Shaking up dated still-lifes and injecting new vigor

Still-life painting seems dated today, but Wang Yuhong creates updated still-lifes using photography, printing and brush strokes that bring together memorabilia, bamboo, fans, blue-and-white porcelain, biscuit tins and vintage comic books.

"I even don't know what to call these art pieces," Wang said.

In one series, she photographs a cluster of objects, leaving white spaces on folding fans, which she later fills with her own decoration and calligraphy.

She prints the photos on German rice paper that is uniform in texture and somewhat rigid. She illustrates the fans with texts, flowers, birds or scenery.

She blurs the boundaries among different media, such as photography and ink wash and challenges traditional concepts.

"I create things that were deeply etched in my memory as I grew up," she said.

"I am a proponent of technique, which may go against today's anti-technique trends. In my view, the dividing line between traditional and contemporary is concept, rather than form or time."

Trained in classical painting at the China Academy of Art in Hangzhou, Wang was known for her realistic painted still-lifes of old books, porcelain, rusted oil lamps, alarm clocks, picture frames, vanity boxes, dated posters, calendars and newspapers.

"To me, these objects are not symbols. Together, they are about the timelessness of the objects themselves, reverting to their physical texture," the artist said, "Looking at still-life is to awaken the eyes of our own soul."

She arranges a collection of objects in front of her camera, sometimes taking several hours to get the positions exactly right.

"A slightly different angle or position brings a different touch," she said. "They seemed unrelated, but there's a relationship among things."

In one cluster, there's a magazine cover featuring a Japanese female actress, a broken bowl and a stuffed pigeon.

"Don't ask me why," she said. "It's just a rush for visual effect."

Wang is also noted for her oil painting and installation.

"An artist needs to fully explore media and not be limited by it. I have finally found a balance among different media because I have different things to tell viewers through different media."

Resume

Born in Shanghai in 1972

Graduated from the sculpture department of the China Academy of Art

Nominated for the Vermont Asian Art Award in 2005

Works collected by the Shanghai Art Museum, China Art Museum, Liu Haisu Art Museum, Shanghai Music Concert Hall and private Western collectors.