Whitewall [Video]

A short little monologue from Yu Hong on her life, experiences, inspirations and art. 

Yu Hong Routine Series [Exhibition]

The Routine Exhibition is made up of two sets of new works including 6 oil paintings on canvas initiating a new series named Routine, and another set of 15 works on paper where she gives us insight on her life and her daughter's. The series features everyday moments and activities such as shopping at the mart, swimming, and having a good time with friends. These beautiful works of art, rendered in such artistic brushwork makes the viewer pause and appreciate moments like these. It gives a sense of nostalgia to those who've experienced similar things, which is mostly everyone. It makes people recognize how valuable each moment we live in is, how our routine activities fill out our days and makes them what they are, wether in China or America.

"Me in Bed" (2003)
Acrylic on Canvas
70" x 59 7/8"

"Me at Party" (2003) 
Acrylic on Canvas 
70" x 59 7/8"

"Food Shopping" (2003) 
Acrylic on Canvas 
70" x 59 7/8"

"Food Shopping" (2002) 
Acrylic on Canvas 
70" x 59 7/8"

"Me in Water" (2003) 
Acrylic on Canvas 
70" x 59 7/8"

"Undressing" (2002) 
Acrylic on Canvas 
70" x 59 7/8"

Reflections on Life [Video]

This is a short video by Thomas Rhazi, capturing Yu Hong's heart and how she draws inspiration on the frenetic rush of her motherland, China. 

Yu Hong [Essay]

Yu Hong, born in China in 1966 is a contemporary Chinese artist who draws inspiration in everyday life, finding poetry in day-to-day moments and portraying them in a way that captures the moment with a nostalgic and evocative feeling. Her technical painting skills are very rich, rendering figures full of expression and endearment. Her techniques come from years of experience and practice in the Oil Painting Department of the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing, China, where she learned the masteries of many mediums including oils, watercolors, pastels, and acrylics. As she grew as an artist, her skills became better and better, gaining immense insight from observing everyday life and maturing into what her work is now. Her natural sensitivity to both facial expressions and body postures are what draw people to her art. She usually paints about herself, her life, her friends and family and her young daughter, Liu Wa, occasionally painting strangers living their everyday moments and capturing them in painting. Yu Hong is one unique artist who doesn't sugarcoat her images with symbolism or sentimentality, she just paints what she sees and she does it in such a good way that it captures the value of individual scenes of everyday life.  

            This artist has had multiple exhibitions, but some of her most prominent ones are “Routine Series” (2002-2003), “In and Out of Time” (2010), “The Witness Gallery” (2002) and the most recent one “Golden Horizon” (2010-2011). The Routine Exhibition is made up of two sets of new works including 6 acrylic paintings on canvas initiating a new series named Routine, and another set of 15 works on paper where she gives us insight on her life and her daughter's. The series features everyday moments and activities such as shopping at the mart, swimming with her daughter, and having a good time with friends. These beautiful works of art, rendered in such artistic brushwork makes the viewer pause and appreciate moments like these. It gives a sense of nostalgia to those who've experienced similar things, which is mostly everyone since it draws from slices of life. It makes people recognize how valuable each moment we live in is, how our routine activities fill out our days and makes them what they are, whether in China or America or anywhere else in the world.

Another one of Hong's more well known series is the Witness gallery, consisting of 7 pieces where she utilized family photographs to record her and her daughter's growth. All of these showcase her amazing technique in pastels and capture some simple everyday moments with a beautiful portrayal of expression and body language. This series was later included in the “Routine Series” Exhibition amongst the other 15 pieces.

In April 24, 2010, Beijin, China. Yu Hong presented her works at yet another exhibition, the Opposite House in Beijing, in which she selected from a few of her recent solo shows at Guangdong Museum of Fine Arts. Her works are on her experience as a woman, taking inspiration from her life and those around her. The works are in resin, where faces of familiar people are painted on silk and carefully embedded within the sheets of resin. Each transparent plaque shimmers under the light, reflecting the luminosity and making it seem like it’s capturing a frozen moment in time. Very different from her usual work and yet it so clearly screams Yu Hong as the fleeting feelings captured in each piece reflect her voice.

The most important exhibition yet, has to be the “Golden Horizon” Exhibition by Yu Hong, which took place from September 13 to September 24, 2011 at the Shanghai Art Museum. This exhibition followed her two most well known ones "In and Out of Time" (Guangdong Museum of Fine Art, 2009) and "Golden Sky" (Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, 2010). "Golden Horizon" is composed of 29 paintings divided into 3 sections. These pieces preserve those fleeting moments of affection in her day-to-day life on her gold-foiled canvases. The first section contains the two main works are "Ladder to the Sky" (2008) and Romance of Spring (2008). Ladder to the Sky is a 6-meter high painting related to the divine ascension, but Yu Hong features ordinary people instead. Romance of the Spring, spans 12 meters and is influenced by the classical Chinese Dynasty painting "The Court Ladies preparing New Woven Silk". She depicts each figure with individual strength and spirit. The second section consists of four major frescoes paintings including "Atrium" (2010), "Questions for Heaven" (2010), "Natural Selection" (2010) and "Sky Curtain". These paintings are influenced by the Italian fresco paintings depicting the triumphs of Hercules, a Buddhists cave painting in Dunhuang's Mogao Grottoes, a small etching by Francisco Goya and a cave painting in Kizil, Xinjiang. The paintings are displayed on the ceiling as a way to stay true to the Italian ceiling fresco paintings, giving the viewer a change in perspective while viewing each piece. The third section, last but not least, is made up of brand new paintings. The central piece if Yu Hong's most ambitious work to date, taking form of a classical Catholic altar painting, but making a central point in the social, cultural and political situations of China now. The exhibition also includes three new series, Spontaneous Motion, Westling, and a body of paintings from various snapshots of contemporary lives, such as Silence and Balance. They portray realistic representations of everyday experiences and focus on the younger generation and how they maintain a balance between tradition and social expectations. 

Yu Hong has steadily made a name for herself with these scrapbook-like exhibitions where she’s able to have the viewers understand her voice and importance of everyday moments. Now, with each piece selling at around $50,000 each, she’s become one of China’s most important female artists.