Pang Xiaochen

Pang Xiaochen

Details
1990
Born in Cangzhou, Hebei, China

2010
Graduated from Central Academy of Fine Arts Affiliated High School

2014
Central Academy of Fine Arts
Bachelor’s Degree

2018
Central Academy of Fine Arts
Master’s Degree

2024
Currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Fine Arts at the Communication University of China under Professor Liu Qinghe

Pang Xiaochen

Born in Cangzhou, Hebei in 1990, Pang Xiaochen graduated from the High School Affiliated to the Central Academy of Fine Arts in 2010 and obtained a bachelor’s degree from the Central Academy of Fine Arts in 2014. In 2018, he completed his master’s degree at the Central Academy of Fine Arts. Currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Fine Arts at the Communication University of China under Professor Liu Qinghe, he is also a young artist at the Li Keran Art Institute. Pang Xiaochen works and lives in Beijing.

Artworks

Pang Xiaochen’s artworks encompass a diverse range of subjects. He focuses on people’s livelihoods and reality, constantly exploring innovative painting techniques and striving for artistic authenticity in the face of realist subjects that differ from traditional figure painting. By blending Western techniques with Chinese art forms, he uses Chinese painting paper, brush, and ink to merge Western sketching techniques and scientific colour knowledge. His works feature traditional brush strokes and textures, along with Western perspectives and light-shadow techniques, even incorporating aspects of watercolour and oil painting. This combination results in a series of everyday life depictions centred on ordinary people.

Influences

Pang Xiaochen’s approach shares many similarities with modern Chinese ink master Li Hu. Despite being separated by more than half a century, their thinking and methods are remarkably akin. Pang Xiaochen is deeply compassionate about life, and during the days of pandemic lockdown, as a new father, he turned his artistic focus toward his own son. The child’s innocence and the everyday warmth of life are captured in his ink, reflecting his pure love for the world around him.

Technique

He excels in capturing dynamic moments within static works, particularly with water-related themes. Rivers, lakes, and seas frequently appear in his paintings. He skillfully uses blank spaces to depict the motion of water, creating light and natural scenes that demonstrate his profound skill.

Artist Statement

I choose ink as my painting medium because in ink painting, I can see myself more clearly. I can absorb the nutrients of traditional brush and ink language while creating a distance from traditional painting in my work. What I express extends from myself to a certain way of life for some people today. I hope that when people see my paintings, they can resonate with me.

I enjoy painting children because I can sense my inner self during the creative process—the curiosity and the spirit of exploration that is brave and eager. Compared to people nowadays, who often present their most glamorous side to the outside world, they tend to conceal the truth within. Exploring how to tell this truth is the essence I want to discover. Everyone has their own deep thoughts or content they want to express, and how to communicate that to the outside world—I use images to present it. Although subtle, interpreting myself this way gives me great pleasure.

In the process of ink creation, the initial concept changes with the progress of the painting, and the final image often differs from the initial idea. In addition, ink has subtle uncontrollability, such as the ink freely flowing on the paper. The medium’s personality interacts with me during the painting process, keeping me excited while painting. The relationship with the materials allows me to exert more control over the composition until the final completion. Painting creation is a process of communication with oneself. How to face oneself truthfully is the most important, and it will directly reflect in the artwork. Any hint of artificiality will make it appear insincere.

Pang Xiaochen and Ink

Ink is a state of painting. Its irreversibility, free-flowing nature, and partial uncontrollability allow me to engage in a “dialogue” with it during the painting process. I enjoy this “dialogue.” I need the relaxation brought by its fluidity, the gentle feel as it seeps into the paper fibres, and the sense of time captured by the brush strokes on the paper. Some traces are not even drawn by me but are the result of me guiding it to “act” on its own. The changes that occur after the paper dries can sometimes be surprising and sometimes disappointing. I can see the passage of time in the finished work. In every process, I both control it and submit to it.