PRINTCatalogue Note:
Liu Yi was born in Tianjin in 1957. He studied oil painting at the Central Academy of Fine Arts, graduated in 1982. Liu was among the first students to enroll in the school after the Cultural Revolution, along with Chen Danqing, Yang Feiyun, Chao Ge, and Xia Xiaowan. Liu Yi is a painter who thrives on storytelling, drama, and metaphors. He excels at using realist techniques to create art with a moder n touch. Liu Yi is an artist who can display his unique creative concepts, reflect international contemporary themes, and also touch on national spirit.
Liu Yi has extraordinary control over the characters in his paintings. In his surreal paintings, characters maintain a lasting connection with the environment, and become the only hints to the paintings. There is a unique mystery and theatrical effect in his portraits. Many women are unidentified, the background, time, and place omitted, as if the artist is deliberately pulli ng the character from reality, to create a feeling of illusions. This work focuses on a young woman sitting calmly. She gazes forward thoughtfully, avoiding the viewer’s eyes. Her elbows are on the table, with her hands resting gently by her brow; her still body language and wooden expression are hard to fathom. The artist uses sharp brushstrokes to capture the moment of the Pisces Girl deep in thought. With a deep background, the artist uses strong light from one side to emphasize the female silhouette and the contrast of light and shadow on her arms. The Pisces earrings are not brightly lit, but make the character stand out from the background, and add a sense of mystery and suspense to the image, creating dramatic tension. Every viewer is drawn in by her thoughtful gaze, that expression that conveys her longing for something greater than her own self. The girl in this painting is different from his past works. She seems to hold a special place in the mind of the artist, and is the inspiration for this piec e. This is why Liu Yi has been hailed as an “explor er between surrealism and pop art.”
Liu Yi has extraordinary control over the characters in his paintings. In his surreal paintings, characters maintain a lasting connection with the environment, and become the only hints to the paintings. There is a unique mystery and theatrical effect in his portraits. Many women are unidentified, the background, time, and place omitted, as if the artist is deliberately pulli ng the character from reality, to create a feeling of illusions. This work focuses on a young woman sitting calmly. She gazes forward thoughtfully, avoiding the viewer’s eyes. Her elbows are on the table, with her hands resting gently by her brow; her still body language and wooden expression are hard to fathom. The artist uses sharp brushstrokes to capture the moment of the Pisces Girl deep in thought. With a deep background, the artist uses strong light from one side to emphasize the female silhouette and the contrast of light and shadow on her arms. The Pisces earrings are not brightly lit, but make the character stand out from the background, and add a sense of mystery and suspense to the image, creating dramatic tension. Every viewer is drawn in by her thoughtful gaze, that expression that conveys her longing for something greater than her own self. The girl in this painting is different from his past works. She seems to hold a special place in the mind of the artist, and is the inspiration for this piec e. This is why Liu Yi has been hailed as an “explor er between surrealism and pop art.”