For a nation on a high gear towards mass rapid commercialization, China political agendas do not nurture acts of individualism. Chinese artists constantly re-invent the self by examining such issues as freedom and independence and through their personal expression; they demonstrate their rights to exist. Their refusal to adhere to a single style allows them freedom to experiment on a wide range of conceptual ideas within a common theme.  In this collaborative exhibition “Passion in Politics”, 1918artspace provides a platform for five prominent artists, TAN Genxiong, ZHANG Yong, TANG Shu, SHEN Jingdong and SUN Hao. TAN Genxiong was trained in the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Fine Arts Academy in the 1970s. He currently teaches at the East China Normal University in which ZHANG Yong and TANG Shu were both once his students. SHEN Jingdong and SUN Hao were both trained in the art academy and have both served in the Chinese military. All five artists confront social issues through their highly intense individual approach with deep personal meaning. They possess a heightened awareness of political issues, but instead of addressing it in a formal conscious manner; they turned inwards, creating works that liberate the individual heart and soul.


Leon Trotsky (1879-1921), a Russian Marxist theorist, once said
"Art must make its own way and by its own means."

From the outside, one regards TAN Genxiong as a tough military man who has been through difficult political times, yet on the inside, he is full of passion for the fragile state of the human existence. Philosophical at heart, TAN Genxiong has great insights into the complexity of human personality. The artist describes himself as an ambiguous and obscure person. To comprehend the meaning of his works is to reflect upon the duality of the nature of things, which is “the closer you look, the more ambiguous it becomes and the further you look, the clearer you see”. Drawing from his personal memories of the revolutionary years, the brush strokes of TAN Genxiong are thick and rough in black, white and shades of grey so as to draw one’s attention on the dim and solid figures, mostly of children in helpless positions and often, juxtaposed with powerful revolutionary leaders or controversial western icons. He canvases were large to massive in scale, like the shadows of his past memories.

Unlike his teacher Tan Genxiong, Tangshu made the conscious decision to portray life as a sequence of historical-like events that could be out of reality or his complete imagination. Nevertheless, we as viewers assume that they are actual events that could be really happening in this world. He called himself a socially responsible artist, freezing the different political moments of crisis which we absorb daily like they are “just news.” His canvases are larger than life, composed in a realistic manner, mostly in shades of grey, thus adding to the seriousness and immediacy of the events. There are long panoramic views on disaster as well as close up of victims in fear or despair. His works are a silent protest against reality, recording the political and social events that have become part of our everyday life yet is taken for granted by the general public. Even when the events are depicted in neither optimistically or pessimistically, TANG Shu’s intentions were charged with emotions and compassion. Our society has become the numb spectacle used to the disasters and cruelty of humanity. The question is how much longer can we continue watching silently, further alienating us from our environment?

One of the possible answers to this problem could be found in the wild comical works of Zhang Yong, who is also a student of TAN Genxiong. Unexpectedly, his paintings, mainly of war machines: military aircrafts and tanks in funky neon colors. One can even loudly claim that they are just toys. The “political” world has become the ultimate playground where anything can happen. The tank can be shot down by a tiny arrow which is impossible in reality. In the tiny romanticized world of ZHANG Yong, everything is reduced to mere props, part of a bigger stage to play. And once you find your target, the world is yours to play.

Similarly, we can interpret SHEN Jingdong’s works as having a certain toy-like quality about them. Even when the soldier is pointing a gun at the prisoner, we hardly see any threat or even fear. The paintings are painted in black and white, with child-like figures and neutral expressions which made them look harmless. The figures are flat and look like porcelain dolls. Their actions are stiff and mechanical, as if they are obeying what they were told without any questions. Having trained in a Nanjing art academy and right after served for almost 20 years in the Chinese military, SHEN Jingdong’s feelings for his political years are full of nostalgia.

Having trained as well in the PLA art academy, SUN Hao works consist mainly romanticized portraits of government officials and army workers. His portraits are not composed in a formal manner as we usually encountered. The sitters are either sitting in a relaxed manner or lying lazily, as if showing us their gentle and warm side. Their expressions were more humanized, like the woman official sitting on the couch was slouched and looking somewhat bored or the soldier looking dazed. It looks as if they have forgotten who they are and the important obligations they have towards society. If it is not for the uniforms which indicate clearly their status and functions in society, they could be mistaken for ordinary people with passions and dreams.

Nietzsche sees the full development of the individual conditioned by the most ruthless struggle of individuals. The artists’ struggle with their past memories related to China political culture gives rise to new passion for the inner meanings of life. Through their art, they have expressed their needs for a more complete and harmonious life. They have somewhat romanticized the political culture so as to preserve their autonomy and individuality. Their passions on art, culture and politics creates different kind of individualism. Without passions, humanity will not develop.

Curator 
Kartini Tanoto & Pengke