|
GRAPHITE & WATERCOLOR SERIES The concept for my recent group of work of Graphite and Watercolor on Paper/Canvas is based on my personal life experience in America as a Chinese American. In my work, I attempt to imply a surrealistic meaning out of the mundane objects in a very realistic way of representation. My interest lies in the conflicts between the two cultures, and our life experiences and world views, and their influence on our reality. I have been working for an Import / Export company in Atlanta, GA for 10 years since I came to America in 1989. Our daily routine is to import the made in China products currently in high demand in the US market. A common belief in the US is that sometimes those products were produced illegally and or under duress by the Chinese government. As a Chinese, I have witnessed the progress of the reform of the Chinese social, political, and economic system in Mainland China. Even though there is an inevitable difference between the cultural backgrounds and the expectations of value of life in these two countries, it is somewhat ironic that we rely on each other so much for our daily life economically and politically. The young people in China are infatuated with American pop culture, fast food and Coca-Cola, and more and more venders in America selling the China made products. Our lives are interwoven and boundlessly intertwined, yet often imperceptibly. Life is full of mystery, implication and subtlety even though it seems simple and routine everyday. Extra-ordinary happens out of the ordinary in every moment of our lives, and a tiny particle implies the circle of life. In this series of my most recent work, I focus on the subject of everyday life as well as its psychological influence in today's society. I try to go beyond the ordinary by representing the contradictions and connections of the two cultures and lives, in a realistic approach with the surrealistic concept. 2005 |