I have never really been that interested in China or Chinese art. To be really honest, my first association with Chinese art is porcelain…Last week I wrote about visiting the Library of Artis, and a visit to Museum Beelden aan Zee is the topic of this second blog in the series of reflecting on the inspiration of 2017.
This summer, one of my friends took me to Museum Beelden aan Zee as a birthday present. I had never been to this sculpture art museum that is located next to the beach in Scheveningen. A pleasant surprise, next to the work of the Chinese artist Zhang Dali, has been the architectural experience of the museum; amazing location and great atmosphere. In my opinion the ground plan, forms and materials of the building totally support the experience of sculptures, which is so different from 2D art pieces. At the same time being so close to the beach on a sunny summer day, the museum grounds are like a peaceful inspiring warm bath.
Back to China. Until October 2017 Museum Beelden aan Zee exhibited the work of Zhang Dali, sculptor and graffiti artist from Harbin. Two elements of the exhibition have been of great inspiration to me, so I will take you back to that sunny day in August.
Directly attracting my attention when entering the museum, are the 18 sculptures of naked normal Chinese people from very fine marble. The sculptures look so real that I can sense the pain that these people must have felt. When walking through the sculptures it is terrific to experience these feeling coming from the bright white pieces of stone. I got so involved in the sculptures that I even forgot to make some decent pictures. Reading the information pain confirms my experience, as this is specifically mentioned. Zhang Dali is known as a protagonist of humanity and compassion in the life of millions of hard working Chinese. Really confronting.
Inside the building I encounter a set of portraits. These large paintings look like portraits from a longer distance but when I come closer, I see that these consist out of a large set of Chinese signs. Also with these pieces of art, Zhang Dali gives the Chinese working class a face. The portraits amaze me with the enormous amount of Chinese signs and the overflow of the colors that are used. One of the portraits is not constructed on Chinese signs but on the lettering ‘AK-47’ as this is the signature of the graffiti artist Dali is. He used to spray paint this tag on the outer wall of buildings, as a reference to the circle that was painted by violent demolition companies that teared down old buildings to construct new ones.
The exhibition of Zhang Dali in Museum Beelden aan Zee opened my eyes not only for Chinese art but also for politically engaged art. Art is, and always has been, a manner to bring up political issues and get society moving. Growing up over the years I found out I am more interested in politics than expected, and my interest for art around political topics or protest art start to grow. So, to be continued.
