A brush with history

Silicon Valley high-tech billionaires aren’t always known for their interest in art collecting. Or perhaps, as entrepreneur Jerry Yang explained, “It’s just that people here in the Valley are doing it more quietly.” Yang and his wife, Akiko Yamazaki, have, indeed, quietly amassed a large collection of contemporary Chinese ink paintings, a portion of which is on view until Sept. 3 at the Cantor Arts Center at Stanford University.

“Ink Worlds: Contemporary Chinese Painting from the Collection of Akiko Yamazaki and Jerry Yang” consists of over 40 works of art by two dozen Chinese and Chinese-American artists. The paintings reflect the many ways that contemporary Asian artists pay homage to the traditional techniques that have been handed down for centuries, as well as diverge in order to find new means of expression. Ellen Huang, Cantor’s curator of Asian Arts, explained that the artists featured have an average age of 50 and were all trained in a classical manner, beginning with calligraphy and the related arts of the brush.

“These paintings, however, show a distinctly different approach while still referencing the 2000-year history. They reflect artists who are conscious of the contemporary art scene as well as contemporary context of science, media and technology,” Huang said.

To the average Westerner, Chinese brush painting is a bit of an enigma, honed by years of serious study and discipline and hallmarked by deliberate, controlled brush strokes that represent noble ideas and principles. But just as art in the West is constantly reacting to and improving upon the past, the artists in this exhibition seek to explore new and more complex ways to express themselves using an age-old medium.

“Chinese contemporary painting is rich and diverse; they do not all look alike. Contemporary Chinese painting can be visually analyzed within global contemporary contexts and from historical perspectives,” Huang said.

The exhibition is organized by themes such as “Landscape,” “Visionary Ink,” “Scholarly Objects” and “Dialogues in Abstraction.” With wall statements and labels in English, Chinese and Japanese, the emphasis is clearly on expanding outreach to visitors who may not have previously found their way to the museum. Huang worked with Stanford graduate students in selecting the art and creating the catalog, resulting in a teaching-based exhibition. The exhibition is in keeping with Yang and Yamazaki’s commitment to Stanford University (they are alumni) and to supporting the arts (they have recently donated $25 million to the Asian Art Museum).

Upon entering the gallery, one of the first pieces on display is a wide scroll by Li Huayi entitled “Dragons Hidden in Mountain Ridge” (2008). Gray tones of ink depict a mountain range that is shrouded by fog. The eye travels from left to right, taking in the ethereal landscape until you reach the middle. There, in a separate overlaid scroll, is a more detailed rendering of a portion of the mountain, with a lone tree growing from a peak. It is a lovely and evocative landscape that is somehow both familiar and yet exotic.

Continuing on in the galleries, it becomes obvious that there are many more ways to expressively use ink on paper. In “Desire Scenery No. 1” (2007) by Qin Feng, swirls of bold black strokes are applied against a pale blue background. There is an energetic, dance-like feeling to the abstract shapes that is uplifting. In contrast, Lu Shoukun’s “Chan Painting” (1970) is a study of strong, forceful swaths of black ink that, at first, appear haphazard but are actually very carefully placed. Small strokes of bright red break the severity of the black-on-white contrast.

There is a graphic and effective example of how the spontaneity and abstract values of Asian art impacted Western artists in the installation of Wang Dongling’s “Great Kindness” (2013) next to Franz Kline’s “Figure 8” (1952), on loan from the Anderson Collection. Kline frequently referenced how Chinese brush painting influenced his abstract paintings and, in this case, we see a contemporary Asian artist almost mirroring his sweeping, gestural lines. Although the Kline is done by means of oil paint on canvas and the Dongling with ink on paper, there is the same upward energy, exuberance and feeling of lightness.

While most of the exhibition consists of two-dimensional works on paper (including a section devoted to Yang’s personal passion, calligraphy) there is an immersive video work upstairs that should not be missed. Expanding upon the idea of “visual images of ink in motion,” a small gallery envelops the visitor in projections and reflections. A corresponding surround-sound track follows the constantly changing images of ink slowly seeping into paper, the zigzag lines of a heart monitor, moving calligraphic characters, images of explosions and the ebb and flow of the sea. The darkness is, at first, disconcerting, but stay with it and one becomes mesmerized. First shown at the Venice Biennale in 2015, “Chimeric Landscape” by Zheng Chongbin, is an interesting counterpoint to the enormously popular immersive experiences of Yayoi Kusama, which rely almost entirely upon light and mirrors.

The application of ink to paper may be an ancient and traditional art form but, as can be seen in this exhibition, it still lends itself to an amazing array of possibilities.

What: “Ink Worlds: Contemporary Chinese Painting from the Collection of Akiko Yamazaki and Jerry Yang.”

Where: Cantor Arts Center, 328 Lomita Drive, Stanford.

When: Through Sept. 3., Wednesday through Monday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. (open Thursdays until 8 p.m.).

Cost: Free.

Info: Go to Cantor Arts Center.

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