“The Unfading Youth”
— A Look into Li Wei, Liu Zhiyin Sculptures
Wang Chunchen
Today 's art is changing rapidly with its mix of performances and its unique presentations; even the inherent character of the art is evolving. Not only in the expansion of its boundary invincibly, one after another field occupied by the arts, but also the internal bones and flesh of art its own has deepened. As we broaden the boundaries of artistic territory, we are continuously consolidating our inherent artistic content.
Li Wei and Liu Zhiyin couple is a positive compaction sculptural art partners, and their own creative cultivation is shown throughout their art creation. Lu Wei graduated from LuXun Academy of Fine Art, specializing in sculpture. Liu Zhiyin, specializing in the design, works collaboratively with Li’s creativity contributed the delicate perspective and unique complementary. Li 's study of sculpture starts from figurative modeling, coming across all the way over ten years time. In the process, with every passing moment, he has always dug deeper into the language of sculptural modeling. Li 's beginning years in college is a period of learning and exploring the language of shape. His early works revealed his ability to grasp sculptural modeling, always capturing the urban culture of the times, youth sentiment and the fun innocent imaginations. Works of this period show the memorial and vision of the romantic times with a transparent and lively sculpture language.
With the establishment of Li Wei and Liu Zhiyin’s sculptural language style, their thinking went further into the depth of the problem. The more they study sculpture, the more they find its long lasting value. Even after thousands of years of development and evolution, sculpture is still an important medium of art, numerous topics waiting for rediscovery. The generalization with the label of modernism could not erase the trace of the origin of meaning in Sculptures. In their observations and the reading in the studies, they are convinced with the principle meaning of colors in sculptures. They are determined in what has been ignored, a forgotten territory, to seek new opportunities for sculpture. Ancient Greek sculptures are colored. With a long time and erosion, these colors came off with no traces of mound, while some works remained with traces of color. China 's Terracotta Army also has a wealth of painted coloring. Although after the excavations the color fainted much, its importance is self-evident. At the moment, sculptural color exploration and applications become a trend, and it promotes the re-emergence of color sculptures. But it should be noted that many of these color creation in sculptors is still not in place, it could even cover up the nature of sculpture, or replaces the meaning in sculpture. Although some sculptures look gorgeous after coloring, the vulgar taste is far from satisfactory. Even on simple techniques merely colored silicone resin cannot withstand abrasion. This matter is also what Li Wei and Liu Zhiyin has been wary of, a topic that is often brought up between them. Because they directly sense where the problem lies, they would deny their creative ideas and debate and research deeply into sculpture coloring as an academic subject. They passed difficult tests, try a variety of methods, and finally select in a particular chemical treatment procedure, the multi-colored copper can be immersed in the surface texture. Despite time erosion, the color will not fade easily, and its delicacy achieves a vivid situation.
To achieve such a coloring method is just the second step for Li Wei and Liu Zhiyin, far from their ultimate goal. In Dalian, they live orderly, quietly, without impetuous. Yet, there is a north wind that blows the cold sea fortitude. Because in their minds sculpture is a spiritual sustenance, and a spiritual projection, they working slowly and deliberately to appreciate the essence of sculpture, hand and heart together to present the image of ideographic. Their early work is clear and bright, and gradually working to create a narrative of the moment. As they solve the core language, they are facing a broader horizon in the meaning. Therefore, their current third step of creation is to enter the field of meaning expansion, or a reflection over on the sculpture again. Especially after the development of modern sculpture, how to continue the life support in sculpturing, how to shift to a microscopic narrative from a grand narrative, and how to develop into the depth of sculpture from the surface, not just the subject matter of technology, it is naturally turned to the problem of meaning.
Taking Li and Liu’s recent work as an example, they absorbed a broad experience in contemporary sculpture, determined to pursue purely on figure sculpture. Since the expansion in the field of sculpture, non-figurative, non-narrative works of contemporary sculpture have almost become the mainstream discourses; forcing statues sculpture to mentally introverted in advance. With this background, a group of Chinese academically trained sculpture artists is looking for the possibility of spiritual dimension on statues, and it is a visual form of statues to achieve the transcendent spiritual contemplation.Its appearance is not merely the temptation to strengthen the sense of touch, but also in the life of illusion, activating liveliness, to the presence of life. Even said, let the avant-garde sculpture return to daily communication, but it requires courage and ability. Li Wei, Liu Zhiyin couple is thorough on the modern stories of these sculptures and willing to return directly back to the sculpture, let them become a means of enrichment era and symbols, for a non-materialistic spirit of resistance. This is precisely the experience of a contemporary tangle; thereafter, the understanding of sculpture that should be held. With such understanding, the handcraft has become significant, which will naturally blend the works with the artists.
Because of this, Li Wei, Liu Zhiyi put their heart in research and creation on color sculptures, increasing their ability to make ideographic sculptures. These latest works reminded to focus on shaping the image of youth, such as "Faraway, " a youngster with a robe cloak, both old-fashioned, and trendy, perhaps away from home, or yearning of others, an expression of thinking, worrying and endlessly. " If I am going for a long journey, " presents the emotion of city people, feeling the silent desire for exodus but unable to withdraw from staying closely together. If one day shall part, the work becomes a visual poetry. " As if as the first encounter " still is a youthful thought, accurately grasp the modern psychological symptoms, a closer relationship with animals than with personnel is more natural and intimate, so all grief. Li Wei and Liu Zhiyin 's other recent works are also based on shaping the contemporary state of mind, nuanced and expressive. This is the only way of diversifying contemporary sculpture and the proper attitude of art. Speaking for sculpture, the depth extension of the language is definitely not just a small effort.
Li Wei and Liu Zhiyin work hand in hand to create synergy, from the sense of young artists today to create the sculpture for the moment, but also something more than just a concept of it. That is the significance of their color sculpture: The Unfading Youth, and Forever Advancing.
2016/4/15 At Beijing WangJingHuaJiaDi North
