Yu Youhan
Artist / Painter
YU Youhan is one of the main artists associated with “Political Pop” aesthetics which emerged in the avant-garde movement in the 1990’s, this unique style fused Chinese iconography with Western artistic expression. His work has had a major impact on the cultural scene as well as influenced and inspired a generation of younger artists. YU Youhan’s earlier work is directly influenced by his experiences during the Cultural Revolution, with prominent imagery of political propaganda and socialist realism. Before constructing this pictorial universe, he practiced an informal and materialist abstraction.
YU Youhan has recently shifted his artistic approach in search of a new paint language and subject matter. His latest work consists of landscape paintings that resemble pastorals of a forgotten utopia. YU Youhan’s extensive oeuvre combines multiple perspectives and investigates the structure of cultural identity in China through an ongoing exploration of various pictorial techniques. His paintings remain ubiquitous yet intriguing.
YU Youhan was born in Shanghai in 1943. He graduated from the Central Academy of Art and Design, Beijing in 1973. Now he resides and works in Shanghai. YU Youhan’s work has shown widely nationally as well as internationally. Recent exhibitions include: Chinese New Realism and Avant-Garde in the Eighties and Nineties, The Groninger Museum, Groningen, The Netherlands (2008); Study Practice, Shanghai Gallery of Art, Shanghai (2005); Chine, le Corps Partout?, Musee d’Art Contemporain, Paris, France (2004); Museum of Contemporary Art, Marseilles, France (2004) and Landscape of Yi Mengshan, ShanghART H-Space, Shanghai (2004). He has also exhibited in the 22nd Sao Paulo Biennale, Brazil (1994); the 45th Venice Biennale, Italy (1993) and the 1st Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, Brisbane, Australia (1991).
Yu Youhan
Artist / Painter
YU Youhan is one of the main artists associated with “Political Pop” aesthetics which emerged in the avant-garde movement in the 1990’s, this unique style fused Chinese iconography with Western artistic expression. His work has had a major impact on the cultural scene as well as influenced and inspired a generation of younger artists. YU Youhan’s earlier work is directly influenced by his experiences during the Cultural Revolution, with prominent imagery of political propaganda and socialist realism. Before constructing this pictorial universe, he practiced an informal and materialist abstraction.
YU Youhan has recently shifted his artistic approach in search of a new paint language and subject matter. His latest work consists of landscape paintings that resemble pastorals of a forgotten utopia. YU Youhan’s extensive oeuvre combines multiple perspectives and investigates the structure of cultural identity in China through an ongoing exploration of various pictorial techniques. His paintings remain ubiquitous yet intriguing.
YU Youhan was born in Shanghai in 1943. He graduated from the Central Academy of Art and Design, Beijing in 1973. Now he resides and works in Shanghai. YU Youhan’s work has shown widely nationally as well as internationally. Recent exhibitions include: Chinese New Realism and Avant-Garde in the Eighties and Nineties, The Groninger Museum, Groningen, The Netherlands (2008); Study Practice, Shanghai Gallery of Art, Shanghai (2005); Chine, le Corps Partout?, Musee d’Art Contemporain, Paris, France (2004); Museum of Contemporary Art, Marseilles, France (2004) and Landscape of Yi Mengshan, ShanghART H-Space, Shanghai (2004). He has also exhibited in the 22nd Sao Paulo Biennale, Brazil (1994); the 45th Venice Biennale, Italy (1993) and the 1st Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, Brisbane, Australia (1991).
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Richard Serra: TransmitterOngoing“I consider space to be a material. The articulation of space has come to take precedence over other concerns. I attempt to use sculptural form to make space distinct.” –Richard Serra (more…)
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Nam June Paik / I Expose the MusicMar 17 – Aug 27, 2023Nam June Paik liked to describe himself as “the world’s most famous bad pianist,” alluding to the musical and performative element in his work. The exhibition Nam June Paik: I Expose the Music by Museum Ostwall at the Dortmunder U presents the work of the video art pioneer (more…)
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Women of MeridioneStrength in the Deep SouthPlaces with a strong soul, where the sea connects with the strength of women. In South of Italy passion and dignity along with spirituality and suspension can be seen through the cracks of the walls. (more…)
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Dia CenterNew York / Beacon, USADia Center was founded in New York City in 1974 by Philippa de Menil, Heiner Friedrich, and Helen Winkler to help artists achieve visionary projects that might not otherwise be realized because of scale or scope. (more…)
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Bauhaus and BeyondOngoing“A reunion between creative arts and the industrial world” is how architect Walter Gropius described the Bauhaus, the school of art and design he founded in 1919 in Weimar, Germany (more…)
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Sleepless NightsFeb 28, 2023 – Jan 14, 2024In the contradictory 1980s, several remarkable women artists emerged in Sweden and the Nordic region. Sleepless Nights revolves around them. The name of this exhibition was inspired by Teresa Wennberg’s large video installation Nuit Blanche (1983) (more…)
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Frank Bowling’s AmericasOct 22, 2022 – Apr 9, 2023“Modernism belonged to me also.” So resolved British Guiana-born artist Frank Bowling in 1966, when he moved from London to New York City, impelled by ambition to make his mark on modern painting. (more…)
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Doug Aitkenartist / filmmakerDoug Aitken is an American artist and filmmaker. Defying definitions of genre, he explores every medium, from film and installations to architectural interventions. (more…)
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Swedish EcstasyFeb 17 – May 21, 2023In the spring of 2023, all eyes will be on the far north. We know Sweden mainly for its pragmatism, great engineers and entrepreneurs. But there is an important yet lesser known aspect of the nation’s spiritual life, visible in its art and literature. (more…)
