2019 - 2019 JINGART

Lin & Lin Gallery is going to present a new series of works by artist Zhao Zhao in the second edition of JINGART, Beijing. Continuing the Self-Portrait series in recent years, the Villain series refers to to the uneasy external objects into the different images of villains. Moreover, Zhao's new paintings extend the subject matter to the people and things in daily life, then through the interactive comparison of paintings, to take a closer gaze to a deeper and more sensitive inner world, that reflects the anxiety changes in this era.

Starting in 2017, Zhao Zhao tells an interesting and tortuous story. The Self-Portrait series serves as a prelude to the story, aiming to bring out the perspective back to one's life consciousness and journey of self-reflection. His early series Self-Portrait is romantic and pure, but later, in Villain, we see that the evil man has come out of his shell. Since the artist matured, good and evil, and right and wrong, have come together, and his physical body has been restructured.

Later still, a new life emerged and Zhao Zhao became a father, making him anxious about growing old. He became more deeply aware of life's path, as well as its trials and tribulations, such that he could only continue to fight for redemption. Growth eventually turns into aging, and the accumulation of experience is the result of a life. Therefore, a father becomes a grandfather in his paintings, and experiences are both true and false, and righteous and evil. The bulge on the forehead of the old man in the painting is both a symbol of wisdom and a flower-like tumor harboring evil.

Born in 1982 in Xinjiang Province, China, Zhao Zhao got his bachelor's degree from the Art Department of Xinjiang Arts Institute in 2003, and then furthered his studies at Beijing Film Academy. Zhao Zhao served as Ai Weiwei's assistant for many years, and today is one of China's most important post-1980s contemporary artists. His interests include challenging reality and conventional ideologies with various art forms, emphasizing the free will of the individual and expressing an unconventional and anarchic attitude. His works include painting, installation, photography, video, and performance art, in which he closely watches the social environment and the living conditions of the people. He is socially active and challenges traditional ideologies, but his criticism always maintains a poetic aesthetic. Recently, Zhao Zhao's provocative and rich art practice has gained international attention, and his exhibitions have been favorably received in China, North America, and Europe. Zhao Zhao is seen as a cutting edge international artist.