Quotidian Truths: Paintings by Li Yan
The Morono Kiang Gallery’s opening of the exhibit “Quotidian Truths” is a collection of paintings by Li Yan, the first in a three part series for Quotidian Truths. On September 6, 2008 the work of Xia Xing will be shown, and on November 8, 2008, the final part of the series, with the work of Xie Xiaoze, will open.
The gallery itself is spacious, almost empty. Li Yan’s work is shown in clusters on the pristine white walls, and no effort is made to fill in the remaining space. The one column in the middle of the room is solitary as the exhibit contains no other sculptures and the display of papers and leaflets is kept against the front wall so as not to interfere with the space. While perhaps this space was intended to be filled with visitors, the reception was in the afternoon and only a small smattering of people were present. Therefore the middle of the gallery, whether negligently or intentionally so, felt more like a void than anything else. Most guests hugged the walls while they examined the art, and only a brave few entered the empty space in order to speak with one another.
Li Yan utilizes classical artistic style while depicting modern subjects. His oil-on-canvas works seem almost like photographs, and only upon closer inspection have a Monet-like quality to disassemble before the your eyes. His subject matter is taken from pictures in the newspaper as well as his own experience. Each grouping of paintings encompasses the entire world in its scope; on the same wall there is a map of midwest United States and a portrait of Benazir Bhutto. The map of the Israel/Palestine area is made important when displayed next to the image of a decimated Jewish synagogue. Li Yan is also not afraid to paint extremely gruesome subject matter – the victim of a car crash bloodied and lying on a gurney, the lifeless body of soldiers hanging by the neck – all moving, and yet somehow portrayed with the detachment of a journalist. He is undoubtedly talented, his paintings an ease in the visible brushstrokes and slightly unblended colors. His palate is not overly colorful and captures the monotony of every day life.
All things considered, Li Yan’s work is the perfect start to the “Quotidian Truths” series. Though the gallery focuses on his Chinese background, his paintings capture precisely the truth of daily life on a global scale.
- Jamie Lynn Harker
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