PRESS RELEASE

2007 Evening Sale: Liu Ye, Big Flagship

2007-04-23 14:21:42

The lovely cartoon-like paintings of Liu Ye are applauded recently in art market£¬which has appeared somewhat irrational tendency. But this irrational development is just like the style of Liu Ye¡¯s paintings which is also mainly constructed by an irrational narrative structure. On the other hand, what Liu Ye¡¯s works represented in art market reflects the real rationally emotional need of human soul, which is the reminiscence of past time and childhood memory. Liu Ye¡¯s works are temptations for those who have a childlike heart. In addition, the picture of Liu Ye¡¯s paintings has also somewhat ornamental effect and readable narration, which is an important reason for his works to be welcomed by collectors and viewers. As a matter of fact, Liu Ye¡¯s works are not real representation and reminiscence of past time; it is rather an expression of untruthful experience. If we go further alone this experience, we will be led into a scene of uneasiness. This kind of experience exists between real and illusory space, which will cause a mournful emotion erupting from it. It is seemed a deliberated design worked by the artist, who thinks there is always a kind of mournful sense hiding behind auspicious feeling. His works are regard by him as the real expression of inner world of human being. Liu Ye thinks it is easier to touch viewers through expressing the mournful sense with happy images than to do it directly with sorrow images. What the Big Flagship tells is such kind of a story. The whole picture of the painting, like a stage, is almost covered by a big red curtain. There is a little mariner opening the curtain in the stage, and peeping out from here. From the interstice uncovered by the mariner in the curtain, there appears a head of huge battleship. What the little mariner doing seems to wait for announcing the starting of a drama. The stage-like composition enforces the dramatic and illusory effect of the painting, arousing the surprise of the viewers, who in front of the picture just like the audience of a drama. The arrangement of the light casting on the stage give viewers a kind of sense as staying in the scene of a dream. The image of battleship brings the painting a politic allegory topic, which causes the contradiction between the childlike language of the picture and the violent icon.