Yan Pei-Ming: Landscape of Childhood

The Exhibition

UCCA presents Landscape of Childhood, an exhibition by major artist Yan Pei-Ming. Following Mona Lisa's Funeral exhibition in Musée du Louvre, Landscape of Childhood will stand as a surprising show and the first time Yan Pei-Ming has produced a show without canvases, by experimenting with installation.

"Yan Pei-Ming has become the ultimate artist portraying the iconic characters of our time. His work stands as a major reference on the international contemporary art scene and this show should remain a milestone in history since it features the icons of tomorrow: the next generation of Chinese citizens framed into an empty landscape, the future'', says Jérôme Sans, UCCA Director and co-curator of Landscape of Childhood.

Huge landscapes directly painted on the walls of UCCA's Big Hall frame a series of painted flags representing portraits of 34 children. Imagined as an abounding walk trough faces and urban views, the exhibition powerfully conveys Yan Pei-Ming's intentions and gives the audience an opportunity to discover a striking vision of our world in a landscape of crisis and beyond.

Yan Pei-Ming is famous for his monochromatic large portraits executed in either black and white or red shades. "I have never felt it necessary to put some things around the persons; I just want to draw portraits," explains the artist.

"Yan Pei-Ming's portraits, furiously and quickly executed with a strong, large brushstroke technique, bring about the artist's concerns on social conflicts and international politics and present his ongoing interest for problems of universal human nature'', analyses Guo Xiaoyan, UCCA Chief Curator and co-curator of Landscape of Childhood.

The Artist

Born in Shanghai in 1960 and living in Dijon, France, since the early 1980s, Yan Pei-Ming has always been interested in the concepts of individuality and anonymity expressed in the portraits and landscapes he paints. He has been one of the first Chinese artists to settle and build his career abroad.

Yan Pei-Ming has taken part in numerous group and solo shows. The artist's many prestigious group shows include The unhomely, Phantom Scenes in Global Society, 2nd Biennale International of Contemporary Art, Seville, Spain (2006), A propos du Lingchi (supplice des 100 morceaux), with Huang Yong Ping, Musée Denon, Chalon-sur-Saône, France, Moi - Autoportraits du xxe siècle, Musee du Luxembourg, Paris, France (both 2004), New Zone-Chinese Art, Zacheta National Gallery of Art, Warsaw, Poland (2003), The Venice Biennale, Italy (2003 and 1995) ; and Lyon Biennale, Lyon, France ( 2000 and 1997). Yan Pei-Ming's most awarded solo exhibitions include The Way of the Dragon, Kunsthalle, Mannheim (2004), Hommage à mon père, Dijon-Shanghai-Guangdong, Shanghai Art Museum, Shanghai and Guangdong Museum of Art, Guangzhou, (2005), Inside the red window-Confession, Gallery Massimo De Carlo, Milan (2005), Execution, Musée d'Art Moderne, Saint-Etienne (2006), You maintain a sense of balance in the midst of great success, David Zwirner Gallery, New York (2007), The Yan Pei-Ming Show, Galleria Massimo De Carlo, Milan (2007), Portraits d'artistes, Fondation Maeght, France (2007), Yan Pei-Ming with Yan Pei-Ming, GAMeC, Bergamo, Italy (2008), Life Souvenir , Des Moines Art Center, Iowa, U.S.A (2008), Yes, San Francisco, California, U.S.A (2009), Les Funérailles de Monna Lisa, Musée du Louvre, Paris, France (2009).

Yan Peiming
Landscape of Childhood
Kuratoren: Jerome Sans, Guo Xiaoyan