself is the individual’s labour is the manifestation of self-worth, so we need to continue to go beyond, I adhere to the ever-creative motivation. January 15, 2011
All Hail the Great Teachings of Mao 150 x 75 cm Oil on Canvas
Trail 24 x 9 x 19 cm Ceramics
Playing Pool 150 x 150 cm Oil on Canvas
The Wedding of a Giraffe & Dalmation 210 x 180 cm Oil on Canvas
Violet Suppression
We Have Angry Times Too
200 x 100 cm Oil on Canvas
200 x 250 cm Oil on Canvas
One Fine Day 300 x 150 cm Oil on Canvas
Thousand Flowers (White) 30 x 30 x 55 cm Ceramics
The Super Star at Tiananmen Square 180 x 200 cm Oil on Canvas
Bronze Cranes 150 x 300 cm Oil on Canvas
Peaches 54 x 54 cm Ceramics
Living in Harmony 125 x 200 cm Oil on Canvas
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