This painting was created in 2017. This year I spent more time thinking about art in sketching courses, which also caused a disconnect between my color painting and sketching. I am more bold in looking for the core of Chinese culture in sketches, even though I still know very little about traditional Chinese culture. However, I am more conservative when it comes to color painting.
Overall Size:
Size without the frame:
Country: China
Date: 2017
Materials:
Condition: well preserved
Creative themes and style | My works revolve around the creative concept of "The land of humanity, People on the land". The people in the painting are people in nature, and the lines, shapes, and colors are close to nature. The nature in the painting is nature in the eyes of humans, existing in interaction with humans.I don’t pursue a series of works with a fixed and continuous style. I hope that the style of the pictures will synchronize with the changes in my life and always remain oscillating. The performance of the work must be in sync with the development of one's own life in order to be Sincere and powerful. Ideas are later.
If you would like to collect this artwork or know more about the artist, please contact us.
Stylistically, it abandons realistic precision, presenting the figure's contours and limbs through expressive distillation—similar to Lucian Freud's subjective reshaping of anatomical structure—using simplified lines to convey inner spiritual essence. Yet, it tempers Freud's sharpness, imbuing a gentler sense of everyday life.
The composition adheres to a logic of simplicity and focus. The figure sits centered within the frame, while the softly blurred, hazy background minimizes environmental distraction, naturally directing the viewer's gaze to the subject. This recalls the presentation of solitary figures in Edward Hopper's paintings, amplifying the subject's "presence" through spatial emptiness. However, the softness of the pastel medium dissolves Hopper's characteristic sense of isolation and alienation, adding a touch of mundane warmth.
Color is employed with restraint and subtlety. A dominant warm orange pastel creates layers through variations in shade within the same hue family, reminiscent of the emotional color handling in Chaïm Soutine's work. Yet, Soutine's intensity is softened here into understatement. The figure is enveloped in gentle, warm tones, fostering an atmosphere of leisure. This frees the image from the constraints of realistic color, reaching directly toward the spiritual dimension of life.
The brushwork forms the painting's vital veins. Light scumbling, layering, and outlining with pastel create rich textures. It possesses both the soft blur inherent to pastels and the spirited freedom of a sketch, akin to Edgar Degas's pastel figure studies. The interplay of solid and void, dense and faint strokes endows the static seated pose with breath and vitality, capturing a moment of the figure absorbed in their handheld device.
Content and theme focus on an ordinary, fleeting moment: the posture of a figure looking down, engaged with an electronic device—a quintessential fragment of contemporary existence. This transcends mere portraiture; it is a transformation through the art of pastel, seeking hidden spiritual codes. Within this everyday concentration lies an individual's unique way of dialoguing with the world, offering a nuanced observation of the contemporary psyche.
Emotional expression is subtly woven into the warm orange hues and brushstrokes. The gentle tones convey tranquility; the relaxed handling implies ease. There seems a quiet acceptance of life's mundane aspects, alongside a faint sense of the individual immersed in their private world. Like Edvard Munch capturing emotional intensity—though softened here—it employs a more understated, everyday narrative.
The subject is shown with head bowed, fully absorbed in an electronic device. Legs are casually crossed and the body is relaxed, presenting a typical pose of everyday leisure.
The work continues with a reddish ochre palette, paired with light, fluid linework and delicate shading. The overall tones remain subtle and restrained, giving the scene a sense of quiet ease.
While earlier pieces emphasized heavier, sculptural modeling, this one leans toward an understated sense of daily life. It feels more like a spontaneous sketch of a fleeting moment, without overworked detail—making it approachable and natural.
The background is nearly dissolved, leaving only thin patches of color to set the atmosphere. This directs the viewer’s attention to the figure and the gesture itself.
The strokes are light and sparse, especially visible in the sleeves and pant legs where only faint lines and touches of pigment outline form. The result is a sketch with a sense of “breathing space,” capturing the figure’s relaxed focus.
