Darian Duan
My name is Yijian (Darian) Duan, currently working in Nanjing, China. Though most of my work is realized through traditional Chinese art medium, I do not assign myself with a specific cultural identity.
My journey of art began with malposition and conflicts. I received my art education in the 90s, majoring in traditional Chinese painting. Interestingly, though the academy was 100% Chinese, we were taught predominantly Western painting techniques and art theories. Anatomy, perspective, naturalism, and other typical Western art academy trainings shaped my undergraduate years. Our assessments were, nonetheless, traditional Chinese paintings, particularly the “literati paintings”. This posed a great contradiction to the ideas we learnt in class, because “literati paintings” pursue “fugitiveness”: they aim to express the artists’ thoughts of nature rather than staying “true to nature”.
After undergraduate years, I spent a long time living under such contradictions. Whether it is the Westernized contemporary Chinese art or the seemingly “eternal” traditional Chinese art, I find it difficult to pursue either side. That period of my life was full of struggles, doubts, and pain. Although it sounds cliché now, I did learn lessons through those unpleasant experiences. At some point I realized that, to escape the conflicts between so-called Eastern and Western paintings, I would have to build my own pictorial language. Be it Western academy training or Chinese literati painting tradition, I want to combine and challenge both using my rules.
Ever since then, I devoted my energy into “playing” with different artistic forms and materials, especially those that breach the conventional borders of culture. Forms that interest me the most include embroidery, Lunar New Year pictures (Chinese woodblock printings), Mesoamerican lintels and Ukiyo-e. During my graduate study, Euromerican modernist artists like Kandinsky, Modigliani, de Kooning and Pollock were once my focus, too. While being fascinated by the works of Yayoi Kusama, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Anselm Kiefer, I returned to ancient Chinese painters like Ni Zan, Xu Wei and Bada Shanren for my doctorate study.
Transiting between distinctive geographic locations and different time periods freed me from my early year’s inner conflicts. I am now more certain than ever of the identity of my art. Cultures or times are good references but are not defining characters for me. The fugitiveness of literati painting, the delicacy of Chinese porcelain, the solemnity of indigenous stonework, the innocence of children art, and the revolutionary spirit of some canonical Western modernists, they are all my guidance. In them, I see the freedom of imagination, the unconditional love for creation, and the sincerity to life.
I am deeply grateful for all who have supported me alone the way. From a passionate, impatient young man to a father, an artist, and a teacher, feeling liberated and peaceful from within regardless of external burdens. Every artwork of mine documents my growth, not only as an artist born in China but also as a citizen of the entire humanity.
Fresh Field 1 (2020), Rice paper, 68 x 15 cm, Group A
Fresh Field 2 (2020), Rice paper, 68 x 15 cm, Group A
Joy of Autumn (2020), Rice paper, 45 x 21 cm, Group A
Sweet Dream (2018), Porcelain, 24 x 10 x 10 cm each, Group C
A Moment of Summer (2020), Rice paper, 45 x 21 cm, Group A
Autumn Breeze (2020), Rice paper, 25 x 25 cm, Group B
Spring Sonata (2020), Rice paper, 25 x 25 cm, Group B
Afar (2021), Rice paper, 96 x 180 cm, Group D
Call of Nature (2021), Rice paper, 35 x 35 cm, Group D
Four Seasons 1 (2018), Porcelain, 7 x 7 x 7cm each, Group C
Four Seasons 2 (2018), Porcelain, 7 x 7 x 7cm each, Group C
January Blues 1 (2020), Rice paper, 35 x 35 cm, Group D
January Blues 2 (2020), Rice paper, 35 x 35 cm, Group D
Melody 3 (2018), Porcelain, 14 x 14 x 14 cm, Group C
Melody 1 (2018), Porcelain, 14 x 14 x 18 cm, Group C
Melody 2 (2018), Porcelain, 14 x 14 x 18 cm, Group C
Captured 1 (2020), Rice paper, 35 x 35 cm, Group D
Captured 2 (2020), Rice paper, 35 x 35 cm, Group D
Lotus Pond (2021), Rice paper, 180 x 96 cm, Group D
Letter of Spring (2018), Porcelain, 20 x 20 x 22 cm, Group C
You’re a new addition to the crayon box: Which color are you and why?
Yellow
What is your earliest memory of art?
Children’s picture-story books. Back then the characters were drawn in a traditional Chinese style. We can hardly find similar books today.
How did you become a practicing artist?
Becoming a practicing artist was not a “rational” choice. All artists would say that “passion led me here”, and I absolutely agree with that. I must make art, otherwise an indescribable uneasiness disturbs me to an extent that I cannot sleep or eat. It is only when I paint, I gain real peace of mind. I have never been able to disobey my heart. As Su Dongpo's poetry perfectly puts “(everyone told me) Lingnan is not the place to settle down, I say, this peace of mind is my hometown."
Do you have a favorite part of the artistic process?
My favorite part is to put down lines. The process of using lines to shape and organize the surface of paper enchants me. It is a process that “touches my soul”, although I have no idea why.
What does a typical studio day look like for you?
For me, studio is an independent universe with lots of fun and possibilities. No matter how lonely I feel, or how disturbing the external environment is, I forget everything after entering my studio. It is one of the most important places for my thinking and artmaking. Every second I spend inside offers me comfort.
Your practice seems to focus on two different mediums: ceramics and painting, what is it about these two mediums that excites you?
I have been painting on paper since undergraduate, it is my second nature now. In terms of ceramics, their textures and the possibility of creating “an artistic space” which intervenes/occupies the space of reality fascinate me. I have just begun experimenting with ceramics. In the future I will work more on that because Chinese history and culture are closely related to this material. I also want to try other medium. I am always passionate about new things.
What is your favorite tool(s) to create with?
I prefer using Chinese ink brush (the English translation seems to honour China for its invention. For that I am thankful, but this type of brush is also common in other Asian countries). Jianhao brush, a type of Chinese ink brush, has an outstanding ink-holding capacity. It can transit from soft and powerful strokes seamlessly, which is my favourite.
What is your go-to medium?
My go-to medium are still two-dimensional ones, such as rice paper. I am deeply in love with Sheng Xuan (“the raw rice paper”) produced in Anhui Jing Town. It reacts acutely to water, ink and paint, adding lots of dynamic and uncertainty to the process of painting.
Where do you draw inspiration from? Can you name some other artists who inspire you?
My sources of inspiration are quite diverse. My eyes can get watery in front of trivial sentences of daily life, folk art, poems, literature, indigenous iconography, canonical artworks and many more. Artists that inspire me also come from all over the world. In Euromerican cultural sphere, El Greco, Van Gogh, Matisse, Modigliani, Millo, De Kooning, and Pollock have taught me valuable lessons. Asian artists like Wu Daozi, Tang Bohu, Yayoi Kusama, Xu Wei, Bada Shanren and Huang Binghong are always the people I look up to. Calligraphy is also something I draw inspirations from, my favourite calligraphers include Zhang Xu, Yūichi Inoue, Huai Su and Huang Tingjian. I also find art made by indigenous people in Mesoamerica and Australia very intriguing. Most of them left no names behind, but it does not deny their artistic excellence.
How has quarantine changed your practice?
The pandemic truly shocked me. My heart is with the people who are fighting in the frontline of this invisible war, those who lost their loved ones and those who are separated from their families. I am also uncertain about how this event will shape our understanding of freedom and democracy in the future. The pandemic did not significantly change my daily life, but I have always taken the safety measures seriously so that I do not bring trouble to others.
Cocktails With The Curators
Curators Vanessa and Liz are back to share artwork from Durian Duam, this months feature at gallerybaird.com.
Artist: Durian Duan
@tido.art_ on Instagram
Piece: "Captured 1"