Personal & Material - by Zhu Xiaojun

Based on materials, 5 artists depict their attitudes toward the world with different media and stuff. These works originated from passion for art itself. They look for fun in efforts, and discover innovations in creative labour. For them, art is a process of striving, not a competition. Mutually independent these 5 projects are, the spirits of the artists agree: once the right road ascertained, they keep walking regardless of how far the journey is.

Yang Yang: Youth is an attitude

Hemingway once said, the biggest regret of women is they cannot have youth and the understanding of youth at the same time. "Youth" is always a key word in Yang Yang's work: She depicts her conception and assumption of "youth" with diversified colors and great passion. In her painting, youth is not a period of time, but an attitude.

Work by Yang Yang, Journey, Mixed media, 180x308cmx4, 2013

Wang Yuhua: Persistence and Passion

Poetry scholar Pro. Ye Jiaying has proposed a concept in aesthetics: beauty of feeble morality, in which she refers to the people who grow up in difficult situation but still hold dreams and keep learning to maintain their attitude to and expression of beauty. Yuhua's persistence in art is represented in her work: she creates ink painting on linen, and expresses her love for art with beautiful color and adventruouscomposition.

Work by Shen Ye, Said, Water-Solubility Materials on Paper, 115x245cm, 2012

Shen Ye: Seawater and Flame

That Obscure Object of Desire is the title of Spanish master movie director Luis Bu?uel's movie, and also the title of ShenYe's solo exhibition. ShenYa's temperament has seemingly great contrast with her work. This quiet, smiling girl depicts the grace and charm of urban life and records the love and hate of our time on the paper. Looking at her and her work, you can gain a better understanding of this sentence: half is seawater, half is flame.

Work by Huang Qi, Mixed media, 600x200cm, 2012

Huang Qi: Listen to your inner voice

"Always listen to your inner voice, because it is your true self." This is Huang Qi's attitude to art. Huang Qi has a natural born calm and composed temperament. She explores the art with ever-lasting sincerity and diligence, devoting her time and patience into art creation. She gradually carries out her art creation in the process of material experiment, and the viewers can easily be navigated to a carefree, pure lightsome atmosphere.

Work by Zhou Lu, Mixed media, 64x41cm, 2013

Zhou Lu: All things grow

In his book All Things Bright and Beautiful, British writer James Herriot once said, "A vivacious life is way more beautiful than the degree a poet can describe." Zhou Lu believes that there is a law of cause and effect in everything's life. What this young girl tries to express is, there is aXanadu and Walden in everyone's heart; that graceful and timeless land is the hometown of our heart and soul.

Said by Hu Wei

As a new art form in today's Chinese artistic world, comprehensive material painting is widely concerned by the whole society, with its open attitude, together with rich and novel expression. Now it even became a language adopted by numerous Chinese artists to demonstrate the spirit of the time, update concept and explore the aesthetics of form. It plays a very important role in reflecting the time and building an internationalized image for Chinese art, through exhibiting its updated cultural concept and diversified art expression of contemporary life, and it meets the demand of cultural development in the era.

Yang Yang, Wang Yuhua, Shen Ye, Huang Qi and Zhou Lu graduated from China Central Academy of Fine Arts, China Academy of Art and Essen Free Art Academy of Germany. Although different in education background and creative focus, they show us a common desire-embracing everything with soul and seeking for innovation and change. What is more, they have been exploring personalized way in their artistic practice, and thus created different artistic favor and style. The works on the exhibition vividly depicted their "progress from singlet-type, single-material painting skill, to integration into multi-type or multi-material painting skill." They tend to be diversified in art form and style, but convergent in cultural attribute. Their artworks were highly praised on numerous National Art Exhibitions, National Youth Art Exhibitions, Beijing International Art Biennale and theme exhibitions held by China Artists Association.

From the 5 artists' works-the examples of comprehensive material paintings by contemporary female artists, it can be learned that today's artistic ecology is closely associated with the reality. In a time witnessing rapid exchange of information, they are facing various challenges. As for the idea of "comprehensive material painting," their way of thinking, approach of feeling the world and outlet of emotional expression are opened to the audience with all the artworks being displayed on the exhibition.

About the exhibition

Duration: March 29th - April 20th, 2014

Venue: Gallery Yang

Opening: March 29th, 2014 4:00pm-7:00pm

Courtesy of the artists and Gallery Yang.