Josep Soler i Casanellas
Yue Minjun
Yue Minjun (岳君 Born in 1962 in the town of Daqing in Heilongjiang). He is best known for oil paintings depicting him in various settings, frozen in laughter. He has also reproduced this signature image in sculpture, watercolor and prints. While Yue is often classified as part of the Chinese “Cynical Realist” movement in art developed in China since 1989, Yue himself rejects this label, while at the same time "doesn't concern himself about what people call him."
One of the most recognizable artists in the West for their smiling faces, smiling a self-portrait. One of the artists trying to evolve, leaving behind these icons. From his early work in interpreting the works from classic western painters but lack the main figure; their smiling faces; to the interpretation of the great traditional Chinese artists in his Labyrinth series, in this particular works Yue Minjun adopts the black-and-white technique of Chinese classical painting to reintroduce the precious Chinese cultural heritage and its wealth of painting epitomized by maestros like Qi Baishi, Zhang Daqian, and Xu Beihong, which the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) suppressed for the reason of being part of the feudalistic “old culture”; or the last coming back to his firsts motives with a series of pieces re-appropriating classical Christian paintings like The Annunciation except the main characters are missing leaving empty structures and buildings.
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