¡@¡@Born into a loyal but somehow tragic a soldiers' family, Tang Zhi-gong was growing up with a group of highly-educated criminals among whom there were a couple of talented painters. That nourishes his talents for art. Afterwards he became a professional soldier too. Military life, meetings, and children are all the motives of his painting. Canvas has recorded his life's journey that never runs out of conflicts and absurdity. But there is still a slim of hope that he keeps to face the difficulties in life. Accordingly, such attitude results in a turning point critical to his life. There is a sensitive heart of a litterateur under his soldier image. Likewise, there is a trace of insecurity under his sense of humor. Tang said, "I am a hopeless nihilist, a fundamental pessimist." His skeptics-based pessimism originates from his seeing through the struggle between those who punish and those who are punished, that between those who govern and those who are governed, or that between appearance and truth. He is so ready to accept whatever the fate offers, a bitter-sweet beauty and sadness.

¡@¡@His paintings combine two different qualities in nature: sadness and happiness are the two sides of one coin.

   

There exists balance in the seemingly conflicts and chaos. After his experiment with social realism that lasted until the end of the 80s, now he leans more toward neo-realism. For instance, his "Children's Conference" successfully exposed a wild imagination under a well-ordered life. The clear-cut picture exhibits purity of profundity. He used the innocent faces of children to satirize a game-like displacement and absurdity in adults' world. Viewers cannot but smile at his sarcasm. But more is to come; they'd find a group of kids are playing a very serious joke and may recognize the hidden absurdity of the bureaucratic system's inner logics beguiled in a funny appearance. A premature unhappiness is shown clearly on these naive faces. A meeting is no more than a play. Compare that to the truths and lies of our own life, you will find the play is worth further studying, though absurd. With a deep concern and profound sadness, Tang makes fun of the bureaucracy, of life, of the viewer, and of himself.

¡@¡@The "Blue Eyes" series, shows an even greater simplicity and profounder melancholy. The dreamy eyes that is as pure and as innocent as an ocean speak of chaos that are bound to happen, of a hybrid of blood and a confused mind. Tang Zhi-gong takes pure and naive babies as his tool to wave his bare Chinese myths.

¡@¡@In Tang Zhi-gong's works 2006, much more humor is added into the banter. Children's indoor stages also extend to the boundless land. Reflected to appreciators' smiles, Tang Zhi-gong's words as usual contain his special tragic sense. He said with seriousness, "I process my own extreme bitterness, to achieve the merry faces of the world."

 
   
   
 
1959 Born in Kunming, Yunnan Province.
1976 Joined the army after graduation from high school.
1989 Graduated from the Department of Oil Painting at the People¡¦s Liberation Army Art Institute.
1996 Started teaching at the Yunnan Art Academy until now.
   
Solo Exhibitions -
1994 "The Life of Soldiers", Yunnan Art Academy, Kunming.
2000 "Children in Metting", Hanart T Z Gallery, Hong Kong
2002 "Half a Soldier's Life", Hanart T Z Gallery, Hong Kong
2004 "Tang Zhigang", Galerie Enrico Navarra, Paris
   
Group Exhibitions -
1986 "National Art Exhibition Celebrating the 60th of the People's Liberation
Army", Beijing.
1989 "The 7 th National Art Exhibition", Nanjing.
1993 "The 2 nd China Oil Painting Exhibition", Beijing.
1994 "The 8 th National Art Exhibition", Beijing.
1995 "Current State"(organised by the Cultural Exchange Center of the University
of Columbia, United States),Kunming.
1996 "Life Style",Yunnan University Science Center, Kunming.
1997 "Urban Personality", Kunming.
1999 "Moment: Chinese Contemporary Art Exhibition", University of Chicago Art Center, Chicago.
"Open, All Directions", Kunming.
"China 46",Shanghai;Melboume.
"Chinese Avant-garde Exhibition", Saint-Benin Art Centre, Italy; Musee
Gtanet Provceence, France.
"Three Artists form Kunming",Hanart T Z Gallery, Hong Kong.
2000 "Chinese Avant-garde Exhibition", De La Villette Museum, Paris.
"Tales of Two Cities",Asia Contemporary Art, London.
2001 "VASL International Artists Workshop", Karachi.
"Boy, Girl", Kunming, Singapore.
"Basel International Art Fair", Basel.
2002 "Paris-Pekin", Espace Cardin, Paris.
"China Art", Germany.
"The First Guangzhou Triennial", Guangzhou.
"China-Pop", Sydney.
"The 17 th World Cup", France.
2003 "Collection of Lasalle-sia College of the Arts", Singapore.
"From China with Art", National Gallery of Jakarta, Jakarta.
"Gui Yang Biennial", Gui Yang.
 
   
   
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