4 Painters from Sichuan were presented in this exhibition. Zhang Xiaogang (b. 1958) first established himself as a leading artist in the 1980s, and emerged on the international arena after 1993 with his iconic “Bloodline” series of portraits. These portraits have been hailed as the true faces to the soul of the modern Chinese. Zhang has featured in landmark events such as the Centenary Exhibition of Venice Biennale (1995), “China’s New Art Post- 1989” (tour 1993-1997), and Sao Paulo Biennale. Works presented in the current exhibition were completed in January 2004; they mark a new departure in Zhang’s spiritual journey, but returning as always to musings on his childhood experience.

Shen Xiaotong (b. 1968) is a leading painter of his generation, and his art has travelled the world since 1990. Shen was part of a Special Exhibition at the Mercousul Biennale, Brazil in 2001, and in the survey exhibition “Paris Perkin” in Paris, 2002. The portraits of Shen represent the self-enquiry and anxiety of the disengaged generation of the 1990s, who are set adrift in this era of change and transforming identity.

Que Anxiong (b. 1972) and Wu Xiaohang (b. 1972) represent a new direction in Chinese oil painting. Their works are subdued and contemplative; in pursuit of a rarefied realm of the spirit Qui and Wu seek to find orientation for the soul within the clamour of this age.