Built to Order: New Works by Feng Mengbo

Coming Exhibition

定制

Feng Mengbo(馮夢波)

　　冯梦波1966年出生于北京，毕业于中央美术学院版画系。曾连续两届受邀参展德国卡塞尔「文件大展」，是中国当代新媒体艺术的重要人物。冯自93年沉迷于计算机艺术，去年起重新以「绘画」为媒介创作，以毛泽东作为他的古典绘画的主角，开始创作《定制历史》系列。文革期间一个广为流行的传说是，绘制毛主席的画像需要某种特殊的许可证。这不仅是因为绘画者需要高超的技巧足以胜任这个工作，也是由于绘制领袖像是一个严肃的政治任务。

4th May- 27th May, 2006
Hanart T Z Gallery, Hong Kong
地址：汉雅轩(香港中环皇后大道中5号衡恰大厦2楼202室)

History Built to Order

Feng Mengbo

During the Cultural Revolution there was a saying that only artists who had obtained an official permit were allowed to paint the portrait of Chairman Mao. This was not only because any artist attempting this task had to be an extremely skilled technician, but also because painting the image of the Great Leader was a grave political mission. I don’t know whether there is any truth to this story, but from looking at existing works of Cultural Revolution art, whether the political passion was real or feigned, behind every portrait there is certainly the shadow of a frightened artist.

In 1997 I was in Berlin and went with an Austrian friend to attend the spectacular opening ceremony of the Hamburger Bahnhof Museum. Afterwards, Harald Szeemann, Holly Solomon and I spent an enjoyable time crowded around a small café table talking together. Since then both of these friends have passed away, and the memory of their voices and faces on that day has also faded: But one memory is still etched clearly in my mind: the sight of Andy Warhol’s portrait of Mao Zedong hanging high up in the museum’s main hall. Andy definitely didn’t have an official permit.

After my obsession with computer art began in 1993, I gradually came to neglect painting altogether; yet every time I visited an art museum, it was always the paintings and sculptures that most attracted me. Last summer, after completing my teaching appointment in Salzburg, I took my whole family to Italy for a three-week holiday. What a wonderful time I had viewing so many great works of classical art---I felt like I was drunk with beauty. The glowing, pulsating images of the silver screen may easily draw the eye and captivate the attention, but in the end the powerful, rock-like stillness of classical art is so much more electrifying. And so I began to paint again.

To me the only truly iconic image in Chinese portraiture in that of Mao Zedong; and my return to ‘classical’ painting began from here..................
　　第一步：材料试验


　　VeeJet，一种以色列兵工厂参与制造的巨型喷墨打印机。


　　亚麻布。热压木板。铝。木炭。油彩。丙烯。凝胶。


　　第二步：定制3D模型


　　以一个毛泽东陶瓷胸像为蓝本制作出了一个完美模型，再从网络上找到的毛泽东画像从中一分为二，制作出一个对称图像作为贴图。至此模型完工，有了一个纯正的人物和一个虚拟的无限自由的摄影棚。


　　第三步：拍摄


　　在3D软件中调焦和布光。

　　第四步：底层处理


　　数据投影机将完成的3D图像投射到亚麻布上，以木炭勾勒轮廓。在画布上涂布黏稠的丙烯凝胶后，用带齿画刀仔细地按照结构分割刻画纹理。干燥后用粗大的画笔和银色丙烯颜料塑造出笔触。


　　第五步：印制


　　12张处理好的画布运抵印刷工作室，工人将画布一一用真空吸盘和胶带固定在VeeJet的台面上，颜料一行行地喷射到画布上，刺眼的反紫外线灯管时开时闭将颜料瞬间烘干固化UV保护层。作品完成。


　　《下一个鹰巢》是冯梦波最具政治性的作品之一。题材暗合了二战胜利60年，更直接的反映了当代太平盛世上空的战争阴云。战争作为终极暴力手段固然永远与金钱有关，而宗教之争和民族敌视更是今日热点，这一切都与历史相关。他要表达自己的不安，也是对他儿子这一代的未来的焦虑。