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Huang Yan

Mao's portrait, triptyque

2005

Digital print

150 × 360 cm

Ed. 14/15

Location: Italy

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About the artwork

In this triptych, Huang Yan uses the official propaganda portraits of Chinese dictator Mao Zedong. Through the standardization brought about by blurring, the artist creates a dialogue between these political images in a format that is specific to art history. Through photography, he questions a pivotal period in Chinese history, erasing the power of the propaganda image by blurring the dictator. This series echoes the porcelain portraits of Mao Zedong that the artist produced for an exhibition in Paris, which were censored by the Chinese authorities before their departure for Europe.

Expert opinion

This triptych by artist Huang Yan is characteristic of his practice, both in its use of photography and in its evocation of his country's history. Considered taboo by the Communist authorities, the body has a power that the artist demystifies by blurring these propaganda portraits. A courageous political work that reminds us of the commitment and risk that artists can take through their art.

About the artist

Chinese artist and poet born in 1966. Lives and works in Beijing (China). A graduate of Changchun Normal Academy, Huang Yan's highly symbolic art bridges Chinese cultural tradition and contemporary history. He is particularly renowned for his Chinese Landscapes series, launched in 1999, in which, drawing on his country's cultural roots, he depicts the link between man and nature in a highly Taoist manner. Through his art, he aims to remind us of the importance of Chinese heritage and to anchor it in a contemporary approach. Huang Yan exhibited at the MET (New York, USA) in 2013, and is represented by Blue Square (Paris, France), Ethan Cohen (New York, USA) and Leo Gallery (Shanghai, China).

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