As an established contemporary 80s-generation Chinese artist, Cai Lei (蔡磊) possesses all the fundamental qualities that will pave his journey towards achieving international recognition. Born in a family of artists, Cai developed a passion for art and honed his artistic abilities from a young age. He proceeded to undergo professional training at the Lu Xun Academy of Fine Arts and the renowned Central Academy of Fine Arts, Beijing.

Throughout his formal training, Cai has always demonstrated a unique sense of aesthetics that differentiated him from his peers. Combined with his remarkable level of technical skills, perseverance and dedication towards expressing profound ideas, his artworks can be deemed as both exceptional and extraordinary. Cai’s father, a traditional Chinese artist, had a significant influence on the artist’s style. Cai said, “My father also painted nature. He used pieces of glass as his medium by fusing together two pieces of glass. As a result, his artworks have an element of surprise and unexpectedness.”

He continued to maintain his father’s traditional artistic values in his works but his inquisitive nature also spurred him to examine modern objects that ultimately informed his artistic process. However, the artist refrains from following art trends blindly; he believes that art should be a representation of one’s individuality in terms of thoughts and expressions. Cai’s impressive artistic principles have undeniably contributed to the uniqueness of his works.

Upon graduation, he chose to focus on sculpture – a department that was unfamiliar but appealing due to the challenges it posed. His sculptures are impeccably detailed and hyper-realistic – proof of the high artistic standards that he commits himself to. In response to an interview regarding his creative process, the artist commented, “I like my artwork to be clean-cut with a focal point. While sculpting, I ensure that there is always a single specific point that captures the viewer’s attention; the rest just play a supporting role.”

Selecting the right materials to sculpt is a very intimate process for Cai, who is interested in the origins and quality of substances such as skin. He explains, “I see consumer goods, such as bags and shoes, that are made of skin in the market. I feel that skin is a byproduct of life, which has been rendered inanimate after being processed by humans. My art revolves around resurrecting it and breathing life into the skin again.”

Cai’s works can be considered as man-made – creations of an unnatural world. Originally, the artist drew his inspiration from the experiences of inhabiting in the desolate living conditions of Beijing. In the midst of industrialization, where nature has been replaced by concrete, he believes that the fate of humans become congruent to that of animals. Cai’s rejection to this phenomenon is expressed through heated mud to combat the cold and lifeless concrete in his artworks.

Cai Lei remarked, “I am always observing and processing the things that I encounter in my life on a daily basis. I will then recreate and transform it into a 3-D sculpture using ‘real’ material. At the same time, this visual illusion can change the viewer’s experience, establishing a juxtaposition between hyperrealism and the absolute truth of reality.”

Born into the post-80s generation, Xu Cong is an avant-garde Chinese artist whose works are slowly gaining international recognition. After graduating from the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing, Xu deviated from the traditional artistic discipline to embrace the contemporary art movement. However, vestiges of her classical Chinese ink painting training are still apparent in her paintings upon close observation.

Three by Xu Cong – 2015, 100 x 80 cm, Acrylic on Canvas

Alike many other 80s generation Chinese artists, Xu’s artworks are extremely individualistic; they are very expressive and exhibit an interpretation of truth that resonate with their feelings. The unique aspect of Xu’s artworks is that it often depicts part of a scenery. She paints subjects that seem common at first glance, but in actuality, the details are rendered with metaphorical conflicts that she experiences in her daily life. Cleverly disguised by an abstract representation of landscape, Xu quietly expresses her violent rejection of the influx of urban modernization that she believes is irreconcilable with existing historic infrastructure.

 Landscape by Xu Cong – 2018, 110 x 160cm, Acrylic on Canvas

Xu does not decide on subject or visualize the end product before starting on her creative process. At the beginning, she paints the canvas impulsively like a naive child, creating a graffiti-like artwork that is symbolic of her attempts to break free from the rules and regulations that she faced everyday while growing up. However, she also does not paint purely on impulse. Although she starts off with a spontaneous process of painting abstract shapes, each subsequent brushstroke is visualized and carefully composed. They are assembled based on logic and structure that are reminiscent of Chinese societal values, but also transfused with Xu’s intense emotions that represent fluidity. She carefully paints with structure and rules, resembling her efforts to fit into society. Essentially, the influence of her living environment is so immense that she gave in.

Lake by Xu Cong – 2016, 110 x 75 cm, Acrylic on Canvas

Her works embody her conviction of the most authentic truth; she deconstructs her psychological reality to propose a tangible form of her introspection. Conceptually, she repeatedly layers the paint as a means of conveying the process of continuous experimentation and rectification that resembles growing up. From there, the end result resembles that of a landscape scenery. Xu’s works may appear to be playful and whimsical, but in actuality, they are intrinsically painted in accordance to a silent rhythm of life – an evolution from the childish and mischievous interpretation of the world to an inevitable regression into the rigid structures of society.