Foreword
The cooperation between Parkview Green Art and Qin Fenglingstarted in 2013. In the past two years, Qin’s works has attracted each andevery visitor to the gallery. These small figures, scattered or piled, give anair of innocence and naturalness, lending to the paintings somethinglight-hearted, lyrical and intelligent. Beneath the visual cheerfulness,however, is the harsh and bitter social reality. These paintings give the gallerya wealth of surprise and hope with respect to both academic studies and arkmarket. Parkview Green Art has the honor of holding an important exhibition forQin, which is also an embodiment of our gratitude for her trust and best wishesfor our long term cooperation.
In 2005 when Qin made her debut as a painter, some leadingcurators and art critics were amazed at this “self-taught” woman artists andher interesting works. To many people at that time, Qin Fengling, as a name,was obscure, silent, quiet, and even dependent. Since her husband, Wang Luyan,is an important figure in contemporary art in China, people find it hard tomention one without the other. It is true that Wang is inevitable in anydiscourse about Qin. He, together with their artist friends, was actually herfirst teacher in art. As a woman artist without a formal background in regularacademic training in painting, she did not start with a painting brush. Whilekeeping herself busy cooking in the kitchen and making tea in the sitting room,she was exposed to the heated discussions among these critics and artists.Little by little, she came under their influence, joined their discussions, andbegan to have “words to say and pictures to paint”.
Her first series in 2005 were closely related to imagination andsentiments unique to women, and those about society and living environment werealso her concern to share with the public. “These paintings follow nothing butmy feelings. It does not matter what a painting needs but what I want to see.That’s it.” We might as well call these paintings her diary, her lyrical world.Painting has become an integral part of life, not something added or animpulse. “My works are not the result of passion, but flow of feelings in life.My eyes are focused on my life, on what’s around me, and on what I want tofeel.” It is not wise to refer to her own statements and make a hasty judgmentthat she is “closed-minded”, homely , or feminine. On the contrary, herpaintings, open and highly informative in their own right, deconstruct in arevolutionary way contemporary painting in China and offer most vividinterpretation on the pictorial school called “New Painting”. It is theindependent and experimental quality of these paintings that has distinguishedQin in the art community in China and earned her a rightful place.
The little relief figures in acrylic paint are the result of hersignature technique. The paint is squeezed directly onto the canvas to givelife to these figures in a skillful and careful way. They have eyes, mouths andeven looks: lost, anxious, shouting and looking around. These paintings allowsus to feel the artist’s unique way to “communicate”. What she expresses mightbe the same as what we feel, or maybe different from, and we might be doing thesame thing as the figures in the painting do, or sometimes they are just thekind of person we do not want to be. Most of her works involve the concept of “collectiveunconsciousness” in that the densely placed figures not only highlight the numbersbut also are connected with an individual’s collective memory and experience,such as Young Pioneers in the childhood, group activities, Red Guards in theCultural Revolution, etc. “Flags” (2008) consists of groups of miniature redfemale figures with subtle facial expressions. Nestling up against one another,these figures conveys the sense and sensibility that betray the hidden impulse.“Gaps in the City Landscape-2” (2009) depict revealingly the densely populatedand heavily congested cities. There is a sharp contrast between the bright andcolorful surface of city life and the restlessness and insecurity in our innerworld. Also she skillfully incorporates metaphor, personification, fantasy,hyperbole and other literary techniques in his production. The swarms of wormson the Chinese cabbage In “Cabbage-worms” (2007) are personified to convey hersensitivity to life; “Ladder” (2009) features a high ladder and a crowd fallingover one another to climb the ladder is metaphoric of the insatiable hunger forfame and material wealth. It is up to the viewers to decide whether it is ahumor or a satire.
In the 1980s and1990s, with China speeding into the new era, the artists began their aestheticexperiments, and close-up portraits were just part of their practice. The topfour artists in this line all have distinctive characteristics. From Yue Minjun’s“laughing faces” to Fang Lijun’s “bald heads”, to the melancholic faces inZhang Xiaogang’s “Home” and “Bloodline” series, and to the fists in Wang Guangyi’s“Great Criticism” series, the visual expressions are all concretization of theartists’ sensitivity toward life. Qin, however, did not get involved in thistrend. She was not much influenced and did not imitate them, which mightexplain the real benefit of the peaceful life she enjoyed. Recurring to her ownpictorial techniques, in an unsophisticated, even stubborn, way, she translatedher own life, as well as what she wanted to express, into pictorial form. Inthis sense she enjoyed freedom and independence. From her finished works of artshe derives new feedback, insights, as well as feelings and impression.
“Qin Fengling’s worksshow a duality of pictorial plane and sculptural dimensions. In contrast tosome artists who are confined to conventional painting principles that lead touniformity , Qin has replaced the modeling, strokes, sketch and composition inthe traditional vein with her own pictorial vocabulary, thus realizing herdream of ‘painting my own painting’ by overstepping the boundary of traditionalpainting.” Like a talent scout, Huang Du unveiled to us a quiet diary artist,so that we can share the full spectrum of her emotions and have a tasted ofours. In a context of modern life characterized with complexity and changes,Qin will meet us at Parkview Green art, taking along the diary of her pure andinnocent soul. What new visual experience these new figures in primary colorswill meet our eye? It is really something to look forward to.
We sincerely wish thatall the visitors to this exhibition can identify and experience somethinguniquely their own.
Again Parkview GreenArt cordially invites you to take a fantastic trip here and enjoy with us thisgreat visual feast .
Parkview Green Art
April 23, 2015
Foreword
The cooperation between Parkview Green Art and Qin Fenglingstarted in 2013. In the past two years, Qin’s works has attracted each andevery visitor to the gallery. These small figures, scattered or piled, give anair of innocence and naturalness, lending to the paintings somethinglight-hearted, lyrical and intelligent. Beneath the visual cheerfulness,however, is the harsh and bitter social reality. These paintings give the gallerya wealth of surprise and hope with respect to both academic studies and arkmarket. Parkview Green Art has the honor of holding an important exhibition forQin, which is also an embodiment of our gratitude for her trust and best wishesfor our long term cooperation.
In 2005 when Qin made her debut as a painter, some leadingcurators and art critics were amazed at this “self-taught” woman artists andher interesting works. To many people at that time, Qin Fengling, as a name,was obscure, silent, quiet, and even dependent. Since her husband, Wang Luyan,is an important figure in contemporary art in China, people find it hard tomention one without the other. It is true that Wang is inevitable in anydiscourse about Qin. He, together with their artist friends, was actually herfirst teacher in art. As a woman artist without a formal background in regularacademic training in painting, she did not start with a painting brush. Whilekeeping herself busy cooking in the kitchen and making tea in the sitting room,she was exposed to the heated discussions among these critics and artists.Little by little, she came under their influence, joined their discussions, andbegan to have “words to say and pictures to paint”.
Her first series in 2005 were closely related to imagination andsentiments unique to women, and those about society and living environment werealso her concern to share with the public. “These paintings follow nothing butmy feelings. It does not matter what a painting needs but what I want to see.That’s it.” We might as well call these paintings her diary, her lyrical world.Painting has become an integral part of life, not something added or animpulse. “My works are not the result of passion, but flow of feelings in life.My eyes are focused on my life, on what’s around me, and on what I want tofeel.” It is not wise to refer to her own statements and make a hasty judgmentthat she is “closed-minded”, homely , or feminine. On the contrary, herpaintings, open and highly informative in their own right, deconstruct in arevolutionary way contemporary painting in China and offer most vividinterpretation on the pictorial school called “New Painting”. It is theindependent and experimental quality of these paintings that has distinguishedQin in the art community in China and earned her a rightful place.
The little relief figures in acrylic paint are the result of hersignature technique. The paint is squeezed directly onto the canvas to givelife to these figures in a skillful and careful way. They have eyes, mouths andeven looks: lost, anxious, shouting and looking around. These paintings allowsus to feel the artist’s unique way to “communicate”. What she expresses mightbe the same as what we feel, or maybe different from, and we might be doing thesame thing as the figures in the painting do, or sometimes they are just thekind of person we do not want to be. Most of her works involve the concept of “collectiveunconsciousness” in that the densely placed figures not only highlight the numbersbut also are connected with an individual’s collective memory and experience,such as Young Pioneers in the childhood, group activities, Red Guards in theCultural Revolution, etc. “Flags” (2008) consists of groups of miniature redfemale figures with subtle facial expressions. Nestling up against one another,these figures conveys the sense and sensibility that betray the hidden impulse.“Gaps in the City Landscape-2” (2009) depict revealingly the densely populatedand heavily congested cities. There is a sharp contrast between the bright andcolorful surface of city life and the restlessness and insecurity in our innerworld. Also she skillfully incorporates metaphor, personification, fantasy,hyperbole and other literary techniques in his production. The swarms of wormson the Chinese cabbage In “Cabbage-worms” (2007) are personified to convey hersensitivity to life; “Ladder” (2009) features a high ladder and a crowd fallingover one another to climb the ladder is metaphoric of the insatiable hunger forfame and material wealth. It is up to the viewers to decide whether it is ahumor or a satire.
In the 1980s and1990s, with China speeding into the new era, the artists began their aestheticexperiments, and close-up portraits were just part of their practice. The topfour artists in this line all have distinctive characteristics. From Yue Minjun’s“laughing faces” to Fang Lijun’s “bald heads”, to the melancholic faces inZhang Xiaogang’s “Home” and “Bloodline” series, and to the fists in Wang Guangyi’s“Great Criticism” series, the visual expressions are all concretization of theartists’ sensitivity toward life. Qin, however, did not get involved in thistrend. She was not much influenced and did not imitate them, which mightexplain the real benefit of the peaceful life she enjoyed. Recurring to her ownpictorial techniques, in an unsophisticated, even stubborn, way, she translatedher own life, as well as what she wanted to express, into pictorial form. Inthis sense she enjoyed freedom and independence. From her finished works of artshe derives new feedback, insights, as well as feelings and impression.
“Qin Fengling’s worksshow a duality of pictorial plane and sculptural dimensions. In contrast tosome artists who are confined to conventional painting principles that lead touniformity , Qin has replaced the modeling, strokes, sketch and composition inthe traditional vein with her own pictorial vocabulary, thus realizing herdream of ‘painting my own painting’ by overstepping the boundary of traditionalpainting.” Like a talent scout, Huang Du unveiled to us a quiet diary artist,so that we can share the full spectrum of her emotions and have a tasted ofours. In a context of modern life characterized with complexity and changes,Qin will meet us at Parkview Green art, taking along the diary of her pure andinnocent soul. What new visual experience these new figures in primary colorswill meet our eye? It is really something to look forward to.
We sincerely wish thatall the visitors to this exhibition can identify and experience somethinguniquely their own.
Again Parkview GreenArt cordially invites you to take a fantastic trip here and enjoy with us thisgreat visual feast .
Parkview Green Art
April 23, 2015