“Wondering Clouds” a solo exhibition by artist Yu Hong opened at the Long March Space in 798 Art Zone on November 23, 2013, which presents the new works by Yu Hong after her solo exhibition “Golden Horizon” was held at Shanghai Art Museum in 2011. The “Wondering Clouds” exhibition is concerned with the spirit and realistic plight of social groups, Yu Hong precisely and delicately transmits the mixture of emotion, life and the elements of fantasy and dreams in the works from a keen female perspective, creating a human reflection at Long March Space. The exhibition is presented at the Long March Space, continuing to December 29.

The exhibition is divided into two parts, at the left of the entrance of the exhibition hall it features 6 sets of 3-piece group paintings, respectively named “Simple Hands”, “Deep Pool”, “Lost in Night”, “Mosquito Curtain”, “Memory Box”, and “Drawers”. Yu Hong said, “It’s much more difficult to express a melancholic emotion in painting which isn’t as accurate and intuitive as theater.” Some of Yu Hong’s friends with a rich and delicate sensibility are often troubled by the melancholic mood, and these six sets of new works respectively describe six people, through the detailed performance of the items and habits relied on by the characters, personalities and details of the characters are sketched out, reflecting the deepest vulnerable emotion, dream-like composition sublimates the works and makes it go beyond the emotional spirit itself, more profoundly showcasing human care. Yu Hong applies a unique art performance to project her thoughts as an artist and spectator in the changing times on the six sets of works.

“High in the Clouds”, a set of giant six-piece group paintings is presented on the other side of the exhibition hall. Yu showcases a basic reality by means of realistic scenes of human lives intertwined with an illusion of sky and clouds. The 18-meter-long painting showcases ways of the world in a detached background, including the familiar scenes, complex and intricate relationships between characters, the boundaries blurring time and space, the law of nature revealed by the clouds coiling and unfolding refers to the life trajectory of people’s climbing to the ideals and chasing hopes. “High in the Clouds” is like a revelation, we can’t avoid the truth of humanity in the art language of Yu Hong, a reflection of the past, present and future.

Born in 1966, Yu Hong studied oil painting at CAFA in Beijing in the 1980s, since her graduation she has been teaching at the school . Yu Hong early on trained in the method of realistic techniques, and later developed her own unique visual language, especially reflected in depicting the human body and portrait. Yu creates her works from the perspective of a woman, inspired by her life and the people around her, building a world cleverly integrating feelings and memory of times through art, sensitively grasping individual experiences and emotions in reality. Yu often uses readymade images as her creative start, thinking of canvas, silk, resin, oil painting, pastel, silk fabric, and acrylic as her medium, emphasizing the subjectivity of memory, discussing how the ready-made image can be played down or stressed. Because of the unique creativity and richness, her works have an unusual significance in the practice of Chinese contemporary art.

Long March Space was founded by Lu Jie in the 798 Art Zone of Beijing in 2002, it is committed to the experiment and promotion of artistic programs. In its' 11-year history, the gallery has successfully cooperated with a number of Chinese leading artists on art exhibition programs and artistic promotion. With its history, scale, professional norms, academic positioning and commercial power, Long March Space has always maintained a leadership in the Chinese galleries circle, while maintaining close exchanges and cooperation with international organizations, sparing no effort to promote the international impact of Chinese contemporary art.

Image Courtesy of Yu Hong and Long March Space, Photo by Hu Zhiheng and Yang Yanyuan/CAFA ART INFO.

Translated by Chen Peihua and edited by Sue/CAFA ART INFO.