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Artist Bio
Jingyi Wang (Chinese, b. 1989) is a New York based visual artist specializes in oil painting. She received her BFA degree from China Central Academy of Fine Arts in 2013, received her MFA degree from New York Academy of Art in 2016. Her works had been widely exhibited at Art New York, Sotheby’s New York, the Metropolitan Pavilion, Time Arts Gallery, Four you Gallery, SFA advisory, Enjoy-Art Museum, etc. Her works were reported by major medias such as China Daily, The China Press, Sing Tao daily Nespaper, World Journal, Artron, Los Angeles Post, Planet China, New York Loungue, SinoVision, Art China, etc.
Artist Statement
My artworks focus on the relationship between nature and culture. Nature is always the overarching context of my artworks. It has been almost 5 years since I started using cacti as my subject. Cacti symbolise my own feelings and attitude towards life, for me they signify a helpless state and nervous emotions.
In the past two years, I have painted a new series of hybrid cacti-human characters directly onto canvas with saturated color. The vision extends to dreamlike landscapes in indulgent pastel colors or nostalgic black and white.
My cacti-human beings reflect the biological and psychological aspects of life, approaching the subtle and intimate intersubjectivity of humanity. With these elements and colors, I would always like to extend our bodies to the ground and mother nature, creating space for dialogue and collaboration among humans and nature.
Where are you from? Did you grow up in a creative environment?
I was born in the Northeast of China. I started painting when I was ten years old. Although my parents did not work in the art field, my mother loved to write Chinese calligraphy. They created a great artistic atmosphere for me.
Who or what has compelled and/or encouraged you to create your art?
I think Claude Monet is my first teacher of oil painting. I knew Impressionism at the age of fourteen. I saw a great exhibition in Beijing named ‘Sunshine & Impression’. There were fifty impressionism paintings from the Musée d’Orsay in France. I was attracted by the rich and bright colors and this exhibition influenced me a lot in my future creation. Since then, I have dreamed of being a professional painter. I am lucky to have my parents support me. My mother was the one who took me to Beijing and introduced Monet to me.
What is the key topic or issue that your work addresses?
My artworks focus on the relationship between nature and culture. Nature is always the overarching context of my artworks.
What is your biggest source of inspiration?
Daily life, breaking news, and travel.
If you weren’t creating art, what would you be doing?
It's hard to imagine, maybe I'd be a culture teacher.
