Cynical Realism

Cynical Realism was a movement in Chinese art that was first used in 1992 and coined by Li Xianting to refer to contemporary art that was practiced in the 90s by a specific group of  Beijing painters. This art movement was a play on the movement of Socialist Realism. This art movement wanted to show the psychological implications of things like China's opening to the west and its urbanization. Cynical Realism lacks a unifying aesthetic and plays on the irony, the humor and satire of ideas to convey messages in its art.

Let's start by introducing Yue Minjun. Yue Minjun is based in Beijing, China. He is known mostly for oil painting depicting his smiling persona in a variety of environments. Not only has he used his grin in paintings, he has also used it in prints, watercolours and sculptures. Even though he has been dubbed a part of the Cynical Realist movement, he detests the label.

Floating, 2013

 This piece is an oil on canvas that was created in China in 2013. From the year it was created, we can see that Cynical Realism has spanned over the course of a generation and was not confined to a few years.

Armed Forces, 2009

Armed Forces depicts the same smiles that the above painting portrays. It is a print created by Yue Minjun in China, as well. These two works show satire, I would say, in accordance with the Armed Forces of China. The top one showing the satire in death, as caused by the military, and the one on the right showing the satire in the military showing smiling faces and yet, being the bringers of death, hence the horns. This interpretation is strictly from my point of view and I chose these two because the grin is a creepy, yet positive twist in the works of art. The whole work revolves around the grin and it is so simplistic, but I think it deserves the credit.



Zhang Xiaogang is also part of the Cynical Realism movement. He was born in Kunming in 1958 and the second youngest out of 4 boys. His youth and upbringing ran parallel with the Cultural Revolution of China. At the age of 14, Zhang and his family were separated and he was sent to become a farmer for the Down to Countryside movement.

Bloodline: Big Family Series, 2003

 Bloodline: Big Family Series is a lithograph based mostly from Xiogang's own family. The whole series was created in China. This lithograph is littered with small color stains and disfigure the work. The color stains are there to emphasize character of the lithograph. In the next work, we will also see the color marks which also somehow imprint the works as parts of a collective series.

Bloodline Big Family, 2007

Bloodline Big Family is a continuation of the above work. It is a screenprint, in color, on wove paper that was also created in China. This screenprint shares the characteristics of being in greyscale and blotched with color stains. It also shares the characteristic of the child being the center of attention, as if to draw attention to them. In both of the works, we can see that they all have the same blank expressions and the lack of individuality. Xiaogang is alluding to the fact that the Cultural Revolution takes away the concept of originality and stresses the collective. I chose these two from his collection because they show that what he wanted to portray could not be done in just one work of art. He wanted to show just how important it was by stretching it into a collection of art pieces. I also like the intentional color stains that he incorporates in these two pieces. Especially in these two, the way their eyes stare at the audience makes it seem like they have no soul. It was as if their souls had been stripped from their bodies. Even though they are lithographs and screenprints, they could still portray a soul, but these two do not.

Works Cited:

"Bloodline Big Family by Zhang Xiaogang | Paddle8." Bloodline Big Family - Zhang Xiaogang. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Nov. 2016. <https://paddle8.com/work/zhang-xiaogang/38520-bloodline-big-family>.

(Chinese Born. "Armed Forces by Yue Minjun." Armed Forces by Yue Minjun on Artnet. N.p., 01 Jan. 1970. Web. 28 Nov. 2016. <http://www.artnet.com/artists/yue-minjun/armed-forces-a-R843Xlb6TPc8Dv1-5Cx1nw2>. 

"Chinese Contemporary Art - Galleries in Beijing, London, New York." Chinese Contemporary Art - Galleries in Beijing, London, New York. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Nov. 2016. <http://www.chinesecontemporary.com/yue_minjun.htm>. 

"Cynical Realism (1990s)." Cynical Realism: Chinese Contemporary Art. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Nov. 2016. <http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/history-of-art/cynical-realism.htm>.

Fitzgibbons, Abigail. "Zhangxiaogang 张晓刚个人网站." Zhangxiaogang 张晓刚个人网站. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Nov. 2016. <http://zhangxiaogang.org/enArtText_XQ.aspx?TblCollegeClnum=78>. 

"Yue Minjun." Artsy. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Nov. 2016. <https://www.artsy.net/artwork/yue-minjun-floating>.