ZIPENG
Coca-Cola in Jade , 2016
Zipeng (ZI PENG 訾鹏, b. 1982, Zibo, China) constructs paintings in which one image opens into another. Working primarily in oil, he combines the illusion of polished jade with the meticulous detail of Chinese painting. Mountains rise inside a skull; the Venus de Milo carries the figure of the Luo River goddess within her torso. Sharp reflections describe a solid surface, while landscapes recede into its apparent depths. This interplay creates a painting within a painting, moving the viewer between the object’s physical presence and the world it contains.
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Jade’s significance for Zipeng extends to the cultivation of character. Its gentle lustre and enduring strength have long been associated with moral qualities in Chinese thought. He describes jade as a mirror and a teacher, connecting its material properties to an understanding of how one might live. His paintings give this inward attention a visual form: the familiar exterior holds a landscape, a history, or another image through which its meaning deepens.
Zipeng lives and works in Suzhou. He received his BA in 2005 and MFA in 2008 from the Luxun Academy of Fine Arts.
