For the cover of its May 2006 issue, devoted to the global art boom, ARTnews magazine chose an eye-grabbing portrait by Chinese painter Feng Zhengjie — a boldly stylized image with throbbing, neon colors.
It was not a surprising choice, given its graphic appeal and because Chinese artists have, as well as or better than any others, plugged into the visual zeitgeist of today’s text- messaging, -obssessed world.
Three of Feng’s highly sought-after works are included in “Face East,” a telling indicator of the ambition of this dazzling, high-quality exhibition, running through March 1 at the Robischon Gallery.
With more than 55 works by 15 established and up-and-coming artists, it is an admirable follow-up to the 2006 exhibition, “Under the Radar,” the gallery’s first major foray into Chinese contemporary art — easily the hottest art scene in the world.
“Face East” is the kind of show that one would expect to see in New York City. And make no mistake, plenty of dealers there and elsewhere would die to have this body of work, which gallery directors Jim Robischon and Jennifer Doran put together through dogged persistence.
Denver has long needed a gallery willing and financially able to step up and engage the leading edge of international contemporary art, and it is gratifying to see the Robischon make just such a commitment.
This show is divided into three sections, broken down roughly by the relative fame and age of the artists on view. The front room is devoted to some of China’s best-known and most established figures, such as Zhang Xiaogang.
In 2006, a 1998 painting by the artist sold for just over $1 million with commission at a Sotheby’s auction — the first work by a living Chinese artist to reach that milestone and a telling sign of the massive demand for the country’s art.
His three melancholic portraits here are among the show’s most compelling images. Two — “Little Doctor” and “Big Family” — are part of his “Bloodline” series of family portraits, with subtle red lines suggesting the title’s source.
A third, “Boy,” is more ambiguous, a nearly monochromatic image of just a boy’s head. Do the touches of white under his eyes suggest tears? Like “Big Family,” it is an exquisitely realized original print, using silkscreen and perhaps other techniques as well.
The third room is focused on lesser-known artists, such as the hugely promising He Jian — the exhibition’s revelation. Born in 1978, he graduated from the Sichuan Fine Arts Institute in 2000 and has shown only once previously in the United States.
Using Chinese pigment and ink on rice paper, he creates fanciful scenes of a recurring young couple. In “Reading,” the two, fully dressed, read a magazine while floating on inflatable rings in the sea, which is rendered with beautifully stylized patterning echoing traditional Chinese art.
These paintings look like old frescoes, an impression that He deliberately reinforces, “aging” his compositions by slightly distressing the pigment and ink and even making it appear as though some has flaked off in the upper left corner of “At the Foot of the Great Wall.”
Like He, many of the artists are not only well versed in their country’s historical art but are also willing to embrace it in their own work.
Good examples are the complex, intricately rendered watercolors of Lu Peng, with their colorful swirl of figures in traditional costumes against backgrounds appropriated from centuries-old Chinese scroll paintings.
While most of these selections offer a definite quotient of hipness and fun, they are often serious in intent.
Some deal with sociopolitical issues indirectly, such as Zhang’s veiled references to the Cultural Revolution, but others, like Zhao Bo’s whimsically pointed looks at the insidious sides of communism and capitalism, are more direct.
The styles and approaches vary considerably, but the consistent quality and originality of these offerings make it clear why the eyes of the art world are facing east.
Kyle MacMillan: 303-954-1675 or kmacmillan@denverpost.com
“Face East”
Art Robischon Gallery, 1740 Wazee St. An exhibition of more than 55 paintings, sculptures and other works by 15 of China’s leading contemporary artists. Through March 1. 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. Free. 303-298-7788 or
1More Show
Mindy Bray likes to dissect the world around her, creating artworks that make clear the visual fragments of which they are composed.
In “Paper, Scissors, Rock,” her first solo exhibition in Denver, the recent transplant explores levees and other man-made constructions to control runoff and waterways of various kinds.
As potentially interesting as this offbeat, unexpected subject matter might be, the central focus is Bray’s process, which is best exemplified by the show’s centerpiece, “Levee,” a 22-by- 30-foot wall installation.
Simple in concept and amazingly challenging in execution, she has constructed a large-scale look at roiling water composed by intricately, minutely cutting out its composite elements from multiple large, contiguous sheets of gray paper.
Bray takes this same kind of cutout technique and applies it to some of her drawings as well, constructing kind of pixelated images carefully composed of their fully revealed, tiny visual building blocks. A good example is “Via dell’Amore,” a graphite and watercolor piece showing water splashing over a retaining wall.
If the sum is not necessarily greater than the parts, “Paper, Scissors, Rock,” is an intriguing show from an artist who bears watching. It continues through Feb. 2 at the Ironton Gallery, 3636 Chestnut Place. 303-297-8626 or
Kyle MacMillan
