The works of Yan Pei-Ming as a bridge between East and West. An analysis of the solo exhibition at Palazzo Strozzi.

Abstract

The thesis aims at studying the figure of the Chinese-born artist Yan Pei-Ming and his solo exhibition held at Palazzo Strozzi, Florence, from July 7 to September 3, 2023. Firstly, the artist’s background is dealt with, until the time he has left China and moved to Dijon, France. Historically speaking, it covers the circumstances leading to the Cultural Revolution up to the post-Mao era. From an artistic perspective, it makes an excursus on the art produced in mainland China between the 1960s and the beginning of the 1980s, the diaspora to the West of several Chinese artists starting from the 1980s and how Chinese contemporary art has been perceived and accepted in the West. Then, it discusses the artist’s career, from his debut in French small galleries and public spaces to his participation at international venues and biennals, such as the 50th Venice Biennale in 2003, focusing on some of his most important solo exhibitions in France and Italy. The favourable reception of his art in Europe is also examined, as him being a successful figurative artist living and working in an era when figurative art is often seen as secondary to other forms of art. Finally, it analyses the exhibition in Florence itself, entitled "Yan Pei-Ming. Painting histories" and curated by Arturo Galansino. Following a first part about the history and importance of Palazzo Strozzi as a laboratory for contemporaneity, the analysis moves on to discuss the set-up and the catalogue of the exhibition, the paintings on display in the various halls, the significance of the exhibition for the artist’s career and its subsequent reception and criticism from the international public.