 hinese contemporary art, through its 20 some years, ups & downs, has finally come on top of the traditional art. Star artists such as Wang Guangyi, Zhang Xiaogang, Liu Xiaodong & Fang Lijun,s names are among the most popular role models. As commercial value of art is getting more & more recognized now, the production of art also starts to replace the creativity of original art. Stars have become the creations of commercialization. More & more emerging artists also joined in this fashion. Icons such as Wang Guangyi,s Great Criticism; Zhang Xiaogang,s Big Family; Fang Lijun,s the bald head. are much regenerated & copied. Thus, all kinds of obvious icons, big heads, twisted expressions, colorful symbols, images from the Cultural Revolution, Coke bottles & montage of Chinese traditional landscape swept the whole of Chinese contemporary art scene. Thus, the criteria of judging contemporary Chinese art is simply based on icons instead of art work itself or the creativity.
Born mostly in the ’70s & ’80s, the group of artists who particapating in “My Private Idaho” are those among the most active individuals based in the South of The Yangtze River, literally Shanghai & Hangzhou. Influenced by their ancestors & the tradition of culture, art, literature & its poetic landscape, they are ever so sensitive to today,s change in politics, economy & social structure. From each everyone,s own individual point of view, they raise questions, explore possibilities to what they hear, see, feel & think.
Without the typical “big face”, or political pop, they bring art with the mark of their time to us - letting us have the opportunity to see what the other side of the contemporary China art scene is like now. Their art mark a certain time, a certain artistic experiments & experience, the inspiration of every day life. Hard to group them together perhaps, their creations will no doubt leave us to ponder, even to search for answers.
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