Author: ZENG FANZHI 曾梵志
Size: 199.6×69.2cm
Signed and dated: Painted in 2000
Estimate:
Final Price: RMB 12,000,000
signed in Chinese & pinyin and dated 2000
REMARK
This work is to be published in the Complete Works of Zeng Fanzhi， No. Z00-09
NOTICE
The work is to be handled and claimed in Hongkong， China. please contact Beijing Poly Auction Modern and Contemporary Department Staff for further details.
Mask Series
If only one keyword could be used to define art， the word “compromise” couldn’t be better. The word here doesn’t stand for a kind of attitude， but more like a kind of relationship. Arts， at all times， relate to and respond to politics， economy and cultural state of the period， especially in the period with numerous contradictions between the three.
This relationship seems to be more complex， and the response gets more penetrating. This is very well presented by Zeng Fanzhi. During the past 30 years， Zeng used his versatile painting styles and constantly-changing art themes to present his understanding towards the relationship between arts and the surroundings in different time periods.
In Chinese Contemporary Art， it is very rare for a bachelor undergraduate to be famous， and Zeng is the one. In 1990， he was still in year 3 in Hu Bei Fine Arts College， and he held his very first exhibition of his works with the 1000 RMB subsidized by his family. Those exhibits fully show his enthusiasm towards expressionism. XieHe Hospital is Zeng’s graduation piece， and from the painted figures’ stare of horror， their cramped facial muscle and their fears， Zeng uses these visual effects to describe people’s unease since China’s reform. While creating the XieHe Trilogy， Zeng started his creation of the Flesh Series. He mixed the flesh of animals’ and human flesh in order to hint people’s reluctant state of minds. If the XieHe Hospital Series and the Flesh Series was portrayed from the third person’s perspective， the followed Mask Series was Zeng’s personal understanding and feeling towards the external society.
During the conversation between Zeng and Li Xianting， Zeng admitted that， since he came to Beijing from Wuhan after the Chinese New Year in 1993， the change in his state of minds have had a significant influence in the Mask. “When I came to Beijing， I found that there was very few friends available for me to talk to. All human interactions seem to be superficial， yet I was forced to interact with people. When you arrive at a new environment， you have to start talking to strangers， and this affects me very much. Therefore， the Mask is more like a presentation of what is going on in my mind， not really what is in other people’s minds.” Zeng said. This is why the Masks become a significant work in Zeng’s art career.
The Mask was created by Zeng in 2000， and with its huge size and volume， the painting provides viewers with an intensive visual effect. The painting has a bright yellow background， evenly coated on the surface. There is a man in simple t-shirt and shorts， standing upright in the middle of clear blue water， occupying the entire vertical space. He has widely opened eyes， howling until the face muscles starts to cramp. This subconsciously gives viewers an unrealistic feeling. Together with the transparent and layered mask on top， this artwork purposely points out the hypocrisy behind people’s smile. This is what people do when facing the harsh and cruel reality， to purposely cover up one’s true self in order to protect oneself. There is nothing we can do to change the reality and this is presented using the two hands hanging naturally on both sides of the man’s body， so natural that it fully demonstrates the existence of gravity. Therefore， the Mask delivers a message of an exhausted and anxious presence， and this mutually responds to the fake smile revealed under the translucent mask. This is what makes this artwork so special. The entire painting seems to be so bright， yet it reveals the harsh and cruel reality.
