Artists Liu Guo Ping's ART WORKS.
© Alexander Crowe 2006. All rights reserved.  No part of this publication, or the artist’s work may be reproduced or  transmitted in any form without prior written permission. Alexander Crowe (crowe.alexander@gmail.com)
 

Liu Guo Ping's art does possess a particular style,  but what is paramount is rather a general attitude;  an outlook characterised by spirit and a belief in  freedom of expression.To label her ouvre under the  general umbrella of Abstract Expressionism would be a  misnomer: not all the works are abstract, nor are they  all wholly expressive. Vibrant Expressionism conveys  a more lucent summary, pointing towards what the  artists values above all: individuality and spontaneous  improvisation, neither conventional subjects nor styles  being able to adequately convey her vision. In fact, style  as such almost ceases to exist within the abstract series,  as the artist draws inspiration from all directions, whilst  abandoning the convention of a central motif, our eye  kept continuously eager whilst never allowed to rest on  any particular area.  

By painting in this style, Liu Guo Ping avoids any point  of emphasis or identifiable part within the whole canvas,  abandondoning the traditional ideas of composition in  terms of the relationship amongst parts. The result, a  direct expression / revelation of the unconscious mood  of the artist. The noted writer Wemer Haftmann states of  this style: “Like a seismograph, the painting records the  energies and states of the artist who drew it." The Surrealists called this ”psychic automatism”,  meaning the method enabled a direct expression of  the unconscious mind, the spontaneity of the artist’s  approach to the work drawing from and releasing  the creativity of the unconscious mind. Therefore, the  expressive method of painting should rightly considered  as important as the painting itself, and by celebrating  spontaneity and the exploration of the self in these  paintings, bursting with free- form and gestural  application, the artist truly expresses her free-wheeling  spirit. To quote from the interview above with the artist: 

"The actual execution of a piece is very quick and  spontaneous” existentially emphasizing the importance  of the act of creating the piece of art. By side-stepping  the tried and tested methods of paint application  which promote the fragmented / fractured lines made  inevitable by the constant reapplication adjustments of conventional brushwork, the almost tachist forms  can be presented in near infinite permutations. This is  specifically apparent when considering the painting here  from The Abstract Oil Painting Series, (abstract piece  2003, 185x140cm) and comparing / contrasting it with  the other paintings from that series. In the Abstract Series, there is a decisive rejection of  recognisable imagery in favour of expression, whilst in  the Life Series, we cannot say that there are pieces that do  not have morally loaded themes: the image transcends  the transitory and local interest, being concerned with the  themes of social realism and urban existance. Consider  the piece selected here from from The City Series,1999,  and it is not overly difficult to see the distinction between ‘urban’ and ‘urbane’. However, although these works are characterised by a  strong dependence on what appears to be accident and  chance, they are actually highly planned. For example,  in the painting Jesus’ Crown from 2005, Liu Guo Ping  appears concerned with adopting a powerful and  mystical approach to the subject and image. The initial,  and forceful, impression of a vibrant golden halo /  crown is relieved upon inspection by the variety of shades  and inflections which combine to produce an idea of  texture,depth, and even motion. The strenuous impasto  spins and swirls around the volume of rich green, whilst  the crown itself literally explodes in shattered streaks and  particles of energy. It is well worth mentioning Salvador  Dali’s most popular religious work at this juncture:  his Christ of Saint John of the Cross from the Spanish  master’s series concerning what he termed ”Nuclear  Mysticism”: when asked, upon his arrival in America in  the summer of 1953, why he wanted to depict Christ  exploding, he replied, “I don’t know yet. First I have  ideas, I explain them later.” Dali’s famous painting was  inspired by a drawing, preserved in the Convent of the  Incarnation in Avila, Spain, and done by Saint John  of the Cross himself after he had seen this vision of  Christ during ecstasy. At the bottom of his studies for the  famous piece, Dali wrote: “In the first place, in 1950,  I  had a cosmic dream, in which I saw this image in color  and which in my dream represented the nucleus of the   atom. This nucleus later took on a metaphysical sense;  I considered it the very unity of the universe: the Christ!".  In no small part can we say that Liu Guo Ping’s Jesus’ Crown also possesses this ‘cosmic dream’

Liu Guo Ping’s art can be referred to as being aleatoric,  in-so-far as meaning that it is free from the past, free  from academic formulas, and free from the limitations  placed on the imagination by the conscious mind. And  yet there does still exist a historical precedent: There is  a tradition of Oriental artists employing these methods,  many influenced by Taoism and Buddhism. A direct  reference can be made to Chinese art: to quote an  anonymous writer in a ninth century treatise on painting:  “the artist Wang Mo excelled in splattering ink to paint  landscapes. . . . there was a good deal of wildness in  him, and he loved wine. Whenever he wished to paint  a hanging scroll, he would first drink, then after he was  drunk he would splatter ink. Laughing or singing, he  would kick at it with his feet or rub it with his hands. .  . . according to the forms and appearances, he would  make mountains and rocks, clouds and water.” Whilst  in the West, precedents can be found much further back  than from the numerous twentieth century avant-garde  artists, those followers of the Dadaist and Surrealist  movements including Jean Arp, André Masson, Joan  Miró, and Max Ernst, amongst artists of the Italian  Renaissance. Leonardo da Vinci in his Treatise on  Painting recommended looking at blotches on walls as a  means of initiating artistic ideas: “Look at walls spotted  with various stains or with a mixture of different kinds of  stones. If you are about to invent some scenes, you will  be able to see in it a resemblance to various different  landscapes adorned with mountains, rivers, rocks, trees,  plains, with valleys and various groups of hills."  

Even though a direct meaning may not necessarily  be implied be a piece, never-the-less, it is almost  impossible for the seasoned art viewer not to find  some point of reference within the various arcs and  nebulous forms: take for example 1998, and compare / contrast with Matthias  Grünewald’s Crucifixion of 1515;  and Monet's impressionistic renderings of the lilies and his garden  at Giverny; from  2001-2002 and both Turner’s the Fighting  Temeraire of 1838 and Millet’s Angelus of 1857; and  from  Pablo  Picasso’s Les Demoiselles d’Avignon of 1907 and  Guernica mural from 1937 ; from figures 8 and 9: from  The Abstract Oil Painting Series, Francis Bacon’s Portrait  of Pope Innocent X after Velazquez of 1951. Indeed is  it possible at all to look at  2005 and not be prompted to think of van Gogh’s  Sunflowers?

Throughout her work, we are able to see the artist’s  ability to depict the unseeable rhythms of nature, the  ineffable qualities of life and spirit, be they variously  serene and contemplative, or intense and explosive. By  running this gamut of emotions and effects, there is the  risk of dilution: but the gamble pays off with excellent  reward: a complete freedom from conventional  concerns and constraints, leading to an unfettered  expressiveness and individual exaltation. Perhaps  though, the images do not benefit from a laboured  and introspective explanation: as a viewer we can  respond on a fairly primitive level. If not, then at least  we can appreciate the powerful fusion of colors and the  emotions that are communicated.

In conclusion: and in some way to communicate  the dichotomy that lies in the art form (the long  contemplation / planning being virtually in contradiction  to the spontaneity of it’s execution), two quotes: “There is no accident, just as there is no beginning  and no end” ~ Jackson Pollock “

All painting is an accident. But it’s also not an  accident, because one must select what part of the  accident one chooses to preserve.” ~ Francis Bacon


SUNRISE IMPRESSION
Writdn by Zhaohui ZHANG
April, 2004, Yunheyuan
The paintings of Sunrise are enchanting. Sunrise has an innate sensitivity to colors, forms and rhythm, which is perfectly expressed in her latest splash-oil painting series.
On her paintings, all the colours of the rainbow are magically blended and swirled into fascinating color mixes. Rather than being geometric, the combination of colors are more sensual, a spontaneous expression of the heart, from which the glorious and amazing images were born. There is no doubt that you will sense the bewitching power from her paintings, to name a few: “The Sun Kisses the Yellow Earth”, “The Color of the Secluded Palace”, “Around the Black Hole”, “The Green Wings of the Sun”, “Reacting Uranium”, “The Red Siren”, “The Sun of the Next Century”, “Blossoming Rose in the Universe”… Simply by reading these names, you cannot help but having your imagination indulged in them for a while, and when your eyes touch her paintings, the images of rainbow colors at their very climax after having been tortured by demons, you cannot fail to feel an overwhelming power that penatrates your inner core; this is a power that drags you to interact with it, both physically and emotionally. In Sunrise’s works, you can percieve the images of milkways, galaxies, black holes in the universe, flowers, frost and four seasons on the Earth, and imaginary pictures from your inner world. In a word, it is about life. There seems to be a link between her paintings and the mysticism, which remind us of the graphs drawn by Tagore when he wrote “Gitanjali”.
Sunrise’s works are also featured by a rich feminine tone. Most of the images are related to sex. After the feminism that is expressed in some of the western-style arts had been introduced into China, its originally embedded aggressiveness was transfigured into the visual representation of women’s sexual experiences and their own body images, where violence is diminished, while autocatharsis, sex indulgence and narcissism speak loud. Even though the “feminism” displayed in Sunrise’s work seems more conservative in comparison with others, the explosive inner force derives from it is incrediable, to take some of her works as an example: “The Sun Kisses the Yellow Earth”, “The Rain of Flowers”.
Sunrise understands very well the trend of the 20th century Chinese ink paintings thanks to her early training in this area. She also has deep insight into the principles of taoism, which lends a historical dimension to her works. In addition, she has been very active in morden and contemporary art activities in China, planning exhibitions and running galleries. These experiences allow her to be always standing at the front line of art movements. Even though her works are not of the typical avant-garde genre, the fascinating colors of Sunrise’s paintings are of breathtaking power that leaves one stopping and gasping at them.
In an era when one is suffocated by the prevailing air of utilitarianism and materialism, the paintings of Sunrise allow us to breath the fresh air. If you intend to seduce someone to make love, do it where one can see the beautiful rainbow.