Artist Qin Feng Interview with Christies

Qin Feng is a leading international ink artist and the foremost representative of China's avant-garde movement. Invited by the German government to curate an exhibition in Germany in order to promote cultural exchange between the two countries, Qin moved to Berlin in the '90s where he began to fuse Western modernism and the Chinese ink tradition in abstract compositions. Feng uses traditional calligraphic materials but employs his brush with the unrestrained energy of the Abstract Expressionists. Inspired by his upbringing in Xinjiang, a multicultural intersection of the silk roads, Qin has incorporated Chinese, Uighur, Arabic, and Russian language into his work. Qin's bold brushstrokes lyrically combine the gestural impulses of Western action painting with the tradition of Chinese calligraphy painting. His interest in balancing the dynamic between positive and negative space within his compositions mirrors his interest in exploring the delicate harmony between humans and nature. Unorthodox materials, such as the coffee and tea used in the Desire Landscape series, at once assert a break with tradition while also serving as a reminder of two cultural poles at play. Born 1961 Xinjiang, China, Qin graduated from Shangdong Art Institute, China and has won several art awards from the City of Berlin and the Vermont Art Center. He has exhibited in major galleries and museums like the Goedhuis Contemporary in New York, The Beijing Museum of Contemporary Art in China, and The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, among several others. Feng Lives and works in Beijing, China and Boston, MA. Ode to Art Does not own this video. All rights belong to Christies Pte Ltd.