In March of 1869, the German Geologist Richthofen who once created the term “the Silk Road” set his foot on the land of Qi Lu (which is currently known as Shandong Province ) in China to start his 3-month field exploration and investigation. In 1897, the "Juye Massacre” had become the excuse for Germany to send its troops to occupy Jiaozhou Bay. Soon after that, under the circumstance of zero preparation from the Qing Dynasty military, German fleet landed from Zhan Qiao Bridge, and forced the Qing Government to sign the <Sino-German Jiao-Ao concession treaty>, the recently formed Qingdao (called Jiao-Ao at that time) had become the colony of Germany since then. In 1914, Japan took Germany’s place in occupying Qingdao, and until 1922, it is recovered by China’s Bei Yang Government.
Dresden located in the east of Europe is the second largest city compared to Berlin in Germany. In history, it was once the most prosperous city in Europe. Unfortunately, it was bombed by the Alliance on a large scale during the World War II, and the whole city was almost burnt to the ground. However, during decades of post-war recovery, through the hard work of the stubborn people in Dresden, the city was restored to every brick and tree according to its historical look before the war. This marvel is not only the ethnic identity and the carrier of historical touch, but it also holds the self-reflection spirit which this nation uniquely processes.
In 2001, Fu Rao who grew up in Qingdao came to Dresden by himself, and since then studied, worked and lived till now. He is attracted by the history and the scenery of this place, and admires the rational thinking and will power of the people in Germany. As an artist, Fu Rao is more interested in the deep connection between this historical city and the 20th century European avant-garde art, we should be aware that this city is also one of the strong holds of German New Expressionism Movement. This is also the main reason for him to choose to stay here to work and live after graduation. Until today, the history and scenery are still the main source of his painting materials and styles.
These are happening in 3 completely different spaces and times. They seem to have nothing in common, but in fact some geographic and time links are hidden, connecting the 3 to become one, or in another word, gathering in Fu Rao’s narratives. Whether it’s between Qingdao and Germany inhistory, or between the 19th century imperialism’s colonization and the 20th century World War II, even between Dresden and Qingdao under globalization, including the repeatedly occurring image between the language of Modern European Romanticism and the Northern Song Dynasty "Imperial Landscape”. All these threads in different time and space come together, and becoming the artist's imagination of history, reality and future.
During the end of the 19th Century, Western Powers’ global invasion and colonization not only swept China into a world dominated by Capitalism, but at the same time symbolized the birth of a modern world and a modern China. Historians discovered that, 19th century is not merely a definition of a time period, such as the ancient time, medieval, Renaissance and so on. It is an "independent and difficult-to-be-named” time period. As for China, the revolutionary idea developed during 1990s was sure to be the Prelude of the next era. This was when the 20th century modern China started its series of change. As Professor Wang Hui sees it, the core historical meaning of the 19th century lies in here. It symbolizes aglobal revolution, in a way, the occurring of the 2 World Wars, the Cold War and the Globalization during the 20th century could all be dated back to the 19th century of the so called “Century’s” beginning. The Cold War’s ending and Globalization not only didn't put an end on war, trade, revolution, but in return increased the development on those aspects.
The old photos of 19th century and early 20th century are often the start and materials of Fu Rao’s paintings. But he does not stop at the re-creation of history, but builds on top of these with his personal experience occasionally, to extend a more complex narrative. Such narrative is not set with any links or frames. Most of the time, he didn’t even have a draft, but more used to the way of thinking while drawing and drawing while thinking. Inside his work, though it does not lack the metaphors from his mindset and symbols, including self-awareness of identity and anxiety of recognition, but the overall logic seems to reach an unintentional “streamof consciousness” or a “time-travel TV series” that goes beyond experience. As Paul Vilirio said, once abandoning “sense of transcending”, we will never be able to have a deep understanding of the ways we sense this world. And this “sense of transcending” can be regarded as a situational theory of action. In here, the artist’s practice is not aimed at the history’s occurring, whether it’s the construction of image materials, or the combination of multiple ways of expression, almost every factor and link are rooted in a different historical situation, meaning to point to different politics. And all these” reconstruction” and “fiction” through the artist are more like a scenery for a future “Century”.
This “Century” also cannot be given a name. It is not only surreal, but also allegorical. The deep meanings behind are some whys that need to be explored. As a Chinese artist from Qingdao, why he chose to go and stay in Dresden, why he chose the images from 19th century and WW II as the source of his paintings, why he chose to combine the ancient China’s landscape, the German Romanticism and the different languages between China and western expressionism, and why he chose to use such a way of “large narrative” of the co-existence of man, ghost, god and beast, nature and violence, revolution and world’s end. Maybe, only through such a perspective and path, can we comprehend the artist’s perception and imagination of history, reality, future world and his paintings.
[About the Artist]
Fu Rao is currently living and working in Germany – Dresden. 1978, born in Beijing. 2001, finished his study from Tsing Hua University, college of art and design which is the former school of design of Central Academy of Fine Art, and went to Germany. 2008, he graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts, Dresden, studied from Prof. Ralf Kerbach and was promoted to his master class in the same year. Since 2012, his works were brought into focus in Europe. His works have been collected by the Saxon Art Foundation, Germany, Dresden National Gallery and the collectors from United States, Switzerland and Britain. In 2017, he won the scholarship of the 14th hall artist of Leipziger Baumwollspinnerei, and his works are collected by the National Museum of History and Art of Luxembourg (MNHA).
[About the Curator]
Lu Mingjun is a Doctor of History, and an Associate Professor at the Department of Art Studies in the Arts College of Sichuan University. Recent curated exhibitions include Stereognosis Liberated Skin (2016, Wuhan), The Visibility of Strength (2017, Shanghai) and Compounds of Aura (2017, Beijing)，Frontier（2017，Shanghai；2018，Beijing）. Recent publications include Conscious Forking Paths: Three Contemporary Art Exhibitions/Projects from 1999 and What Followed (2018）. 2015 Appointed Artistic Director of Surplus Space Contemporary Art；2015 Awarded the Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation China Research Grant；2016 Recipient of the Yishu Award for Writing on Contemporary Chinese Art；2017 Awarded Asia Cultural Council Fellowship ； 2017 Recipient of the CCAA Chinese Contemporary Art Critic Award.