Chinese art is a world cultural heritage. Why is contemporary Chinese art so expensive? Contemporary Chinese art painting

Contemporary Chinese Art: Hao Boyi, Ai Weiwei, Zhao Zhao

Artist's creativity Hao Boi (Hao Boyi) reminded the world what classical Chinese engraving was. He currently heads the Chinese Artists Association. Reminding the viewer that oriental art is characterized by minimalism and elegance, Boi carefully and restrainedly depicts nature. Most often the artist prefers to work on wood, but sometimes he also uses metal. There is no hint of a person in his engravings. Birds, trees, bushes, sun, swamps are depicted in their pristine beauty.

One of the most famous contemporary Chinese artists - Ai Weiwei- became famous not only thanks to creative projects. Every material about him mentions his oppositional attitude. Weiwei lived for some time in the USA, so his work clearly shows the trends of Western art of the last century in combination with traditional Eastern trends. In 2011, he topped the list of “The 100 Most Influential People in the Art World” according to Art Review magazine. His installations are not just art objects designed to point out social problems, but also a huge amount of work. So, for one of the projects, the artist collected 6,000 stools in the villages of Northern China. All of them are placed on the floor of the exhibition hall, completely covering the surface. Another project, “IOU,” is based on a story from the artist’s life. The name is an abbreviation of the phrase “I Owe You,” which translates to “I owe you” in English. The fact is that the artists were charged with tax evasion. In 15 days, Weiwei had to find 1.7 million euros and pay off the state. This amount was raised thanks to those who were not indifferent to the work and life of the oppositionist artist. This is how an installation was born from a huge number of money transfer receipts. Weiwei has held solo exhibitions in New York, San Francisco, Paris, London, Bern, Seoul, Tokyo and other cities.

With the name of a conceptual artist Zhu Yu The concept of “cannibal” is inextricably linked. In 2000, at one of the exhibitions, he presented a provocative photo project, which was followed by scandalous articles and public investigations. The author presented to the public a series of photographs in which he eats a human fetus. After this, information appeared in a number of media about the strange food preferences of the Chinese elite - allegedly in some restaurants, embryos are served to lovers of delicacies. The provocation was certainly a success. After this, Yu’s work began to gain popularity, and he himself was able to start making money from his strange projects. Speaking about eating fetuses, he noted: “Artists did nothing but use corpses in performances, without creating anything new, blindly copying each other. This situation irritated me, I wanted to put an end to these competitions, to put an end to them. My work was not intended for spectators, it was supposed to solve an internal technical issue. I didn't expect such a reaction." By the way, the exhibition in which Yu showed “Eating People” was called Fuck Off, and its curator was the aforementioned Ai Weiwei. The artist also has more humane projects, for example, the installation “Pocket Theology”. In the exhibition hall, a hand hangs from the ceiling holding a long rope that covers the entire floor. At the moment, Yu has moved to another creative stage, devoid of the shocking past. He became interested in hyperrealism.

Zeng Fanzhi- today one of the most expensive Chinese artists. In 2001, he presented his version of “The Last Supper” to the public. The composition is borrowed from Leonardo Da Vinci, but everything else is a figment of the imagination of our contemporary. So, at the table there were 13 people in pioneer costumes and with masks on their faces. Judas stands out from their background, wearing a Western-cut shirt and tie, which hints to the viewer that even China, a traditional country, is subject to the influence of capitalism. In 2013, this work was auctioned for $23 million.

Below are the works Zhao Zhao. Art critics call this artist one of the most promising contemporary Chinese authors. In addition to the fact that collectors from all over the world willingly purchase his creations, the authorities also pay attention to them - in 2012, Zhao’s works “went” to an exhibition in New York, but Chinese customs turned away the shipment. His works are associative, metaphorical and often associated with events from the life of the artist himself. For example, one day a car accident became a source of inspiration for Zhao, during which the artist noticed how interesting the cracks crawled along the windshield...

Zhang Xiaogang- author of a well-known series of works under the general title “Bloody Traces”. It features portraits of people of different ages, done in the style of photographs, but with artistic touches. “China is one family, one big family. Everyone must rely on each other and confront each other. This was a question that I wanted to pay attention to and which gradually became less and less associated with the Cultural Revolution, and more with the idea of a people’s state in the mind,” says the artist about “Traces of Blood.” The series was created over 10 years, its total cost exceeds 10 million dollars.

Suppose you find yourself in decent society, and the conversation turns to contemporary art. As befits a normal person, you don’t understand it. We offer an express guide to the main Chinese artists from the world of contemporary art - with its help you can maintain a smart look throughout the conversation, and perhaps even say something relevant.

What is "Chinese contemporary art" and where did it come from?

Until the death of Mao Zedong in 1976, the “cultural revolution” lasted in China, during which art was equated with subversive anti-revolutionary activity and was eradicated with a hot iron. After the death of the dictator, the ban was lifted and dozens of avant-garde artists came out of hiding. In 1989, they organized their first major exhibition at the Beijing National Gallery, won the hearts of Western curators, who immediately recognized in the paintings the tragedy of the communist dictatorship and the indifference of the system to the individual, and that was the end of the fun. The authorities dispersed the exhibition, shot students in Tiananmen Square and closed the liberal shop.

That would have been the end of it, but the Western art market fell so firmly and uncontrollably in love with Chinese artists who had managed to make a name for themselves that the Communist Party was seduced by the alluring international prestige and returned everything as it was.

The main movement of the Chinese avant-garde is called “cynical realism”: through the formal techniques of socialist realism, the terrible realities of the psychological breakdown of Chinese society are shown.

The most famous artists

Yue Minjun

What it depicts: Characters with identical faces chuckle while being executed, shot, etc. Everyone is dressed like Chinese workers or Mao Zedong.

Why it’s interesting: the faces of the workers repeat the laughter of Buddha Maitreya, who advises smiling while looking into the future. At the same time, this is a reference to the artificially happy faces of Chinese workers on propaganda posters. The grotesqueness of smiles shows that behind the mask of laughter lies helplessness and frozen horror.

Zeng Fanzhi

What it depicts: Chinese men with white masks glued to their faces, scenes from hospital life, the Last Supper with Chinese pioneers

Why it’s interesting: in early works - expressive pessimism and psychologism, in later works - witty symbolism. Intense figures are hidden behind masks and forced to perform imposed roles. The Last Supper is depicted within the walls of a Chinese school, with students wearing red ties sitting at the table. Judas is distinguished by a European business style of clothing (shirt and yellow tie). This is an allegory of the movement of Chinese society towards capitalism and the Western world.

Zhang Xiaogang

What it depicts: monochrome family portraits in the style of the decade of the Cultural Revolution

Why it’s interesting: it captures the subtle psychological state of the nation during the years of the Cultural Revolution. The portraits depict figures posing in artificially correct poses. Frozen facial expressions make the faces identical, but in every expression one can read expectation and fear. Each family member is closed in on himself, individuality is knocked out by barely noticeable details.

Zhang Huan

What it depicts: the artist gained fame through his performances. For example, he undresses, covers himself with honey and sits near a public restroom in Beijing until flies cover him from head to toe.

Why it’s interesting: conceptualist and masochist, explores the depth of physical suffering and patience.

Cai Guoqiang

What it portrays: another performance master. After the shooting of students in Tiananmen Square, the artist sent a message to aliens - he built a model of the square and blew it up. A powerful explosion was visible from space. Since then, a lot of things have been blowing up for aliens.

What makes him interesting: he went from a conceptualist to a court pyrotechnician of the Communist Party. The spectacular visual component of his later works brought him fame as a virtuoso. In 2008, the Chinese government invited Cai Guoqiang to direct a pyrotechnic show at the Olympics.

These are Chinese traditional musical instruments.

(In fact, there are many more varieties).

Contemporary illustrations by artist Van Kunde show how these instruments were used.

The Erhu (二胡, èrhú), a two-string violin, has perhaps the most expressive voice of all bowed string instruments. The erhu is played both solo and in ensembles. It is the most popular stringed instrument among various ethnic groups in China. When playing the erhu, many complex technical bowing and finger techniques are used. The erhu violin often acts as the leading instrument in the orchestra of traditional Chinese national instruments and in the performance of string and wind music.

The word "erhu" is made up of the characters for "two" and "barbarian", as this two-stringed instrument came to China about 1,000 years ago thanks to northern nomadic peoples.

Modern erhus are made of valuable wood, the resonator is covered with python skin. The bow is made of bamboo, on which a horsehair string is stretched. During playing, the musician pulls the string of the bow with the fingers of his right hand, and the bow itself is fixed between two strings, forming a single whole with the erhu.

Pipa (琵琶, pípa) is a 4-string plucked musical instrument, which is sometimes also called the Chinese lute. One of the most common and famous Chinese musical instruments. The pipa has been played in China for more than 1,500 years: the ancestor of the pipa, whose homeland is the area between the Tigris and Euphrates (the Fertile Crescent region) in the Middle East, came to China along the ancient Silk Road in the 4th century. n. e. Traditionally, the pipa was used mainly for solo play, less often in folk music ensembles, usually in southeast China, or to accompany storytellers.

The name "pipa" is associated with the way the instrument is played: "pi" means moving the fingers down the strings, and "pa" means moving the fingers back up. The sound is produced by a plectrum, but sometimes also by a fingernail, which is given a special shape.

Several similar East Asian instruments are derived from the pipa: the Japanese biwa, the Vietnamese đàn tỳ bà, and the Korean bipa.

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Yueqin (月琴, yuèqín, i.e. “moon lute”), or zhuan ((阮), is a type of lute with a round resonator body. The zhuan has 4 strings and a short neck with frets (usually 24). There are also known as a zhuan with an octagonal body, played with a plectrum, the instrument has a melodic sound reminiscent of a classical guitar, and is used both for playing solo and in an orchestra.

In ancient times, the zhuan was called "pipa" or "qin pipa" (i.e. pipa of the Qin dynasty). However, after the ancestor of the modern pipa came to China along the Silk Road during the Tang Dynasty (about 5th century AD), the name "pipa" was assigned to the new instrument, and the lute with a short neck and a round body began to be called " zhuan" - named after the musician who played it, Ruan Xian (3rd century AD). Ruan Xian was one of the seven great scholars known as the "Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove".

Xiao (箫, xiāo) is a vertical flute, usually made of bamboo. This very ancient instrument appears to be descended from the flute of the Tibetan-related Qiang people of southwestern China. An idea of this flute is given by ceramic funerary figurines dating back to the Han Dynasty (202 BC - 220 AD). This instrument is even more ancient than the di flute.

Xiao flutes have a clear sound suitable for playing beautiful melodies that are soothing to the ear. They are often used in solo performance, in ensemble and to accompany traditional Chinese opera.

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XUANGU - hanging drum

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Paixiāo (排箫, páixiāo) is a type of pan flute. Over time, the instrument disappeared from musical use. Its revival began in the 20th century. Paixiao served as a prototype for the development of subsequent generations of this type of instrument.

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The Chinese suona oboe (唢呐, suǒnà), also known as laba (喇叭, lǎbā) or haidi (海笛, hǎidí), has a loud and shrill sound and is often used in Chinese music ensembles. It is an important instrument in the folk music of northern China, especially in Shandong and Henan provinces. Suona is often used at weddings and funeral processions.

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The kunhou harp (箜篌, kōnghóu) is another plucked string instrument that came to China along the Silk Road from Western Asia.

The kunhou harp is often found on the murals of various Buddhist caves of the Tang era, indicating the widespread use of this instrument during that period.

It disappeared during the Ming Dynasty, but in the 20th century. she was revived. Kunhou was known only from frescoes in Buddhist caves, ritual funeral figurines and engravings on stone and brickwork. Then, in 1996, two complete bow-shaped kunhou harps and a number of their fragments were discovered in a tomb in Qemo County (Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region). However, the modern version of this instrument resembles a Western concert harp rather than an ancient kunhou.

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Guzheng (古箏, gǔzhēng), or zheng (箏, "gu" 古 meaning "ancient") is a Chinese zither with movable, loose string supports and 18 or more strings (modern zheng usually has 21 strings). Zheng is the ancestor of several Asian varieties of zither: Japanese koto, Korean gayageum, Vietnamese đàn tranh.

Although the original title of this painting is “Zheng,” the image depicted here is still a guqin (古琴) - a Chinese seven-string zither. Guqin and guzheng are similar in shape, but they are easy to distinguish: while the guzheng has a support under each string, like the Japanese koto, the guqin has no supports.

Since ancient times, the guqin was a favorite instrument of scientists and thinkers; it was considered an exquisite and sophisticated instrument and was associated with Confucius. He was also called the “father of Chinese music” and “the instrument of the sages.”

Previously, the instrument was simply called "qin", but by the 20th century. this term began to denote a whole range of musical instruments: the yangqin, similar to the dulcimer, the huqin family of stringed instruments, the Western piano, etc. Then the prefix “gu” (古), i.e. "ancient, and was added to the name. Sometimes you can also find the name "qixiaqin", i.e. "seven-string musical instrument."

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Dizi (笛子, dízi) is a Chinese transverse flute. It is also called di (笛) or hendi (橫笛). The di flute is one of the most common Chinese musical instruments, and can be found in folk music ensembles, modern orchestras, and Chinese opera. It is believed that dizi came to China from Tibet during the Han Dynasty. Dizi has always been popular in China, which is not surprising, because... it is easy to make and easy to carry.

Today, this instrument is typically made from high quality black bamboo with one blow hole, one membrane hole and six playing holes cut along its entire length. In the north, di is made from black (purple) bamboo, in the south, in Suzhou and Hangzhou, from white bamboo. Southern di, as a rule, are very thin, light and have a quiet sound. However, it would be more correct to call di a “membrane flute,” since its characteristic, sonorous timbre is caused by the vibration of a thin paper membrane, which seals a special sound hole on the flute body.

Art is an integral part of the world cultural heritage. From immature forms of the Neolithic era it gradually turned into highly developed a whole culture that took shape over many centuries.

The main place in Chinese art is given to but landscape painting. Iso A sophisticated technique for painting natural objects with a brush and ink: waterfalls, mountains, plants. The genre of such a landscape in China is traditionally called: shan shui, which means “mountain-water”.

Chinese painters tried to depict not so much the landscape itself, in the European sense of the word, as constantly changing natural states, as well as their impact on humans. However, the man himself, if he is depicted in a landscape, takes a secondary role and looks like a small figure, an outside observer.

Poetic reality is conveyed by two styles of writing: gong-bi, which means “careful brush”, this technique is based on deep elaboration of details and precise transmission of lines; and se-i, which means “expression of thought” - a technique of pictorial freedom.

Wen-ren-hua schools supplemented their pe landscapes with calligraphy - nadp stories with philosophical overtones that never revealed their direct meaning; and tibs - epigrams. Their authors are fans of the artist, who at different periods of time leave them in free areas of the image.

Architecture of China blends into the surrounding landscape. Pagodas in China blend seamlessly into the nature around them. They rise from the ground as naturally as trees or flowers. The silhouette of the Tibetan temple resembles the shape of a mountain or gentle hill on the slope of which it is located.

All this is created with the goal of best contemplating the beauty of nature, so Chinese art did not strive to create grandiose and monumental architectural structures.

The main advantage in the traditional art of China was considered repetition of the works of old masters and loyalty to traditions. Therefore, it can sometimes be quite difficult to determine whether a given thing was made in the 12th or 16th centuries.

“miao.” The center of lace making is Shandong, where Tuscan lace is created; In addition, woven lace from Guangdong province is also known. Chinese brocade is also distinguished by its sophistication; its best types are considered to be cloud brocade, Sichuan brocade, Song brocade and shengzhi. Brocade produced by small nationalities is also popular: Zhuang, Tong, Tai and Tujia.

The art of making porcelain and ceramics is considered one of the greatest achievements Ancient China, porcelain is a kind of pinnacle of traditional Chinese applied art. History of Izg The making of porcelain dates back more than 3 thousand years.

The beginning of its production dates back to approximately the 6th-7th centuries, it was then that, by improving technology and selecting initial components, the first products began to be produced, reminiscent in their qualities of modern porcelain. Modern China porcelain testifies to the continuation of the best traditions of its production in the past, as well as significant achievements of our time.

Making wickerwork- a craft that is popular both in the south of China and in the north. Mostly everyday items are produced.

In the traditions of China, there are all forms of art - both applied and easel, decorative and fine. Chinese art is a long process of shaping the creative worldview of the inhabitants of the Middle Kingdom.

Canvases by Chinese artists of the 21st century continue to sell like hot cakes at auctions, and expensive ones at that. For example, contemporary artist Zeng Fanzhi painted “The Last Supper,” which was sold for $23.3 million, and is included in the list of the most expensive paintings of our time. However, despite its importance on the scale of world culture and world fine art, modern Chinese painting is practically unknown to our people. Read on to learn about ten significant contemporary artists in China.

Zhang Xiaogang

Zhang popularized Chinese painting with his recognizable works. So this modern artist became one of the most famous painters in his homeland. Once you see it, you won't miss his unique family portraits from the "Pedigree" series again. His unique style impressed many collectors, who are now buying contemporary paintings by Zhang for fabulous sums.

The theme of his works is the political and social realities of modern China, which Zhang, who survived the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution of 1966-1967, tries to convey on canvas.

You can see the artist’s works on the official website: zhangxiaogang.org.

Zhao Wuchao

Zhao's homeland is the Chinese city of Hainan, where he received a higher education specializing in Chinese painting. The most famous works are those that the modern artist devotes to nature: Chinese landscapes, images of animals and fish, flowers and birds.

Contemporary Zhao painting contains two different directions of Chinese fine art - the Lingnan and Shanghai schools. From the first, the Chinese artist retained dynamic strokes and bright colors in his works, and from the second, beauty in simplicity.

Zeng Fanzhi

This contemporary artist gained recognition in the 1990s with his series of paintings called “Masks.” They depict eccentric, cartoonish-looking characters with white masks on their faces, which lead the viewer to some confusion. At one time, one of the works in this series broke the record for the highest price for which a painting by a living Chinese artist has ever been sold at auction - and this price was $9.7 million in 2008.

"Self-Portrait" (1996)

Triptych "Hospital" (1992)

Series "Masks". No. 3 (1997)

Series "Masks". No. 6 (1996)

Today Zeng is one of the most successful artists in China. He also makes no secret of the fact that his work is strongly influenced by German Expressionism and earlier periods of German art.

Tian Haibo

Thus, the modern painting of this artist pays tribute to traditional Chinese fine art, in which the image of fish is a symbol of prosperity and great wealth, as well as happiness - this word is pronounced in Chinese as “yu”, and the word “fish” is pronounced in the same way.

Liu Ye

This contemporary artist is known for his colorful paintings and the figures of children and adults depicted in them, also made in a “childish” style. All of Liu Ye's works look very funny and cartoonish, like illustrations for books for children, but despite all the external brightness, their content is rather melancholy.

Like many other contemporary Chinese artists, Liu was influenced by the Cultural Revolution in China, but rather than promoting revolutionary ideas and fighting power in his works, he focused on conveying the inner psychological state of his characters. Some of the artist's contemporary paintings are painted in the style of abstractionism.

Liu Xiaodong

Contemporary Chinese artist Liu Xiaodong paints realist paintings that depict people and places affected by China's rapid modernization.

Liu's contemporary painting gravitates towards small, once industrial cities around the world, where he tries to look for the characters in his paintings. He draws many of his modern paintings based on scenes from life, which look quite bold, naturalistic and frank, but at least truthful. They depict ordinary people as they are.

Liu Xiaodong is considered a representative of the “new realism”.

Yu Hong

Episodes from her own daily life, childhood, the life of her family and her friends are what contemporary artist Yu Hong has chosen as the main subjects of her paintings. However, do not rush to yawn, expecting to see boring self-portraits and family sketches.

Rather, these are vignettes and individual images from her experiences and memories, which are captured on canvas in the form of a kind of collage and recreate general ideas about the past and modern life of ordinary residents of China. This makes Yu’s work look very unusual, both fresh and nostalgic at the same time.

Liu Maoshan

Contemporary artist Liu Maoshan presents Chinese painting in the landscape genre. He became famous at the age of twenty by organizing his own art exhibition in his hometown of Suzhou. Here he paints delightful Chinese landscapes, which harmoniously combine traditional Chinese painting, European classicism, and even modern impressionism.

Now Liu is vice president of the Academy of Chinese Painting in Suzhou, and his watercolor Chinese landscapes are in galleries and museums in the USA, Hong Kong, Japan and other countries.

Fongwei Liu

The gifted and ambitious Fongwei Liu, a contemporary Chinese artist, moved to live in the United States in 2007 in pursuit of his dreams of art, where he graduated from an art academy with a bachelor's degree. Then Liu participated in various competitions and exhibitions and received recognition in painting circles.

The Chinese artist claims that his works are inspired by life and nature itself. First of all, he strives to convey the beauty that surrounds us at every step and hides in the most ordinary things.

Most often he paints landscapes, women's portraits and still lifes. You can see them on the artist’s blog at fongwei.blogspot.com.

Yue Minjun

In his paintings, contemporary artist Yue Minjun tries to comprehend significant moments in the history of China, its past and present. In essence, these works are self-portraits, where the artist depicts himself in a deliberately exaggerated, grotesque form, using the brightest color shades in the spirit of pop art. He paints pictures in oils. In all the canvases, the author’s figures are depicted with wide, even gaping smiles, which look more creepy than comical.

It is easy to see that the artist’s painting was greatly influenced by such an artistic movement as surrealism, although Yue himself is considered an innovator of the “cynical realism” genre. Now dozens of art critics and ordinary viewers are trying to unravel Yue’s symbolic smile and interpret it in their own way. Recognizability of style and originality played into the hands of Yue, who also became one of the most “expensive” Chinese artists of our time.

You can view the artist’s works on the website: yueminjun.com.cn.

And the following video presents modern Chinese painting on silk, the authors of which are artists Zhao Guojing, Wang Meifang and David Li:

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