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Yongbo Zhao: Das Grosse Lachen / Hearty Laughter
Born in Manchuria in 1964, Zhao began painting as a child,
studied and taught in China until, in his late twenties, he
became enamored with the Western European artistic
tradition. Rejecting the social realism that dominated the
art of late twentieth-century China, Zhao emigrated to
Germany where he immersed himself in the styles and
techniques of such painters as Rubens, Boucher, Goya,
Courbet, and the Pre-Raphaelites. Color illustrations of his
hypnotic, phantasmagoric, and often satirical works are
reproduced in stunning clarity in this book along with
insightful commentary that reveals why Zhao is one of the
most fascinating artists to emerge from contemporary
China.
studied and taught in China until, in his late twenties, he
became enamored with the Western European artistic
tradition. Rejecting the social realism that dominated the
art of late twentieth-century China, Zhao emigrated to
Germany where he immersed himself in the styles and
techniques of such painters as Rubens, Boucher, Goya,
Courbet, and the Pre-Raphaelites. Color illustrations of his
hypnotic, phantasmagoric, and often satirical works are
reproduced in stunning clarity in this book along with
insightful commentary that reveals why Zhao is one of the
most fascinating artists to emerge from contemporary
China.
159 pages, Paperback
First published July 30, 2008
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June 18, 2009
A Bright New Star on the Art Scene
Though Yongbo Zhao is 45 years old he is still considered to be one of the exciting new 'youngsters' in the field of figurative art. Born in China he was a successful 'proper artist' in the Chinese school of thought, painting and teaching with great popularity, until he tasted decadent Western art, emigrating to Germany in 1991 to absorb the edgy works of painters such as Goya, the pre-Raphaelites, and the bizarre images of Hieronymous Bosch. With these seeds firmly planted in his psyche he began producing works, both in painting and in etching that were his own versions of the influences. Now that he has mastered the brush and color techniques of the masters, he is painting some of the more fascinating works before the public today.
It is not unfair to find his paintings and etchings and drawings strange and bizarre. His subjects are often animals with humanoid features as well as humanoid behaviors! Bats hanging from the ceiling ('My Bloodsuckers') have human faces and corpulent bodies with human male genitalia; the 'Vulture Men' series deals with elderly warped men with a succulent child on the dinner table; 'Seals' gives the water dwelling forms human faces and female breasts; his cardinals and monks are men with turkey heads with wormy wattles. He paints congregations of frog creatures with bulging abdomens that suggest human indulgence.
His very large 'diptych-like' paintings depict a two headed horse ('East meets West' ) with one Western male end and one Eastern female end, or two approaching animal/human forms ('The Encounter') quibbling over food versus art making materials.
These are immaculately rendered paintings, rich in imagination, filled with metaphors, and filled with references to our great Western paintings ('Leda and the Swan', 'We are the People', 'Family Boat', etc.) but always with a signature use of brushstroke and color palette that brings them clearly into focus as Yongbo Zhao originals! Excellent book for an introduction to a great artist.
Grady Harp
Though Yongbo Zhao is 45 years old he is still considered to be one of the exciting new 'youngsters' in the field of figurative art. Born in China he was a successful 'proper artist' in the Chinese school of thought, painting and teaching with great popularity, until he tasted decadent Western art, emigrating to Germany in 1991 to absorb the edgy works of painters such as Goya, the pre-Raphaelites, and the bizarre images of Hieronymous Bosch. With these seeds firmly planted in his psyche he began producing works, both in painting and in etching that were his own versions of the influences. Now that he has mastered the brush and color techniques of the masters, he is painting some of the more fascinating works before the public today.
It is not unfair to find his paintings and etchings and drawings strange and bizarre. His subjects are often animals with humanoid features as well as humanoid behaviors! Bats hanging from the ceiling ('My Bloodsuckers') have human faces and corpulent bodies with human male genitalia; the 'Vulture Men' series deals with elderly warped men with a succulent child on the dinner table; 'Seals' gives the water dwelling forms human faces and female breasts; his cardinals and monks are men with turkey heads with wormy wattles. He paints congregations of frog creatures with bulging abdomens that suggest human indulgence.
His very large 'diptych-like' paintings depict a two headed horse ('East meets West' ) with one Western male end and one Eastern female end, or two approaching animal/human forms ('The Encounter') quibbling over food versus art making materials.
These are immaculately rendered paintings, rich in imagination, filled with metaphors, and filled with references to our great Western paintings ('Leda and the Swan', 'We are the People', 'Family Boat', etc.) but always with a signature use of brushstroke and color palette that brings them clearly into focus as Yongbo Zhao originals! Excellent book for an introduction to a great artist.
Grady Harp
Displaying 1 of 1 review