Biography
Hailing from Beijing, China, Yanbei earned his degree from the College of Fine Arts of Capital Normal University in 1988 and turned after graduation to a career as a fine arts teacher during 1989 to 2000. At the turn of the century, he shifted focus to form his own advertising and environmental art company, where he worked on several notable landscape architecture projects. Since then, Yanbei has devoted himself exclusively to his art and currently lives in Europe and dedicates to artistic creation. The result has been a spate of successful exhibitions, including the Shui Mo He Wei Exhibition at the Beijing Song Zhuang Art Festival (2017), the 14th International Biennial presents in Brazil (2019), and his solo show “Restart” in the Macau Scientific and Cultutal Centre in Lisbon, Portugal (2019).
Art style
Lisbon-based artist Yanbei explores an artistic space between calligraphy and topography with his use of bold, repetitive contour lines laid over subtle washes of inviting colours. Recalling the traditions of calligraphy and ink scroll paintings, both practices central to Chines history. Yanbei thus uses his art to recall his cultural past while carrying it forward into the realm of the elegantly abstract. Collections like his “Fingerprint” series showcase this blend with its pairing of precise repetition and spiritual mysticism.
EXHIBITIONS
Artist Solo Exhibitions:
"Yanbei – A shackled art?" (2019), in Brazil
"Yanbei - Restart" (2019), in Lisbon, Portugal
Artist Group Exhibitions:- "Cultural Week on Oriental Virtues" (2021), in Porto, Portugal
- "Group exhibition in the “Crystal Palace” " (2019), in Brazil
- "The 2nd JUSTLX Contemporary Art Exhibition" (2019), in Lisbon, Portugal
- "Shui Mo He Wei Exhibition" (2017), in Beijing, China
- "Global Chinese Painting and Calligraphy Exhibition" (2016), in Tianjin, China
- "The 14th International Biennial presents" (2016), in Brazil
- "Wild Art Oil Painting Co-exhibition" (2013), in Beijing, China
- "Oil painting exhibition" (1995), in Amsterdam, Netherlands
- "Beijing Oil Painting Landscape Exhibition" (1994), in Beijing, China
About yanbei
A brief q&a with the artist
Where do you currently reside?
Lisbon, Portugal
Who are your inspirations?
Among all eastern artists, painters such as Lin Fengmian, Wu Guanzhong, Zao Wou ki, Fu Baoshi and Zhu Dequn inspired me the most.
- Lin's art created a whole new ambience;
- Wu's art is unique as he is able to derive the beauty out of everything he sees;
- Zao's art is world acknowledged, his elegance is often infuses in his artwork and audiences are able to perceive a sense of Chinese nature temperament in his oil paintings;
- Zhu's art is undeniably a form of Chinese calligraphy interpretation;
- Fu's art infuses his elements of 'qi' that allows him to attain the peak of conception mentally without having to seek inspiration from existing forms.
Westerns artists also has a great impact on my creations. Artists such as Rembrandt who uses light and shadow to create volume and depth, fascinating color wheel that Re-noir expresses in his art, the passion from Van Gogh's every piece, the rationality discloses in Cezanne7s painting, erratic revelations of Picasso and the spiritual temptation that Rogers asserts in his art are what inspired me as of today.
How would you describe your work?
My work reflects my mental status as well as my perspective to nature and the society.
