• LOCATION

    Phillips Hong Kong
    G/F, WKCDA Tower
    West Kowloon Cultural District
    No. 8 Austin Road West
    Hong Kong (map)

  • VIEWING

    5–12 December
    Thursday-Thursday, 11am-7pm
    13–20 December (closed on the 14th and 15th)
    Friday-Friday, 10am-6pm
    2-10 January (closed on the 4th and 5th)
    Thursday-Friday, 10am-6pm

  • CONTACT

    Dina Zhang
    Head of 20th Century & Contemporary Art,
    China and Senior Specialist
    dinazhang@phillips.com

Exhibition Highlights

PhillipsX is pleased to present Li Jin: The Way of the Dragon, a solo exhibition of Chinese contemporary ink painter Li Jin. Featuring Chinese calligraphy and ink paintings by Li Jin spanning over 30 years from the early 1990s to the present, the exhibition pays tribute not only to traditional Chinese culture, but also to the artist's long spanning career.

Li Jin, Fire-like Lycoris radiata, Executed in 2024

Born in 1958 in Tianjin, China, Li Jin graduated from the Chinese Painting Department of Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts in 1983 and served as an Associate Professor in the same academy. He has held solo exhibitions in China, the United States, Australia, Germany, and other countries. Today, his works are in the collections of The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, The National Arts Museum of China in Beijing, the Seattle Art Museum, and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, among others.

Lin Jin, Wandering About, Executed in 2022

Through his modern exploration of traditional ink painting, he is widely known for depicting themes of food and sensuality in contemporary life, using bright and rich colors with delicate brushwork. He draws inspiration from daily life, observing diverse cultures and social phenomena with an open perspective.

 

Li Jin, Knowing the Real Taste when it's Bland, Executed in 2024

One of the highlights of this exhibition is The Heart Sutra, which took nearly a year to create and depicts a whimsical banquet scene. At the center of the painting is a voluptuous female body, a recurring theme in Li Jin's works, representing humanity's inescapable physical nature and innate desires. Surrounding the scene are various characters, including the German social theorist Max Weber, Sean Connery as James Bond from the film '007,' and a diverse array of ordinary people Li Jin encountered on the streets of Osaka, New York, and Berlin. There are also masked people and animals, as well as at least eight self-portraits of the artist himself, each embodying different roles, such as a Norman soldier, an Elizabethan merchant, a Brooklyn hippie, a drunken skiing accident victim, a disgruntled artist, and an Edwardian chauffeur. Displayed in the banquet are endless delicacies and fine wines from different countries. Interspersed among the indulgence in food and drink are texts from Buddhist scriptures and chants. Reciting or copying these texts, as Li Jin does, is a process of repentance, accumulating merit to offset the obsessions and sins of life.

LI JIN The Heart Sutra, Executed in 2020

Not only are there vibrant women and feasts of wine and meat, but Li’s paintings also depict everyday fruits and vegetables, all personally grown by him. His works capture the essence of ordinary life, sometimes full and passionate, other times lazy and leisurely. He combines his whimsical ideas, life insights, and exquisite skills, inviting viewers to appreciate his unique world and savor the beauty of life.

Li Jin, Comprehension of Maitrī, Executed in 2024

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