Art and industry unified in Shan Fan's exhibition

Art and industry unified in Shan Fan's exhibition

By Chandra Johan

JAKARTA (JP): Two latest model Mercedes cars gleam on the
shiny marble floor of a stately building. Nearby, about 30
paintings are displayed on white panels in the foyer.

The cars and the paintings are arranged so thoughtfully that
they form a harmonious entity, each emitting its own spirit and
values. The cars exude the spirit of industry and from the
paintings the spirit of culture glows.

The atmosphere was created by Shan Fan, a Chinese-born German
painter, currently holding an exhibition at the German Center in
Bumi Serpong Damai, Tangerang, until Feb. 20.

There is nothing funny about bringing these two symbols of
civilization into the show. The two human products form a blend
of art and industry.

As the headquarters for Germany's industry and trade affairs
in Indonesia, the German Center is where business people from the
two countries meet and make deals in an atmosphere of friendship.

But before any deal is reached, they should know each other's
culture, says Landriati, the center's art and exhibition
consultant. The ongoing exhibition is the first cultural event to
take place at the center.

Shan is a heavyweight in painting. Born in Hangzhou, he is
well known for his distinctive work bridging the gap between the
traditional Chinese and more emotional Western art. His works
remind one of Zao Wou Ki, a Chinese French painter.

Like Zao Wou Ki, Shan seems to be well versed in Western art
forms, and he uses the skills he has learned in Europe to be
innovative with traditional Chinese art.

As a result, one can notice a contemplative feeling in his
works, evident in his ability to fill the void on the canvas, and
his subtle and sensible brush strokes.

He preserves the sense of fluidity of ink, and the flexibility
of his wrist movements accents the strokes.

The qualities are obvious in Water Pitcher and Its Packaging,
Upright 8, Morning Impression of Tropical Landscape and Railway.
In these works, like the classic Chinese painters, Shan is highly
proficient in drawing nature. He seems to recognize his own
heritage and can relate it to the spirit of Western modernity.

Nature has been an inexhaustible source of inspiration for
traditional Chinese artists. They see nature as greater than
humankind. Shan is one of those artists. There is no human being
in his works, as if the world is not inhabited.

It is true that when an artist so admires nature, he or she
often doesn't care to draw a human being. The Impressionist
painters were generally enchanted by natural beauty, and
expressed this in their works.

But perhaps unlike Western artists, Shan tries to uncover the
bare essentials, thus eliminating other elements which seem more
superficial. What happens then is abstraction, with a little
stroke which suggests something from nature, as seen in Railway,
Expectation, Untitled I and Untitled II.

In Railway, one can see how Shan makes efficient use of only a
few spontaneous, intuitive lines and brush strokes. The railway
tracks are made with minimal sketches, just to show that there
are tracks in that place.

A German citizen and graduate of the Academy of Fine Art in
Hamburg, Shan is active in promoting the works of Chinese-born
artists living in Europe. He writes for prominent art journals in
both China and Germany.