Art for itself and inaction

By MAO Xuhui and Zhang Guanghua

Zhang Guanghua: I came to Yunnan in 2006 and have been involved in various activities of Yunnan contemporary art since then. I have done a lot of work, such as planning exhibitions, writing reviews, inviting interviews and investigating history. Therefore, I have established good trust and mutual support with you.In the second year of my visit to Kunming, I planned the exhibition "Ongoing In Kunming" held in the Sense Art Space of Tank Contemporary Art Center in Chongqing. The exhibition was mainly attended by artists born in the 1970s, among whom Zhao Guanghui was a prominent one.His sculptures are full of the tension of life, and ordinary motorcycles can become flesh and blood in his hands, moving and without losing the texture of steel.He loved the car because he understood the car, the passion of the rotating speed, scrap rust after the bleak and helpless, is to write a passionate song of life.The first exhibition preparation meeting was held in the small yard of his studio in kunming automobile factory. That afternoon, many people came to play CARDS, drink and talk about art, which was the most unforgettable party in my life.It was at that time that I got to know almost all the post-70s artists gathered in Kunming.The exhibition plan was finalized on the same day, because their simplest passion for art moved me, and their eagerness to communicate with the outside world through the exhibition did not allow me to delay.

The exhibition was launched in August 2007, and it went very well. The album was made and distributed to the media.The sichuan Academy of Fine Arts, which is also the major city of art in southwest China, and its audience really felt the original strength of yunnan Art in this exhibition. They could smell in the works the flavor of nature and ecology, the flavor of freedom and irconstancy, and more importantly the flavor of life nurtured by the blue sky and red earth.That is what trendy Chongqing lacks.At the same time, the exhibition should be celebrated for bringing out a new face of art born in the 1980s -- Xun Guipin. We are moved by his studiousness and believe that he will make a great achievement if we give him full encouragement.

In November of the same year, I got an opportunity to work in Today Art Museum in Beijing, so I took the opportunity to study in the North.About the same time, Xue Tao and other yunnan artists already drift into Beijing, for the body in Kunming Yang Wenping, MAO Yiyun (has died), Wu yiqiang contact the studio, the three of them also before I arrived in Beijing.In 2008, Zhao Guanghui also came, and then some young artists from Yunnan came and went. Su Yabi also stayed in Beijing for a few days for the exhibition.During my busy and fulfilling editing career in Beijing, they became my relatives in Beijing, meeting each other every weekend and often being taken care of by them.Seeing their situation in Beijing getting better day by day, I am truly gratified and happy.Unfortunately, I have fallen in love with Yunnan. I was deeply attracted by the spring weather and the simple and honest people in Yunnan. So I returned to Kunming in early 2009.

When I returned to Kunming again, it was a group of post-80s artists who could make me feel the youthful atmosphere of Yunnan contemporary art. The figures of the post-70s gradually became sparse, and the separation of some of their companions made them fight for themselves more difficult.At the same age, I soon became good friends with my younger and younger schoolmates born in the 1980s. I pretended to laugh and talk with them in a mature way, listen to their artistic problems that they think all night long, and appreciate their simple description of the world.The same background and strong artistic belief brought them together.They were born in the embrace of the mountains and the wild, so familiar and kind to nature, but they had to seek for the capital of artistic creation in the city with developed information.Natural simplicity meets the complexity of the city, and painting is the safest and most thorough way for them to express themselves.

Three years passed in a flash. In these three years, I basically participated in the activities of pu Yan, Sun Jin, Ma Dan, Guan Saimei, Xun Guipin, Tao Fa, Li Rui, Su Bin, Liu Renxian and other post-80s artists. These activities were all born in Yunnan and around me.They are also, as popular emotion theory would have it, a little painful.When artists in other regions reduce pressure and advance with the support and care of the local collection space, such as chamber of commerce, enterprises and government agencies, they can only share the continuous breakthrough of the team in artistic creation."Seeds of yunnan", "across the bridge rice noodle", "" guishan stand these with visible landmark subject to become a major way, they recommend that the start of the doomed to make their each person's personality traits have loss, although each individual personality is objective existence, the audience's first impression often make him before they enter the exhibition hall has established common associations, holding the same holistic experience to leave.Each other, growing up in mentors in the face of some similar life experience I also make some approximate expression of the elements, and year after year, friends feelings and emotional independence set does not constitute a contradiction in the system, the reason of the individual life experience witness to the world view is the inevitable process of artists change, also the orientation of their progress.

Older students born in the 1970s also occasionally participate in these activities, but their contact with them is becoming less and less, which means that their relationship with Yunnan after going out is gradually estranged, but not emotionally. It is just a matter of opportunity.70 edition or 80 edition, they are all the seeds of Yunnan, conveying the eternal life consciousness and nature care of Yunnan art together.Therefore, I have been looking for the opportunity to bring them together again, to build the most solid information platform for the complete textual research of clues.I also hope that through this kind of exhibition, we can support the discussion of more issues, such as why the artists born in the 1970s have to leave their hometown and take the initiative to do so while the artists born in the 1980s are more comfortable to stay here?Is it a matter of market opportunity or a matter of language?

Su Yabi's patience and devotion make time give up the urge to her, a trace of painstaking care of polishing into each texture of the work, the life memory bit by bit to figure out accurately describe the true microcosm of life;Puyan draws a blank city into the building blocks she played with when she was a child. The subconscious of local elements enters into the game that breaks the geometric logic to release life and recall the warmth of the countryside.Xue Tao total love no injury elegant ground to play a joke, bingbing the works of its character also love insinuation, the distortion of the more allude to the fact instead;Tao fa seems to be a god who was sent into the world to suffer from the three reincarnation due to alcoholism. No matter what circumstances he was born into, not pleased by external gains, not saddened by personal losses can always create a home for emotional sublimation in the wine fantasy.Liu Renxian is not free and easy than Tao Fa, but also quite show free and easy, agitated love is immersed in the static relationship of life such as this however, the article of one corner of the bedroom is mixed, the vigor of the garden corner is arbitrary, he laughs at everything, but never game, the key is that he is holding the metonymy philosophy of things and the world.Xungupin tried many styles in the history of modern art, but each time his investment led him to the next thinking, and finally he found the truth of art and beauty, so he poured into the pursuit of color of space-time structure...

No matter it is the detailed description of the external form or the sharp discussion of the quality of life, they are eliminating the selfish distractions, only to create meaningful works of art, and assume more cultural responsibilities.What is cultural responsibility and what is meaningful work?This question needs to be communicated with our common mentor, MAO Xuhui, an artist who has experienced all kinds of hardships on the road of art. Whether there is a result or not is not important. What is important is to guide us to a more profound thinking.

Mao xuhui: It's really a good idea to combine the 70 and 80 edition artists.As early as the establishment of Kunming Chuangku in 2001, these 70 edition artists began to become active and actively participated in and organized some activities of great significance in the history of yunnan contemporary art, such as "Physical Examination" in 2002, "Here comes the Sheep!-- Selected works exhibition of Yunnan Young Artists in 2002, "Anxiety and Retention" in 2004, "A Tale of Two Cities -- Dreams and Reality under the pen of 12 Artists" in 2005.I have been personally involved in the planning of these events and have written many articles about them.At that time, the 70 version of the artist was still a new force, not much of a problem for the post-1980s generation, many of whom were just entering college.However, after 2007, most of the 70 edition artists went to Beijing successively, such as Xue Tao, Shi Jing, He Jia, Yang Wenping, Wu Yiqiang, MAO Yiyun, Zhao Guanghui, Jiang Jing, and others chose to go abroad, such as Zhang Qiongfei. Only a few stayed in Kunming, such as Zhao Leiming and LAN Qingxing.After they went out, the cohesion of the 70 edition artists was largely destroyed and they faced a solo career.Of course, their situation was mixed. Many artists signed contracts with well-known galleries and participated in many important art activities. However, I always felt that they did not put forward a clear concept for contemporary art, instead, they caused a lack of cultural sense of belonging.

Since 2008, the post-80s students have graduated and cut a figure, creating a new active period for Yunnan contemporary art.In April 2010, "My Landscape, My Utopia" was held in China Yibo International Gallery Exhibition; in May, "Transforming History -- Chinese Youth Art Invitational Exhibition" was curated by Lu Peng; in September, "Crossing the Bridge rice Noodles: Young Artists' Works Exhibition in Yunnan" was held in Beijing Dialogue Space Gallery."Yunnan Seed - Yunnan Artists Group Exhibition" held by Soka Art in Taiwan in March 2011, and "Guishan Grandstand - Yunnan Contemporary Art Special Exhibition" held at the invitation of Chengdu Biennale in October, among these exhibitions, artists born after 1980 stood out.In just three years, they have established good cooperative relations with Shanghai Hongqiao Gallery, Taiwan Soka Art Gallery, Taiwan Qiudao Yu Gallery, Beijing Dialogue Space, Singapore Simin Art Garden, Chengdu Kai Gallery and some local art institutions in Yunnan.

Yunnan, an art group born in the 1980s, has a very close relationship with nature. Green is a common feature reflected in their works. I found and praised this feature of cultural value in contemporary urban life, and called it "green value" when promoting their works.But the full realization and establishment of this value will take a process, and what we can do is to announce this discovery to the community in order to encourage them to value this common experience, to continue to deepen, not to give up.At this time, they need to learn the lessons of the 70 edition. When we are relatively weak and immature, we should rely more on the overall strength to break through and establish a complete language system or cultural system, rather than fighting alone, otherwise we will be in danger of losing the sense of cultural belonging.This is the 30-odd years of art history experience of reform and opening up. For example, the "Eighth five Year Trend of Thought" has driven the transformation of Chinese culture and changed the cultural landscape of the new era through this collective force.At that time, the group craze was actually the unique language ecology jointly created by some artistic youth who were also teachers and friends in various regions.The basic pattern of today's contemporary art has been laid by the emergence of art groups throughout the country.In the special cultural environment of China, this experience will be continued and preserved.

Unlike the 70 edition, the 80 edition's artists were all based in Yunnan and did not rush to Or think about Beijing.In particular, their outstanding performance during the Chengdu Biennale highlights the superiority of the collective cultural atmosphere.Although defining a culture is a thankless task, a culture without a sense of belonging must be pitiful.Therefore, I am looking forward to helping the 70 edition artists drifting in Beijing regain their cultural sense of belonging and feel at home through this exhibition.They are all my students, and I know them well, and I hope that in this day and age they will take on more cultural responsibility, not just for individual success, but to go back to the roots of the culture that they grew up in, and take responsibility for carrying on and promoting that culture.In the long run, it is also a contribution to human art.If they don't have that sense of cultural commitment, that inner neglect of the importance of cultural awareness, I will be disappointed, really disappointed.In that way, I would think that all my efforts in the past years have been in vain. I have simply made a living for the student and helped him find a new employer.But I believe that they will not disappoint me. They will certainly inherit the pioneering and enterprising spirit of the "Southwest Art Research group" and make the life force of Southwest art and the whole contemporary art continue.We are now in the stage of life where we cannot get back the anger of youth, and we have done our duty, and now is the time for you young people to do it.If you don't take responsibility for your own culture, who can we expect from our cultural inheritance?In fact, cultural inheritance depends on the strength of the people, we can not expect the system to replace their own responsibility.Let's hope they know.

As another starting point of the exhibition suggests, they are now in their thirties and increasingly emotionally charged with family responsibilities.All kinds of contradictions in life are very real, artists do not need to get around these problems, also can not get around.On the other hand, without this kind of life experience, where do we get inspiration for artistic creation?Ordinary artists like us must adjust their own life and take their due responsibilities, while at the same time finding their own artistic materials and motivation in such a life and establishing their own language system.No matter where it is, there will not be a carefree environment like Eden for artists to create. Only in this real life, can art and culture have a real relationship with human existence.