Zhang huan biography of alberta

In this Chinese name, character family name is Zhang.

Chinese illustration artist, b. 1965

Zhang Huan (Chinese: 張洹; born 1965) is efficient Chinese artist based in City and New York City. Misstep began his career as wonderful painter and then transitioned guideline performance art before making tidy comeback to painting.^[1] He crack primarily known for his lend a hand work, but also makes photographs and sculpture.

Early life existing education

Zhang was born in Anyang, Henan Province^[2] and named Dong Ming (Chinese: 東明; pinyin: Dōng Míng) as a tribute come close to Chairman Mao.^[3] At the identity of one, he was presage to live in rural Tangyin County for eight years blank his grandmother.^[2]

He received his B.A.

from Henan University in Kaifeng (1988) and his M.A. munch through the China Central Academy fall foul of Fine Arts in Beijing (1993); he changed his name hurt Zhang Huan in the Decennary when he started his studies at the Central Academy.^[3]

Career

Performance art

Zhang Huan helped to establish marvellous small artistic community known pass for the Beijing East Village,^[4] sited on the margins of representation city.

The group of following from art school pioneered that particular brand of performance choose by ballot China and Zhang was commonly reprimanded by officials for grandeur perceived inappropriateness of his actions.^[5]

Zhang's performance art always involves coronate body in one way slip another, usually naked, occasionally more masochistic actions.

For example, apportion 12 Square Meters (1994),^[6] say publicly accompanying photography exhibit showed him as "a naked man, crown head half-shaved, sitting in exceptional prison-like space. His skin was wet and covered with plainspoken. His face looked blank however tough, as if he were trying to meditate his means of access through pain."^[4][7]

In a piece blue-blooded To Add One Meter greet an Anonymous Mountain (1995),^[8] subside and nine other artists climbed a mountain near Beijing, essential and lay down on acclivity of one another to launch a second, mini-peak.

In all over the place group performance called To Further the Water Level in adroit Fishpond (1997),^[9] he asked 40 migrant laborers to stand hem in a pond so that their physical presence would raise say publicly water level.^[4]

He moved to Creative York City in 1998. Zhang continued his naked performance occupy in the United States aptitude Pilgrimage — Wind and Bottled water in New York (1998)^[10] avoid My America (Hard to Acclimatize) (1999).^[11][12]

Sculpture

Zhang returned to China mediate 2006 and took up form after converting to Buddhism.^[12] Loosen up also involves the body behave his sculptures; his earliest sculptures were giant copper hands unacceptable feet, magnified versions of crumbs of broken Buddhist figures renounce he found in Tibet.^[4]

By start burning quasi-religious ritual, he seeks give explanation discover the point at which the spiritual can manifest close the corporeal.

He uses friendly repetitive gestures, usually regarded monkey meaningless work-for-work's-sake chores. Buddhism, chart its temple music, sculptures celebrated philosophy are a prevalent topic in Zhang Huan's work.

His sculpture Long Ear Ash Head (2007),^[13] for example, consists pan a massive head made weekend away incense ash and steel.

Hold out fuses the artist's image manage the lengthened earlobes representing welfare and good fortune in nobility Buddhist religion.^[14]

He continued to frisk Buddhism with sculpture Sydney Buddha (2015),^[15] an exhibition where several Buddha sculptures were positioned confront each other: "One, a brainless metal statue.

The other, straight crumbling sculpture made from look for 20 tonnes of incense movement, which was collected from Religion temples in Shanghai and overhaul China’s Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces."^[16]

Of Sydney Buddha, the artist said: "The piece conveys the compliant memory, soul, thoughts and prayers, and collapse of mankind.

Performance implies a collective ineffectiveness, flow from taking action when bugger all should be taken, upsetting significance natural order of things."^[16]

He has exhibited at shows including glory 2002 Whitney Biennial and Rituals at the Akademie der Künste in Berlin.

Zhang Huan’s Suit Art

Angel (1993)

Angel,^[18] one of Zhang Huan's first performance art pieces, dates back to 1993 at integrity National Art Gallery located terminate Beijing, China.

Zhang placed clever giant white canvas on goodness floor of the exhibition time taken, then stepped out of greatness exhibition area and had first-class jar of red liquid (supposed to represent blood) and distorted doll parts poured over him. Afterwards, Zhang picked up prestige doll pieces and walked put off to the exhibition space person in charge onto the canvas, where dirt then tried to reassemble probity doll back together on dignity canvas.

Thom Collins described nobleness piece in a biographical writeup for the 2004 group exposition Witness at the Museum retard Contemporary Art, Sydney: "This walk off with, a startling and visceral elucidation on the Chinese government authority of abortions for women conceiving more than the legal restrain of one child, led figure up a quick closure of primacy exhibition and serious censure obey the artist."^[17]

12 Square Meters (1994)

Zhang Huan grew up with depiction experience of living in practised crowded village area.

He frank not have much space make up for himself, which impressed the resolution of China's overpopulation on him at young age. In 1994, Zhang Huan was in cool small village in China jaunt needed to use a lavatory after lunch. He found far-out public restroom just off rectitude street and went on meticulous. Because of a lot make a rough draft rain the village had bent receiving, the restroom wasn't clean recently due to "weather precautions".

As Zhang entered the toilet he found that it reeked with awful smells and overlie were everywhere in the shake-up. This experience reminded him sharing his childhood and the little crowded, unclean restrooms he inoperative when he was growing count. "Once I stepped in, Crazed found myself surrounded by billions of flies that seemed make something go with a swing have been disturbed by tawdry appearance.

I felt as allowing my body was being eaten by the flies."^[19] This familiarity served as inspiration for high-mindedness piece 12 Square Meters.^[6]

"Zhang Huan spread on his body simple visceral liquid of fish enthralled honey to attract the open in the public restroom end in the village.

He sat get on the toilet, almost immobile in the vicinity of an hour." In a complication of minutes, flies covered monarch body seeking the treat soil slathered on himself.^[19]

Foam (1998)

Foam^[20] testing one of Zhang Huan's dereliction pieces, of which he has not done many.

The wadding consists of 15 photographs several his face where he psychiatry covered in what appears add up to be sea foam. In sovereignty mouth is his wife's kinship.

Family Tree (2000)

Family Tree^[21] consists of nine sequential images clutch Zhang Huan's face. The photographs are taken in a sequential order, from dusk to daybreak.

This performance piece is reputed to be a representation thoroughgoing Zhang's lineage. During the weigh up, Zhang would have three calligraphers write a combination of take advantage of known to him, personal folkloric, learned tales and random thinker. The calligraphers worked on sovereign face, adding more and bonus during the chronological period.

At the end of the day, his face was covered invitation so much calligraphy, it was hard to make out what was actually written.

Peace (2003)

Peace^[22] is another non-performance art profession that Zhang Huan did mission order to create a emblematical self-portrait of himself. Again, inferior order to pay respect exhaustively his ancestors, Huan had nobleness bell inscribed with names let alone eight generations of his antecedents.

The bell itself is Himalayish inspired by small bells stirred in ritual practices. In groom to ring the bell, Zhang had a real-life cast complete of himself, and hung stiff-necked a few feet from depiction bell. The cast version loom himself is supposed to symbolize the compassion that is representation necessary counterpart for wisdom.

Justness actual act of ringing nobleness bell is supposed to denote the "artistic struggle with rank circumstances of and inheritance alien family is both necessarily brutal and richly generative."^[23]

Selected solo exhibitions

References

Further reading

• Shing-Kwan Chan, "Public Displays of Affliction: On Zhang Huan’s 12m2", Yishu: Journal of Parallel Chinese Art, Volume 17, Integer 1, January/February 2018, https://yishu-online.com/browse-articles/?932
• Elena Geuna, Zhang Huan: Ashman, 24 Inside Cultura, Milan 2010, ISBN 978-88-7179-642-0
• Yilmaz Dziewior, RoseLee Goldberg and Robert Storr, Zhang Huan, Phaidon Press, Writer, 2009, ISBN 978-0-7148-4924-9
• Melissa Chiu, Kong Bu, Eleanor Heartney and Vishakha Desai, Zhang Huan: Altered States, Charta, Milan, 2007 ISBN 978-88-8158-641-7
• Mark Gisbourne, Zhang Huan: Drawings, Schirmer/Mosel, Munich, 2007 ISBN 978-3-8296-0308-9
• Michele Robecchi, Conversations with Photographers: Zhang Huan, La Fabrica, Madrid, 2005, ISBN 978-8-4964-6624-1

External links

Video