Pan Jian-Light of the Troposphere

INTRODUCTION

by Katie de Tilly

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The troposphere is the lowest region of the atmosphere where all weather takes place.

Chinese painter Pan Jian has titled his most recent series of works Light of the Troposphere and it is this that we see, a bright glistening light. It’s the light that makes you squint when you look up towards the sun; the light that peers through the radiant canopy of the trees above. He emerges from his nightscapes into the full brightness of the troposphere to bring us to a new series of white paintings of flora. Continuing his exploration of trees, he explores the movement the branches play in the backdrop of light. The dazzling leaves and branches almost tremble with movement as he is able to capture the wind rustling through the trees with blurred lines and textures. Pan Jian is known for his midnight blue forest paintings, absent of light, creating melancholic landscapes in the darkest of nights. This exhibition contrasts and compliments his previous series. Here he revisits his night scenes in a new series of watercolors. This series also introduces the use of metallic paints and turpentine washes on canvas illuminating the forests with traditionally reminiscent Japanese panels.

In the literature of Chinese painting there is continual reference to tao or “way.” As Maimai Sze observed in her book, The Way of Chinese Painting, “It is not a personal way, nor a certain school. It is a universal language of painting. The tao represents a certain concept of order and harmony in nature. The grand concept originated in ancient times from observing the heaven and nature, the setting of the sun, moon and stars, the cycle of day and night and the rotation of seasons-suggesting the existence of laws of nature. A sort of divine legislation that regulated the pattern in the heavens and its counterpart on earth.” It is this harmony of nature that we feel instinctively when we see Pan Jian’s painting. He confesses that indeed he is inspired by traditional Chinese painting the philosophy of acquiring scholarship through training in traditional methods and ideas. Hehowever, branches beyond this by using Western materials of oil and canvas or watercolor on paper. He continues the practice of calligraphy to further train his hand and better his brush work and it is through this ritual that he finds his inspiration.

Pan Jian is trained in contemporary Western techniques of painting and composition and is a professor of painting at the Xian Academy of Fine Art, however the inner-core of his works are inspired by Chinese Song Dynasty art and paintings. Attuning one’s heart and mind, coordinating the inner and outer self, bringing together the heart and the hand are all key concepts of Chinese tradition and also of Chinese painting. “It is this close relationship between the tao of living and its tao of painting that largely accounts for the continuity of Chinese painting, has conditioned its characteristically ritual disposition and has given the paintings meaning substance and quality,” states Sze. Through the Light of the Troposphere we see all of these elements coming together with Pan Jian’s ability to bring Chinese philosophy and tradition into the contemporary practice of painting.

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Edge of the Troposhere 2016 oil, acrylic and metallic powder on canvas 200 X 150 cm

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Light of the Troposhere-1 2016 oil, acrylic, metallic powder and rice paper on canvas 150 X 150 cm

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Light of the Troposhere-2 2016 oil on canvas 150 X 150 cm

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Light of the Troposhere-3 2016 oil and acrylic on canvas 150 X 150 cm

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Pan Jian in his studio, Beijing, 2017

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Over the Rainbow-1 2016 acrylic on canvas 210 X 150 cm

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Over the Rainbow-2 2016 acrylic on canvas 210 X 150 cm

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Over the Rainbow-3 2016 acrylic on canvas 150 X 90 cm

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Over the Rainbow-4 2016 acrylic on canvas 150 X 70 cm

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Shadow of the Troposphere 2016 oil, acrylic and metallic powder on canvas 200 x 150 cm

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Unimaginable Blue 2016-4 2016 watercolor on paper 73 x 130 cm

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Unimaginable Blue 2016-15 2016 watercolor on paper 63 x 110 cm

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Unimaginable Purple 2015-2 2015 watercolor on paper 30 x 45.5 cm

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Unimaginable Purple 2016-2 2016 acrylic on paper 40 x 30 cm

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Unimaginable Purple 2016-3 2016 acrylic on paper 40 x 30 cm

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Unimaginable Purple 2016-9 2016 watercolor on paper 30 x 45.5 cm

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Pan Jian 潘劍 b. 1975, Shandong, China. Lives and works in Beijing and Xi’an, China.

Pan Jian is a thoughtful and committed painter. In his exploration of shadow, the artist distills the relationship between light and dark to its purest form, resulting in an arresting body of work that challenges the viewer’s eyes to adjust to the dim silhouettes and wander through the monochromatic nighttime scenes. Pan Jian’s artistic process first draws inspiration from actual landscapes, gradually transforming what he has seen into the imagined scenes that he presents on each canvas. The landscapes are therefore both real and imagined, a dichotomy that is reflected in the concept that although a shadow has no tangible content, the image presented is still able to move the viewer, provoking an emotional response. Pan Jian graduated from the Oil Painting Department of Xi’an Academy of Fine Art where he is now a teacher.

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SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS 2015 Shadow of Light, 10 Chancery Lane Gallery, Hong Kong, China 2013 The Edge of the Shadow, 10 Chancery Lane Gallery, Hong Kong, China 2010 Strange Image-painting Solo Show-Pan Jian, Today Art Museum, Beijing, China 2008 The End of the World, Beijing Space, Beijing, China

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS 2016 QUOTIDIAN, Pearl Lam Gallery, Shanghai, China 2015 Space and Nothingness, Pearl Lam Gallery, Singapore East Meets West, Artlink Gallery, Vancouver, Canada East Meets West, Artlink Gallery, Toronto, Canada 2014 Macht Sichtbar: To Unveil the Invisible -Pan Jian & Fu Xiaotong Duo Exhibition, Jing Gallery, Beijing, China Outside the Lines, RH contemporary art, New York, USA 2013 ARTSANYA, Sanya, Hainan, China 2012 MAXIMA+, Shanghai gallery of art, Shanghai, China Between Dream and Memory, Force Gallery, Beijing, China Plane·Scape, Jingyiart space, Beijing, China Xinjiang Biennale, Urumqi, Xiniang, China Close Observation & Distant Meditation Contemporary Arts Exhibition, Chengdu, China Cynical Resistance, Hakgojae Gallery, Seoul, South Korea 2011 Mid Autumn Moon, 10 Chancery Lane Gallery, Hong Kong, China Chengdu Biennale, Chengdu, China Fabricator, Soka Art Center Beijing, Beijing, China Pure Views-New Painting from China, Asian Art Museum, San Francisco, USA

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2010 Shanghai Art Fair-Young Artists Promotion Exhibition, Shanghai Mart, Shanghai, China Pure Views-New Painting from China, LBF Foundation, London, UK “Negotiations” 2nd Today Documentation Exhibition ,Today Art Museum, Beijing, China Upstairs in the Youth- young Critics Nomination Exhibition, Times Art Auseum, Beijing, China Reshaping History-China Youth New Art Invitational Exhibition, ARARIO GALLERY, Beijing, China 2009 Observation of Reality, Joyart, Beijing, China Li Xiaojing and Pan Jian Joint Exhibition, Yuz Museum, Jakarta, Indonesia 2008 Lovely Blossoms and Full Moon: Yuz Collection of Chinese Contemporary Art, Yuz Museum, Jakarta, Indonesia A Tale of Two Cities, Beijing Space, Beijing, China Distinctive Landscape, 3818 Cool Gallery, Beijing, China Contemporary Art Document Exhibition - New Prominent Exhibition, Wall Art Museum, Beijing, China 2006 Unusual Landscape , Highland Gallery, Beijing, China 2004 China New Vision – Chinese Contemporary Youth Artist Group Exhibition, Shanghai International Expo Center, China 2003 The 3rd China Oil Painting Exhibition, National Art Museum of China, Beijing, China 2002 Dissimilation Realism - Contemporary Art Exhibition, Upriver Loft Gallery, Kunming, China

SELECTED COLLECTIONS Uli Sigg (Switzerland) BudiTek (Indonesia) Hongxiu ling (Indonesia) Pierre Huber (Switzerland) DSL Collected (France) Monique Burger (Switzerland) M+museum (Hong Kong)

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ALL WORKS OF ART COPYRIGHT Š PAN JIAN A VIBRANT LIFE PUBLICATION / 10 Chancery Lane Gallery Designed by Frankie Leong Photo credits to the artist This catalogue is published on the occasion of Light of the Troposphere exhibition at 10 Chancery Lane Gallery, Hong Kong from 15 June, 2017 - 15 July, 2017.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording or any other information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher.

ISBN 978-988-16893-5-1 Printed in Hong Kong, 2017 10 Chancery Lane Gallery G/F 10 Chancery Lane, SoHo, Central, Hong Kong Tel: +852 2810 0065 E-mail: info@10chancerylanegallery.com www.10chancerylanegallery.com