Contemporary Artist Zhang Peng

Zhang Peng
 

Zhang Peng is a contemporary Chinese artist born in 1981, whose work centred mostly on surrealistic photography.  He started off as a painter and then changed to photography. According to the artist himself, the reason why he switched his art to photography was because “… all [he] wanted was to express many thoughts and emotions in [his] mind through more diversified means.” His work is very particular as it features images of young, innocent girls in strange backgrounds. The girls are usually depicted as weak and vulnerable beings in highly contrasting settings. Through the girls’ weaknesses, Peng attempts to communicate his confession and assurance towards society. In his photography, the artist uses intense colours, especially red which symbolises China itself or blood. Some of his recent photos are portrayed in black and white, with some subtle hints of red.

Peng’s photography is inspired from his recollections and influences of his family background and school education. The artist himself states that "The memory and influence of [his] family background and school education build the foundation of [his] art.” He grew up in a time where market economy and socialism were occurring simultaneously, thus his art depicts a reflection of his ambience in a manner which is not features in other works of art of his times. Through his work, Peng aims to criticise society in a subtle manner.

His photography is not straightforward, he carefully arranges compositions as theatre sets and involves lights to create dramatic scenes. His photos are also computer manipulated, so as to portray unusual big eyes and very slim bodies.

                                              

The photo on the left shows blood on the glass in front of the girl who is half-naked, holding a knife in a barber shop, which is generally a place dominated by men. In the other photo there is unemotional faces of girls, who are holding colourful jewels which they achieved by cutting up a pig in order to study its internal parts. Zeng experiments with various genres and media to make his work more interesting.

I like Zhang Peng’s works because they are very expressive and there is also a message behind them.

art in ASIA - Zhang Peng. 2013. art in ASIA - Zhang Peng. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.artinasia.kr/content/view/57/33/. [Accessed 08 April 2013].

Zhang Peng - Artist's Profile - The Saatchi Gallery. 2013. Zhang Peng - Artist's Profile - The Saatchi Gallery. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.saatchi-gallery.co.uk/artists/zhang_peng.htm. [Accessed 08 April 2013].

Zhang Peng (artist) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. 2013. Zhang Peng (artist) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. [ONLINE] Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhang_Peng_(artist). [Accessed 08 April 2013].

Zhang Peng. 2013. Zhang Peng. [ONLINE] Available at: http://chngyaohong.com/blog/contemporary/zhang-peng/. [Accessed 08 April 2013].