十月
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日 ]
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贰 [ 拾陆
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issue 26
Oct. 2015
本期艺术家 The Artist
李衡 / Heng Li
1979 生于新疆乌鲁木齐，中国 现生活、工作于慕尼黑，德国 1979 Born in Urumqi Xinjiang, V. R. China Now live and work in Munich, Germany 教育 / Education 1996-1998 就读于中央美术学院附中 1999-2000 就读于俄罗斯圣彼得堡列宾美术学院 2004-2005 就读于德国纽伦堡艺术学院 Ralph Fleck 教授 2005-2009 就读于德国纽伦堡艺术学院 Ottmar Hörl 教授 2009 德国纽伦堡艺术学院大师班 2010 毕业于德国纽伦堡艺术学院 1996-1998 Affiliated Middle School of Central Acadamy of Fine Arts in Beijing, China 1999-2000 I. E. Repin-Institute for Painting, Sculpture and Architecture in St. Petersburg, Russia 2004-2005 Acadamy of Fine Arts in Nuremberg (Prof. Ralph Fleck), Germany 2005-2009 Acadamy of Fine Arts in Nuremberg (Prof. Ottmar Hörl), Germany 2009 Masterclass Acadamy of Fine Arts in Nuremberg, Germany 2010 Master of Fine Arts, Acadamy of Fine Arts in Nuremberg, Gremany
获奖 / Award 2013 2014
获德国慕尼黑 Truderinger 艺术节公众评选一等奖 获首届德国雷根斯堡艺术博览会公众评选一等奖 获第五届欧洲 Artig 艺术奖 获第 21 届德国艾夏赫艺术奖 获德国欣费尔德摩登美术馆当代艺术展一等奖
2013 The first audience award of Trudering's Day of Art 2013, Munich The first audience award of Art Fair Regensburg 2014 Winner of the Artig art award, Kempten Winner of the 21. Aichacher art award, Aichacher Winner of the first prize of the competition exhibition Museum Modern Art Huenfeld
个展 / Solo Exhibition 2015 “希望”肯普滕艺术家协会，德国 2014 “草之魂韵” 慕尼黑旧议会大厅，慕尼黑，德国 Unity 股份有限公司，慕尼黑，德国 现代艺术馆畔画廊，慕尼黑，德国 “第三日” 奥托布伦艺术家协会，奥托布伦，德国 2012 “缝隙之间” 画廊 Arja Decker im Lebensraum Kunst，Hohenbrunn 慕尼黑，德国 现代艺术馆畔画廊，慕尼黑，德国 2011 “故乡” 画廊 LandskronSchneidzik，纽伦堡，德国 2010 “远离西方” 李衡和张琦伟双人展，Kunstfoyer am Langenweg，奥尔登堡，德国 画廊 Vera Lindbeck，Isernhagen 汉诺威，德国 2009 画廊 LandskronSchneidzik，纽伦堡，德国 放射及原子核医学医疗中心，菲尔特，德国 2008 Kleinsendelbach 艺术协会，Kleinsendelbach，德国 2015 "HOPE" Gallery kunstreich, Kempten 2014 "The Spirit of the Grass" in Old Congress Hall, Munich Unity AG, Munich Gallery an der Pinakothek der Moderne, Munich "The third day" Kunstverein Ottobrunn, Ottobrunn by Munich 2012 "Between the slit" Gallery Arja Decker in Lebensraum of Art, Hohenbrunn by Munich Gallery an der Pinakothek der Moderne, Munich 2011 "Home Country" Gallery LandskronSchneidzik, Nuremberg 2010 "In Far West" - Painting of Li Heng and Zhang QiWei Artfoyer an Langenweg, Oldenburg, Germany Gallery Vera Lindbeck, Isernhagen by Hanover 2009 Gallery LandskronSchneidzik, Nuremberg Medical Supply Centre of radiology and Nuclear medicine, Fuerth 2008 Art Union of Kleinsendelbach, Germany
群展 / Group Exhibition 2015 “蓝色”画廊 Liebau，布尔格豪恩，德国 “TOP4”欣费尔德现代艺术馆 4 人展，欣费尔德，德国 “节日”Sparkasse 文化基金会艺术展，卡尔斯鲁厄，德国 芳草地画廊 798，北京，中国 艺术北京 2015, 北京，中国 Domagk 艺术节，慕尼黑，德国 “蓝”侨福芳草地画廊，北京，中国 2014 获第五届 Artig 艺术奖，肯普滕，德国 STROKE Art Fair 当代艺术博览会，慕尼黑，德国 ARTMuc 当代艺术博览会，慕尼黑，德国 英戈尔施塔特艺术博览会 2014, 英戈尔施塔特，德国 第 61 届拜里施策尔艺术展，拜里施策尔，德国 “七日”M 艺术空间，上海，中国 获第 21 届艾夏赫艺术奖，艾夏赫，德国 获欣费尔德现代艺术馆当代艺术展一等奖，欣费尔德，德国 “脉络”——第 3 届库尔姆巴赫国际艺术展，库尔姆巴赫，德国 Haar 艺术圈年展 2014, Haar 慕尼黑，德国 画廊 LandskronSchneidzik，纽伦堡，德国 科隆 ART Fair 当代艺术博览会 2014, 科隆，德国 Domagk 艺术节，慕尼黑，德国 2013 因斯布鲁克国际当代艺术博览会 2013, 因斯布鲁克，奥地利 卡尔斯鲁厄国际当代艺术博览会 2013, 卡尔斯鲁厄，德国 Truderinger 艺术节，获一等奖，慕尼黑，德国 Domagk 艺术节，慕尼黑，德国 Haar 艺术家作品展，博格堡博物馆，安塔，意大利 “洞察” 画廊 Arja Decker & Veerle Marissen，Hohenbrunn 慕尼黑，德国 Haar 艺术圈年展 2013, Haar 慕尼黑，德国 科隆 ART Fair 当代艺术博览会 2013, 科隆，德国 雷根斯堡艺术博览会，获一等奖，雷根斯堡，德国 2012 因斯布鲁克国际当代艺术博览会 2012，因斯布鲁克，奥地利 画廊 Vera Lindbeck，Isernhagen 汉诺威，德国 “亲情中华，世界华人华侨艺术展” 中国国家博物馆，北京，中国 Haar 艺术圈年展 2012，Haar 慕尼黑，德国 第 19 届艾夏赫艺术奖作品展，艾夏赫，德国 科隆 ART Fair 当代艺术博览会 2012，科隆，德国 2011 因斯布鲁克国际当代艺术博览会 2011，因斯布鲁克，奥地利 杜塞尔多夫艺术博览会 2011，杜塞尔多夫，德国 Antique & Kunstsalon Herrenhausen，汉诺威，德国 画廊 Leu, 慕尼黑，德国 艺术大展 2011，瓦瑟堡，德国 第 18 届艾夏赫艺术奖作品展，艾夏赫，德国 Haar 艺术圈年展 2011，Haar 慕尼黑，德国 2010 纽伦堡美术学院年展，纽伦堡，德国 艺术工厂展，纽伦堡，德国 2009 纽伦堡美术学院年展，纽伦堡，德国 2008 纽伦堡美术学院年展，纽伦堡，德国 2007 纽伦堡美术学院年展，纽伦堡，德国 Kunstkaufhaus，雷根斯堡，德国
2015
"The Color Blue" Gallery Liebau, Burghaun "TOP 4" Museum Modern Art Huenfeld, Huenfeld "Festive Art" Cultural Foundation of the Sparkasse Karlsruhe, Karlsruhe Gallery Parkview Green Art 798, Beijing ART Beijing 2015 Domagk Studio, Munich "Blue" Gallery Parkview Green Art, Beijing 2014 Winner of the Artig art award 2014, Kempten STROKE Art Fair, Munich ARTMuc, Munich Art Fair Ingolstadt 2014 61. art exhibition Bayrischzell, Bayrischzell "The Seven Days" M ART Center, Shanghai, China Winner of the 21. Aichacher art award 2014, Aichacher Winner of the first prize of the competition exhibition Museum Modern Art Huenfeld 2014, Huenfeld "Network" - 3rd International Exhibition, Kulmbach Year Exhibition of artists circle Haar 2013, Haar by Munich Gallery LandskronSchneidzik, Nuremberg ART Fair Cologne 2014 Domagk Studio, Munich 2013 ART Innsbruck 2013 ART Karlsruhe 2013 The first audience award of Trudering's Day of Art 2013, Munich Domagk Studio, Munich Exhibition of artists circle Haar in Mining Museum, Ahrntal, Italy "Insight" Gallery Arja Decker & Veerle Marissen, Hohenbrunn by Munich Year Exhibition of artists circle Haar 2013, Haar by Munich ART Fair Cologne 2013 The first audience award of Art Fair Regensburg 2012 ART Innsbruck 2012 Gallery Vera Lindbeck, Isernhagen by Hanover "Embrace China, Worldwide overseaschinese Art Exhibition" Chinese Nationalmuseum, Beijing Year Exhibition of artists circle Haar 2012, Haar by Munich Exhibition 19. Aichach Art price, Aichach, Germany ART Fair Cologne 2012 2011 ART Innsbruck 2011 - I am Art Art Fair Dusseldorf 2011 Antique & Art salon Herrenhausen, Hanover Gallery Leu, Munich Great Art Exhibition Wasserburg am Inn, Germany Exhibition 18. Aichach Art price, Aichach, Germany Year Exhibition of artists circle Haar 2011, Haar by Munich 2010 Year Exhibition, Academy of Fine Arts in Nuremberg Art project in Loftwerk, Nuremberg 2009 Year Exhibition, Academy of Fine Arts in Nuremberg 2008 Year Exhibition, Academy of Fine Arts in Nuremberg 2007 Year Exhibition, Academy of Fine Arts in Nuremberg Artstore, Regensburg, Germany
>> 看上去很美 / Seemingly Beautiful, oil on canvas, 140 x 340 cm, 2008
从 2007 年秋开始 , 我一直在画草。8 年后 , 草是什么 , 对我而言并不重要 , 而绘 画是什么才是我所关注的。草作为主题和艺术研究对象很少被表现过 , 但它却使 我的作品拥有了很高的辨识度和符号性。对我个人而言 , 草只作为一种媒介体现 着我对绘画本身的理解。 我用刮刀刮去颜料来呈现草 , 用布擦去油彩来表现天空。这是 ⼀种减法 , 画面的 肌理阴阳分明 , 材料的属性和画面的肌理与所表现的物体巧妙的结合 , 使画面拥 有着⼀种特殊的质感 , 也使作品更具绘画性。 在同一个画面中 , 每一根草茎都有自己的形态 , 天空有着丰富的层次 , 结合不同的 肌理 , 展示出充满细节的微观的一面。同时又出现了不同的透视 ( 仰视 , 平视 , 俯视 , 中心透视 , 散点透视 ), 这其实超出了人类的视觉习惯 , 使观者感觉既熟悉又陌生 , 无法理解却也很好理解 , 这是对画面空间的掌控和理解 , 是一种宏观的维度。通 过微观和宏观两种维度的结合 , 画面更具张力。 我把个人的情感通过不同的绘画语言直接植入画面 , 使画面总有着一种强烈的氛 围和意境 , 神秘的 , 恬静的 , 哀伤的 , 压抑的或遥远的 ... 画面中偶尔会有其他的物体出现在草原上 , 甚至草本身 , 它们都有着各自的隐喻 与象征。通过象征 , 作品就有了更深层的含义。就如我认为的 :“我们注视着草 , 就像上帝注视着我们”。
I've been drawing "grass" since 2007 autumn. 8 years later, what is grass does not concern me much. I'd rather pay attention to what painting actually is. As a motif and artistic research field, "grass" is rarely been expressed, however this leaves highly recognition and symbolic in my work. To me, grass is only a media which shows my understanding of painting itself. I scraped the paint to reveal the grass, wiped the pigment to show the sky. This is a way of subtraction. Thus the textile of the picture appeared clear, together with the material properties integrate properly with the objects, gives a special quality of the whole painting, and make it more painterly as well. Within the same painting, each one of grass has their own form, whilst sky has its rich layers; they integrate with different textiles and comes out the detailed micro-aspect. Meanwhile, there includes various types of perspective (look upward, look at the front horizontal, overlook, central perspective and cavalier perspective), this actually exceed the habit of looking, gives a feeling that familiar yet strange, non-understandable yet understandable. This is a control and cohesive of the space in painting, a larger view. Through such well balance of micro and larger view, the painting gets more expandability. Through different painting languages, I directly insert my personal feeling into the picture via different painting language, which then turns out to have a strong atmosphere of mysterious, quiet, melancholy, oppressive and remote. Occasionally there will be other objects appear on the grass, or even the grass comes to be something else. They have their own metaphors, which make the paintings meaningful. As I thought, "We look at the grass, like the god look at us".
>> 凯撒 / The Caesar, oil and acrylic on canvas, 150 x 350 cm. 2012
肆 x 李衡 採訪記錄
interview with Heng Li 肆：你说“草是作为一种媒介体现你对绘画本身的理解”， 你对绘画本身有什么理解？和草之间的关系？ 李：绘画就是人类用了 5000 年的时间，把一堆颜料从 一个地方挪到另一个地方的一件事儿。对我而言，绘画 就像宇宙一样不可思议，重复性极强，在永恒的重复中， 它通过庞大繁复的细节展示着它无穷的魅力，有规律却 无戒律。也是在不断的重复中，我们总能发现⼀些新的 东西，所以，它更像是经验科学，是 ⼀套非常有逻辑的 体系。我将绘画分为三个部分：语言、内容和情感。草 只作为内容中的⼀部分而存在，但它和我所使用的绘画 语言及情感之间的关系，是我更感兴趣的。换句话说： 草是什么并不重要，重要的还是绘画本身。 Si: You said, "grass is a media that showing your understanding of painting itself", how do you understand painting itself? And how it connects to "grass"? Li: Painting is a process that human moves a mount of pigment from somewhere to elsewhere in 5000 years. To me, painting is inconceivable just like the universe, with strong repeatability, and in such longlasting repeating time, it shows its boundless charm via enormous and complicated, it is following certain regulation but without commandment. Also because of the unceasing repeating, we always
>> 不可避免 / Unavoidable, oil on canvas, 180 x 200 cm, 2013
are able to find something new. So, it's more like an empirical science that is a very logical system. I divide painting into three parts: language, content and emotion. Grass only exists as a part of content; I am more interested in the relationship among grass, my painting language and emotion. In other words, the meaning of grass is not so important; the most important is painting itself. 肆：如果绘画是科学和有逻辑体系的，就意味着绘画有 客观的标准。你认为这个标准是什么？ 李：科学也分很多种，我只是觉得绘画更像经验科学， 但它并不是为了通过公式或数据来求证什么，而是利用 不同的绘画语言不断的实践、总结与归纳，来寻找到⼀ 套新的审美规律；抑或结合不同的内容来建立⼀套逻辑 性的观念体系。但这并不意味着绘画就有它的客观标准， 因为艺术需要的是创造，而非迎合普遍审美。如果说某 ⼀种绘画成为了标准，那它同时也就成为了被他人或自 己将要颠覆及超越的目标。况且，绘画及艺术受地域、 时间、历史、种族、宗教、经济、科技、政治、文化等 等不同因素影响，也不可能有⼀个统⼀的客观标准。 Si: If painting is empirical and logical, that means painting has objective criteria. What criteria do you think it is? Li: There are many kinds of science, I just think painting is more like an empirical science, but not for seeking proof via formula or data. It is an unceasing process of practicing and summarizing, to find out a new aesthetic rule, or establish a logical conceptual system through combining with different contents. But this does not mean painting has a permanent objective criterion. Because art needs creativity not following a general aesthetics. If one kind of painting becomes criteria, it becomes a target that allows others or itself to overturn and surpass. Besides, painting and arts are affected by various factors including geography, history, ethnicity, religious, economy, science, political, culture and so on. It is impossible to have a universal objective criterion.
>> 聆听 / Listen oil on canvas 145 x 100 cm 2013
肆：是⼀个什么契机使你开始画草的？又是什么让你持 续画下去？从开始到现在对草这个主题的认识有了什么 变化？ 李：这是⼀个悲伤的契机，它诞生在⼀个非常不靠谱的 时期，我尽量长话短说。2004 年末，我刚来德国⼀年多， 就把需要报考美院的上百张作品给弄丢了，也失去了与 自己理想的教授 ⼀起学习的机会，前路茫茫。不久后， 相伴 8 年的女友也离开了。紧接着，最亲的亲人也去世 了。从那之后的三年里，我几乎没怎么画画，大部分时 间都在睡觉，像冬眠了⼀样。07 年秋天的⼀个黄昏，我 独自在教堂的后花园里，看见了空无的草地上放着的⼀ 把廉价的塑料椅子，椅子拉出了很长的投影。那⼀瞬间， 我被积压了许久的悲伤情绪与这个稀松平常的画面毫无 征兆的产生了共鸣。后来我用了大半年的时间去寻找如 何画草，并在 2008 年完成第⼀幅草的作品《看上去很美》。 那年我已经在德国纽伦堡美术学院念书，并将这件作品 在学院年展上展出。这幅作品引起了大家的关注，之后 有艺术家协会给我办展，也有画廊相继开始与我合作。 次年，我获得了学院的最高荣誉“大师生”称号。也就 是从那时，我又看见了希望。所以，草不光作为我作品 的主题，同时也是我情感的载体，有象征着生命顽强的 意义，我希望它能同我一起成长。这个系列⼀画就是 8 年， 经历了三个阶段。刚开始时，草还是草，草本身是怎样 的，对我来说还很重要。我总去观察它们，体会它们， 也在文学典故和科学信息中去认识它们。我的眼睛总会 在有草的地方停下，会在不同的季节不同的时间跑去郊 外寻找各式各样的草，会坐在夜里无光的草地上听虫叫， 会走在朝霞出现时布满迷雾的草原里，会在草地中分辨 出上百种颜色，甚至还会听到风从草丛间穿梭而过，当 然也会拍些照片，那是第 ⼀个阶段。久而久之，我不再 特意去看草，也不再借助照片。我开始觉得现实中的草 渐渐变成了⼀种束缚，并尝试在画面中寻找各种突破， 添加了新的绘画语言，不断挖掘和草有关的绘画内容， 但仍然很难摆脱现实因素的影响。那是第二个阶段，我 是彷徨的。2013 年秋，也就是画草的第六年，我的作品 进入了第三个阶段。绘画语言也做了很多调整。我通过 不同的语言去表现繁复精致的细节，即微观的维度。同 时又通过光的明暗及地平线的远近起伏来连接天与地， 使画面统⼀，即宏观的维度。这两种维度的结合使画面 产生了巨大的张力。这时，我才意识到，我已经不再为 了表现草而表现草，重心又回到了画面本身，情感才变 得更为真实，而真实的情感才是靠近自由的前提，心境 才能通过画面自由的传达。绘画内容也只有通过最恰当 的绘画语言表现出来时，情感才能得以升华，才能彰显 每⼀幅画作自身的魅力。
>> 恩典 / The grace oil on canvas 145 x 100 cm 2013
>> 无题 1512/ Untitled1512 oil on canvas 200 x 250 cm 2015
>> ćş? / Origin oil on canvas 160 x 210 cm 2014
Si: What made you start to draw “grass”? And what made you continue to draw it? How do you change your viewing point of “grass” from the beginning to now? Li: It was a sad junction, it was born in a unstable period, I’d tried to speak shortly. In the end of 2004 when the second year since I came to Germany, I lost my hundreds of paintings that were supposed to apply for art academy, as well as I lost the opportunity of studying together with my ideal professor. The future was blind. Later on my beloved girlfriend who was accompanied me for eight years has left me. Soon after, my closest relative passed away. Since then within three years, I hardly paint anything, most of the time I was sleeping, just like went through hibernation. One day in the autumn of 2007, it was nightfall; I was in a garden of a church, saw a cheap plastic chair with its long shadow on empty grassland. Just in that moment, somehow my sadness encountered with this mundane scene without a sign. Later I spent more than half year to find a way to draw grass, and finished my first painting about grass, namely it looks nice. In that year, I already started to study in the Academy of Fine Arts in Nuremberg, and showed this painting in the academy annual exhibition. It attracted people’s attention, and then artist association, galleries started to collaborate with me. The next year, I was awarded a title “Master fellow”, which is the top honour of the academy. Also from that time, I have hope for my future. So grass is not only the motif of my works, it is also a container of my emotions. It is a metaphor for strength in life; I wish it could grow up together with me. It took me eight years to draw this series, which went through three periods. In the very beginning, the grass itself still means significant to me. I was always observing them, feeling them, and recognizing them from classic literature and science information. My eyes always stopped by the grass. I went to countryside to seeking for different kind of grass in different season and time. I listened to the insects chirping on dark grass in the night. I walked on the misty grass when the sun appearing its first light. I distinguished hundreds
of colour out of grass, and even heard the wind was passing through the grass. Of cause I took photograph as well. This is the first period. As time passed, I no longer looked at the grass intentionally, and neither relied on photos. I started to feel the real grass became a kind of restriction. And I tried to make a breakthrough in the painting, added new painting language to it, and excavated more content related to the grass. However it was still very difficult to get rid of the influence of the concrete elements. This is the second period and I was confused at that time. In the autumn of 2013, when it was the sixth year of drawing grass, my work stepped into the third period. I’ve been adjusted a lot on the painting language. I showed complicated and delicate details via various languages, I called it micro dimension. In the same time, I connect the sky and ground in my painting, through the bright and dark of light and the ups and downs of horizon, to unify the image. I called it macro dimension. The combination of the two dimensions creates a huge tension in the painting. And by that time, I realized that I did not need to draw the grass for showing the grass, the core has shifted back to the image itself. Thus the emotion becomes more real. The real emotion is the basement for approaching the freedom, and the feeling can be transmitted freely through the image. Only when the painting content is expressed via the most appropriate painting language, the emotion would be sublimated, and the painting could show its own charm. 肆：画了那么长时间的草会觉得厌烦吗？ 李：艺术有它的广度，也有它的深度。这两者之间有着 必然的联系。广度和深度都可以通过形式来拓宽和达到， 但形式对我来说并不重要，我更希望能通过挖掘绘画中 的更多因素及各因素之间的关系来到达⼀定的深度，从 而拓宽它的广度。所以，草只是 ⼀种外在的形式，除了 形式还有更多的东西有待被发现。我既然不在乎形式， 也就不会厌烦，而且恰恰相反，我还越来越觉得有意思。 这有点儿像谈恋爱，你是每天去换⼀个恋爱对象还是在 同⼀个恋爱对象中不断发现她的好。
>> 星辰 / To the stars oil on canvas 75 x 80 cm 2014
>> ĺž‹ / The Rule oil on canvas 160 x 200 cm 2014
Si: Are you bored of painting grass for such long time? Li: Art has its width and depth. There has certain connection between them, and they both can be achieved and expanded through form. However form is not so important to me, I prefer to reach the depth through digging more factors and the relationship between factors within painting, thus to expand its width. So, grass is a kind of form on surface, expect for this, there are more factors have been waiting for discovering. Since I don’t care so much about the form, I don’t get bored either. Actually I’m in the opposite way, I find it increasingly fascinating. It’s like being in an relationship- is it to change your dating partner everyday or keep discovering her goodness. 肆：什么是魂韵？感觉这个词⼀直出现在恶俗的城市雕 塑中，但是我不能理解。 李：魂韵就是⼀些存在而你又看不见的东西。这是我很 早以前⼀个个展的名称，后来就⼀直这么叫了。当时我 只是认为，看不见的东西永远比看见的东西要大要多， 你可以称这些看不见的东西为“无”，但无不⼀定就是 不存在。现在我也这么认为。我其实就是想通过草来表 现更多和草有关却看不见的东西。不过这个词最早被我 用到时其实是德语“Geist”，挺抽象的，我觉得很美。 后来翻译成中文后就的确有点儿那个了。 Si: What is the spirit (of grass)? I feel like this word has been always showed up in some kitsch city sculpture, but I couldn’t understand. Li: Spirit is something that existing but you can’t really see. This was a name for one of my earlier exhibition, and I keep naming it after that. At that time, I thought the unseen things are always bigger and more than the visible things. You may call the unseen things as “none”, but it doesn't equally mean not exist. And now I still think like that. I am hoping to express more unseen things that related to the grass through drawing it. I first used this word in Germany, written as “Geist”, it is quite abstract a word, I think it is beautiful. But in Chinese language it feels like a bit kitsch.
肆：可以把你的作品理解成抽象画么？ 李：每个人对抽象的理解都不 ⼀样。在我的画面里，的 确用到了很多抽象的绘画语言，的确为画面增添了很多 绘画性，但它们结合在一起，又让画面有了具象的形态。 尽管画面上总有⼀些说不清楚是什么的肌理效果和形象， 但它们始终都在为画面服务，我通过它们来表现我之前 提到的“无”。 Si: Can I say your work is abstract painting? Li: Everyone sees abstract diversely. I do use a lot of abstract language in my paintings, and it certainly makes my paintings more solid. However as a result, it turns out to be concrete form on the painting. Although there always have some textures and figures that can’t be told clearly, they are serving for the whole image. And this is how I express the “none” as I mentioned before. 肆：你曾经自我否定过吗 ? 李艺术家是个高危职业，自我否定简直就是家常便饭。 每⼀次的创作经历就像⼀次探险，也是⼀个自我内部战 争的过程。它让创作者在他的精神世界里有着不同的挑 战与经历。所谓的创新与稳定，自我的风格与超越自我 之间的矛盾关系，逼得你必须无数次地自我否定，有时 简直就是施虐与受虐，甚至是屠杀与被杀！在寻找的路 上，或成功，或失败，或迷失，或回归，或悲，或喜， 或生，或死。而旁人很难看见这些，只能通过作品去感受。 可我相信人的精神的生死与肉体的生死并无二致，只是 有些人能看见，有些人看不见罢了。不疯魔，不成佛。 但同时我也挺享受的。 Si: Have you ever self-denied? Li: Artist is a highly dangerous career. Self-denied is like an everyday event. Every single process of creation is like an adventure, as well as an inner war of self. It makes the artist different challenge and experience in his spiritual world. Suffering from the contradiction of creating new things and being stable, forming a self-style and to transcend
>> 盼 / Hope oil on canvas 140 x 100 cm 2014
>> 救赎 / The Redemption oil on canvas 160 x 200 cm 2014
the self, I am pushed to self-denied numberless time. Sometimes it feels like sado-masochism, even murder and being murdered! In the way of seeking, I may success, or fail; I may lost, or return; I may sorrowful, or joyful; I may live, or die. But the outsiders can hardly see these; they can only feel through my work. However, I believe that there has no difference between the life and death of spirit and of physical body, only that somebody can see it while somebody cannot. There is an old saying that “nothing short of obsession will bring you success on the stage”, and I am enjoying it. 肆：有没有想过用其他媒介来创作，你的作品和摄影很 相似，为什么坚持用绘画来表现。绘画作为⼀种媒体对 于你来说代表着什么？ 李：我在德国大学时的专业并不是绘画，我们的工作室 是自由艺术专业。班里搞啥的都有，还有写诗的。当时 我也做了⼀些非架上的东西，还有玩儿，还有悲伤和睡觉， 我觉得这些都是我的作品。后来开始画草了，⼀直觉得 画不好，就坚持⼀直画呗，直到有⼀天觉得画好了再说。 至于以后会不会使用其他媒介，我想肯定是会的，这应 该是一个自然而然的转变过程。你说我的作品和摄影相 似，这并不奇怪，因为不同的艺术媒体之间总有相通之 处，但本质的区别在于摄影有摄影的语言，绘画有绘画 的语言，而不同的语言属性就会导致之后⼀系列不同的 作品性质与审视标准。⼀开始也提到过，绘画就像宇宙， 只是它被压缩了而已。说得具体点儿，绘画作为⼀一种 媒体，它代表着我对各种材料的认识和不同工具的运用， 对色彩、线条、形体、构成、明暗、肌理、甚至是光、力、 空间和时间等等很多视觉和非视觉的因素的理解，这其 中的任何一个因素，单拿出来就够我研究一辈子了。这 就是我之前说的绘画语言。而绘画内容不仅仅指我所要 表现的题材和事物，它还包括从所表现物出发的相关意 义和观念，视觉对心理的影响，对审美，对自我，对人性、 社会、世界或宇宙的认识和理解。当然，语言和内容有 时会合二为⼀，不分彼此，语言即内容，特别是在抽象 绘画和观念绘画中存在。最后就是情感，它决定了你在 这条路上能走多远，同时也是绘画的最高境界。没有情感， ⼀切语言，⼀切内容，都是空洞的。就算有些艺术家在 作品中控制甚至摒弃情感因素，但这本身也是⼀种情感。 语言、内容、情感这三者之间的关系甚是微妙，玄之又玄， 它被我称为绘画的灵魂。
>> 黄海 / the Yellow Ocean, oil on canvas, 150 x 250 cm, 2011
Si: Have you thought of using alternative media to work? Your work has resemblance to photography, why you insist to draw? As a medium, what does painting mean to you? Li: Painting wasn’t my major in university in Germany. I was doing free art in our studio. My classmates were doing different things, some even were writing poems. I made some noneasel works as well, and also, having fun and pain and sleeping. I think these are all my works. Later I started to draw grass, and I always thought I painted badly. But I still insist to paint it until I could paint it well. Will I use other media to work, I think for sure I will, but in a natural way. You think my work has resemblance to photography, which is not a surprise for me. Because there always has common things shared in different artistic media. But after all, the most essential difference is that, photography and painting both have own language, which leads diverse sensibility of working and standard of looking. As I mentioned before, painting is like a universe, just it has been compressed. More precisely, painting as a medium to me, represents my recognition of various materials and use of different tools, my understanding of many visual or non-visual elements such as colour, line, form, structure, light and shadow, texture, even electricity, mechanics, space and time. I could spend a whole life to study on any one of above. This is what I’ve called it painterly language. However, the content of painting includes not only the subjects and objects that I want to express, but also the related meaning and concept, the influence from vision to mentality, the recognition and understanding of aesthetics, self, humanity, society, world or universe. Certainly, sometimes language will be united with content, not differential from each other, the language is the content, and especially exists in abstract and conceptual painting. Last but not least, emotion, which decides how far you are able to go on this career, meanwhile is the highest state of painting. Without emotion, all language, content
>> 节日 / The Festival oil on canvas 170 x 130 cm 2015
>> 无题 1513/ Untitled1513 oil on canvas 165 x 200 cm 2015
will be vacuous. Although some artists control or even avoid emotion, which also can be a kind of emotion. The relationship among language, content and emotion is so subtle and abstruse, so I called it the soul of the painting. 肆：你如何避免情感变得空洞而不只是⼀个概念？ 李：几天闻不见油彩的味道我就浑身难受，看着画布上 的肌理我就莫名的激动。画画是⼀件很私人的事儿，自 个儿跟自个儿的事儿，我没必要装。孤独就是孤独，悲 伤就是悲伤，得意就会忘形，孜孜永远不倦！我把自己 真实的情感当作创作的前提。我相信每个人都有真实的 情感，但表现不好也会变得空洞，这是技术层面的问题， 即表现力的研究。宇宙万物之间相互作用，总有各式各 样的关系。这些关系会影响万物存在的状态。物与物之 间有些关系是融洽的，甚至是天衣无缝的，而有些关系 是相冲相克的，甚至是相克相生的。这千丝万缕的关系 像迷⼀般存在着，其中却隐藏着组合的规律。我们常用 “八字合”来形容两人的关系十分融洽。八字合了两人 感情自然就好，这就是⼀种组合的规律。你也可以说八 字是老天安排的，老天最大嘛！那么，绘画的世界就如 同这宇宙万物，是⼀种人类生理（视觉）和心理（情感） 相互作用的艺术。绘画语言有千千万万，绘画内容可以 万万千千，人之情感也林林总总，怎样的语言配怎样的 内容表达怎样的情感，这就需要我不断地去寻找去发现。 语言与内容能否八字合，所选择的表现方式能否恰如其 分的诠释所表现物，它们之间的关系就决定了我作品中 的情感是否空洞。所以，我避免情感变得空洞而非⼀个 概念就只有六个字：真性情，八字合。 Si: How do you avoid emotion becomes vacuous and not being just a concept? Li: I feel terrible if I don’t smell of painting oil for few days. I feel unspeakable exciting when I see the textures on the painting. Painting is a private thing, it’s all dealing with myself, I don’t have to be pretend. I shall be lonely as alone, sad as sorrow, cheerful as excitement, working hard as it never gets tired! The real emotion is the precondition of my creation. I believe that every one has own real emotion, but it might becomes vacuous under bad expression. This is a technical problem, as well as study of
expression. From the interaction of matters in universe, there comes out diverse relationship, which conversely impacts the existence of matters. The relationship between matters sometimes is harmonious, even seamless, whilst others are mutually against each other even mutually reinforce and neutralize each other. They all exist mysteriously; however there has regular pattern of combination hide behind. For example, we often use “matched Ba Zi” to describe a harmonious relationship. If two people’s Ba Zi is matching, their relationship will be naturally good; this is a kind of regular pattern of combination. You could also say it’s the god decides, of cause, god is the biggest one. So, a world of painting is like a universe of matters, it is an art that interact with physical body (visual) and mentality (emotion). The language and content of painting can be numerous; I have to unceasingly looking for the regular pattern of combining language, content and emotion. In addition, whether the language and content can match the Ba Zi, whether the expression can interpret the matters appropriately, the relationship between them decides whether the emotion in my work is vacuous or not. So, how I avoid the emotion becomes vacuous and being just a concept is only a sentence: real emotion and matched Ba Zi. 肆：你⼀般看什么书？会经常看艺术评论吗？ 我现在已经不看书了，只看电脑和手机。偶尔翻翻画册， 很偶尔。艺术评论看的也不多，但⼀直坚持催促自己看， 只是催促而已，催烦了就看看。 Si: What kind of books you read regularly? Do you read art critique often? Li: I don’t read books now; I only watch computer and phone. Sometimes I take a look at art catalogue, but very occasionally. I don’t read a lot of art critique, but I insist to urge myself to read, when I get bored of my urge, I’d take a look at them.
>> 无题 1525/ Untitled1525 oil on canvas 160 x 205 cm 2015
>> 缝隙中的世界 / the World in the Gap oil on canvas 200 x 250 cm 2012
肆：受影响最大的艺术家有哪些？ 李：很多，但忘得也快。我后来发现，他们和生命中很 多事情⼀样。忘得快也是⼀种能力。 Si: Which artists impact you mostly? Li: A lot, but I forgot them quickly. Afterwards I found that they are just same as many other matters in life. To forget a thing quickly is a kind of ability, I suppose. -end-
{translated by Wendi Xie}
>> 银河 / the Galaxy oil on canvas 150 x 220 cm 2011
>> 宁静之旅 / Peaceful Tour oil on canvas 150 x 200 cm 2011
关于 > 肆 SI< 隶 属 于 > 草 乙 載 萬 殊 < zoewanshu.com 之 微 杂 志 介 绍 活 动 于 西 方 的 亚 洲 青 年 艺 术 家。 About SI micro conceptual magazine, part of Zoe(zoewanshu.com) introducing young Asian artists who are based in West
editor / 編輯 孫 敏祺 Minqi Sun 謝 文蒂 Wendi Xie 鄭 田明 Tianming Zheng 应 梦婷 Mengting Ying
front cover / 封面 >> 恩典 /The grace oil on canvas 145x100 cm 2013 by Heng Li
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SĂŹ 4. October 2015 No. 26
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