Who Am I - Family Photograph
He Pengqi
贺鹏琪
Production date
2013
Object Detail
Media
mineral pigments on wood
Measurements
46 x 80 x 8 cm
Notes
Who Am I — Family Photograph (2013) is painted with delicate mineral pigments on the lid of a cracked timber case. Reminding us of the sombre, unsmiling, formal family photographs of the Cultural Revolution period, the painting represents two parents and the single child permitted by Chinese government policy when He Pengqi was a boy. The limited, pale palette recalls the limpid colours of early Renaissance frescoes of the holy family, and the beautifully painted semi-transparency of the man’s white business shirt, with its shadowed collar and delicate creases, is like the painted tempera drapery clothing a Sienese saint on a timber altarpiece. These faceless people — the ideal Chinese family — also have hinged timber ‘ears’ that are opened to reveal their thoughts. We see pink clouds, birds, fish, leafless trees, checkered floor tiles and a train set — an idiosyncratic, personal symbology that also references aspects of Chinese culture and tradition. The artist explains that the glowing light at the chin of each character symbolises their ‘qi’ energy, or spirit. The train inside the father’s head represents his absence from the family — He Pengqi’s father had to travel long distances to work and was rarely home with the family. Doves and nests symbolize his mother’s devotion and tenderness. The clouds and bare trees symbolize the blurred memories of childhood seen from the vantage point of adulthood, but they also recall the curling, stylised clouds in traditional Chinese painting, often symbolising good fortune and prosperity. The large ears may be interpreted in different ways; on this small Chinese family, they may remind us of the necessity to listen carefully and be obedient citizens in a highly-regulated society. But they are also reminiscent of the hinged panels of a medieval altarpiece, which makes us curious about what we would see if the doors were closed; instead, their opening allows us to glimpse the secret, interior world of the artist’s family, and his dreams of a happy childhood. -
Accession number
2015.245