Wanxin Zhang: A Ten Year Survey
February 23 - August 9, 2011
This exhibition provides an in-depth survey of internationally celebrated San Francisco-based artist Wanxin Zhang. Inspired by the Qin terracotta army of Xi'an and the artist's own experiences during the Chinese Cultural Revolution, Zhang's massive clay figures cross over from history into today's culture. Balancing traditional Chinese imagery with modern, often Western peculiarities, each figure becomes part of a larger community and those who engage with their distinct personalities.
Wanxin Zhang still remembers the first time he encountered the terracotta warriors guarding the tomb of China's First Emperor, unearthed in Xi'an in 1974. "I silently asked myself: Who were they? Where did they come from? Why are they standing here?" Zhang recalls. Still haunted by that impression many years and miles later, his massive ceramic figures raise the same questions today.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Zhang, who grew up in China during the Cultural Revolution of Chairman Mao, was already an established artist before immigrating to San Francisco in 1992. His larger-than-life sculptures, reminiscent of the terracotta warriors at Xi'an, draw not only upon his Chinese roots, but also upon his cross-cultural identity. His work is influenced by the iconic self-portraits of Robert Arneson, father of the 1960s California Clay Funk Revolution, and Peter Voulkos, in whose Oakland foundry he had the opportunity to work. Balancing traditional imagery with modern, often Western peculiarities, Zhang imbues each of his figures with distinct personality. As Zhang states, "My pieces are about finding my personal identity while sparking a contemporary dialog about social, historical and political issues."
Visit the artist's website at www.wanxinzhang.com >
Read the exhibition overview in Chinese >
Listen to an interview with the artist >
Listen to an interview with the artist in Chinese >
Wanxin Zhang
Poet of Battlefield, 2000
Fired clay and pigment
12 x 14 x 42 in.
Photo: Courtesy of Arizona State University
Wanxin Zhang
Warhol/Mao, 2006
Fired clay and glaze
Photo: Courtesy of Arizona State University
Wanxin Zhang
Three-Armed Man, 2001
Fired clay and pigment
Photo: Courtesy of Arizona State University
Wanxin Zhang
Mulan, 2002
Fired clay and pigment
Photo: Courtesy of Arizona State University
Wanxin Zhang
Mulan, 2002
Fired clay and pigment
Photo: Bellevue Arts Museum
Wanxin Zhang
Fatherhood, 2005
Fired clay and glaze
Courtesy of the artist and Mindy Solomon Gallery, St. Petersburg, Florida
Photo: Bellevue Arts Museum
Wanxin Zhang
California Artist, Too, 2006 - 2007
Fired clay and glaze
Courtesy of the artist
Photo: Bellevue Arts Museum
Wanxin Zhang
Trinoculars, 2005
Fired clay and glaze
Courtesy of the artist and Mindy Solomon Gallery, St. Petersburg, Florida
Photo: Courtesy of Arizona State University
Wanxin Zhang
Who Is Calling?, 2007
Fired clay, glaze and pigment
From the collection of JoAnn Busuttil
Photo: Courtesy of Arizona State University
Wanxin Zhang
Wind Mark (Mask Man), 2008
Fired clay and glaze
Photo: Courtesy of Arizona State University
Wanxin Zhang in his studio
Photo: Courtesy of the artist
Wanxin Zhang in his studio
Photo: Courtesy of the artist
On view at Bellevue Arts Museum
2011
Photo: Bellevue Arts Museum
Wanxin Zhang
Poet of Battlefield (detail), 2000
Fired clay and pigment
12 x 14 x 42 in.
Photo: Courtesy of Arizona State University
Poet of Battlefield on display at BAM
Organized by Arizona State University Art Museum and curated by Peter Held, Curator of Ceramics at the ASU Art Museum Ceramics Research Center and Mindy Solomon for the Morean Arts Center, St. Petersburg, Florida. The local presentation of this exhibition is curated by Stefano Catalani and made possible by 4Culture.