Author: DUAN JIANYU 段建宇
Size: 181×217cm
Signed and dated: Painted in 2011
Estimate:
Final Price: RMB 920,000
LITERATURE
2011 Duan Jianyu - Apotheosis of Imagination / Hunan Fine Arts Publishing House
2014 Within Sight： Chinese New Painting at Post Financial Crisis Era / P25 / Poly Art Museum
initialed in pinyin and dated 2011.1
EXHIBITED
2011 Art Changsha - Dissociation，Hunan Museum，Changsha
2014 Within Sight： Chinese New Painting at Post Financial Crisis Era，Poly Art Museum，Beijing
2015 Blow-up： Chinese New Painting at Post Financial Crisis Era，Changjiang Museum of Contemporary Art，Chongqing
Jianyu has always been attracted and tempted by the most‘popular’and‘kitsch’themes； let’s just think of her numerous reproductions of the Guilin landscape. Every time she ventures into these realms，she seems to prove that she can still make such well-known sights look different and fresh. I guess it is her way of looking at life，of trying not to see the repetitive aspects of it，but rather to enhance the unique bits，the surprising，small details that can add taste even to the most stale routine.
Another milestone Jianyu is not afraid to challenge is traditional Chinese painting （in her days as a student，she used to be keener on subjects from the history of Western art，such as Manet’s famous paintings）. Her works playfully include the most common inhabitants of the famous Suzhou Gardens，namely，’plum trees，orchids，bamboo，chrysanthemums，peonies，and pines’，while further elements include‘mist and mountains’. These are considered‘noble’，’cultivated’themes and most classical Chinese painters have tackled them，expressing their refined taste and masterly technique，their individuality imbued with the spirit of nature，of life. Even talking about such elevated matters should be avoided by someone not possessing the due respect and knowledge，let alone Jianyu’s irreverent choice of juxtaposing these almost sacred visual icons with the trivial items of everyday life，such as Chinese cabbage，watermelon，carrot and eggplant，or her depictions of the omnipresent‘arty chicken’，curled up on a peony bush，peeping among a bunch of lotus flowers... Seldom do Jianyu’s chickens behave like ordinary chickens in their natural environment，although in a few of last year’s paintings we may notice an exception. In these works，the destabilizing effects are attained through other personages： like the naked beauty and the humble nursing woman，symbols of an anachronistic，yet wistful，sense of universal maternity.
In the most recent paintings I have seen，a dancing beauty performing upon a threshing floor to the musical accompaniment of a peasant playing a traditional Chinese string instrument，shows signs of aging as her plump naked breasts have lost their firmness. In another canvas，the naked female‘goddess of music’displays the same embarrassing sight，although the feminine，elegant way of turning away her face and her carefully dressed hair clash with the heavy bosom. Gourds are mixed with instruments，but for me the most interesting part is the velvet background，painted in such a vibrant way that the eye is never tired of getting lost in it.
I believe there is no need to describe other works by Duan Jianyu，since what really matters is the way the artist plays with all the elements，freely mixing them with no holds barred. Yet the artist does not intend to be derogatory towards them； certainly not towards her beloved Chinese tradition，nor towards popular or Western culture. She deeply respects all of these，she enjoys and needs them all，as she grew up with them. She just claims the right to give them a new possibility，a new life，and to be the creator of this miracle.
-Monica Dematté，The Painter as a Meta-linguist
