Zhang Hongyu

Nocturnal Melody 2 by Hongyu Zhang - Contemporary animal painting, horse

2013

Hongyu Zhang’s artworks take root in calligraphy and traditional Chinese painting. The line creates the fundamental unity of all his works, particularly his portraits, which have a striking expressive power. The artist draws them on different mediums placed directly on the floor, with music helping him to find the strength, rhythm and movement of each work. He creates an energetic space that attracts and captivates, inviting us to decipher the artist’s nervous writing, which seems to have been invented to understand the depths of the soul. “For me, a work is the meeting between a subject and the artist’s thoughts, his experiences. It is about giving an impression, translating a feeling... This approach is central to the aesthetic system of traditional Chinese painting: it is more about expressing a sensation than painting a reality.’’