The Chinese Approach
Schoeni Art Gallery in Collaboration with Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago

Featuring works by:
The Chen Family -
Chen Yu, Chen Li and Yu Chen
Mary Qian
Ming Jing Wang

Vernissage: 5:00pm - 8:00pm, 5 September 2008
Exhibition: 6 September - mid October 2008
Venue: Ann Nathan Gallery, 212 West Superior, Chicago, USA

In collaboration with Schoeni Art Gallery, Hong Kong, Ann Nathan Gallery presents The Chinese Approach, featuring paintings by the Chen family from China, and Chinese-born artists Ming Jing Wang and Mary Qian, now living and working in the U.S.

The Chen family siblings (eldest sister Yu Chen, and brothers Chen Yu and Chen Li) have received international attention for their reflections on contemporary Chinese society. A burgeoning modern culture at the forefront of today's headlines is represented in all its forms throughout the siblings' works. Yu Chen's paintings of pink-cheeked children, at times in military uniform, are social commentaries expressed through the sometimes laughing, sometimes crying faces of Chinaˇs youngest citizens. Chen Yu interrupts groups of repetitive figures in his paintings with intimate, often playful, portraits of individuals amid the masses. Chen Li mixes suggestion and mystery to create imaginative narratives within his contemporary portraits.

Ming Jing Wang's social-realist paintings examine the human condition, both culturally and physically. Wang explores the intrusion of contemporary civilization on the ancient cultures of China. A practicing physician in the U.S., Wang also observes and reflects on moments of physical suffering and trauma in his paintings.

Mary Qian's portraiture reveals a flawless technique and intense study of the human form. Trained in both China and America and influenced by Russian portraiture, Qian's paintings act as personal observations of the people around her in a dramatic and timeless style.

Click on image for an enlarged view.

Yu Chen Red Babies 2007 Series No. 12 Mixed Media on Canvas 110 x 100 cm, 2007

Chen Yu Untitled 2008 Series No. 2A and 2B Oil on Canvas @170 x 140 cm, 2008

Chen Li The Wait Oil on Canvas 100 x 90 cm, 2007

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