The Garden of Double Happiness
Yun-Fei Ji, Chinese, born 1963
2001
Two panels of ink and mineral pigment on mulberry pigment
Overall: 24 1/16 × 109 1/2 × 2 in. (61.1 × 278.1 × 5.1 cm)
Overall: 24 1/8 × 108 1/2 × 2 in. (61.3 × 275.6 × 5.1 cm)
Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth: Gift of Ninah and Michael Lynne
2018.37.422ab
Geography
Place Made: China, East Asia, Asia
Period
21st century
Object Name
Drawing
Research Area
Drawing
On view
Label
In Yun-Fei Ji’s contemporary landscape, humans coexist with ghosts and spirits even within a highly modernized society. In this long scroll, divided into two panels here, Ji’s supernatural figures are composed of both human and animal body parts. Their grotesque shapes and exaggerated gestures distinguish this painting from traditional Chinese landscapes, which often convey a tranquil and leisurely atmosphere. By summoning these mythical creatures to his contemporary landscape, Ji sought to raise awareness of the social and political issues of our time, such as nuclear tension, war, and environmental crises.
From the 2024 exhibition Attitude of Coexistence: Non-Humans in East Asian Art, curated by Haely Chang, Jane and Raphael Bernstein Associate Curator of East Asian Art
Exhibition History
A Brush with History: Contemporary Artists and Chinese Tradition, The Newark Museum, April 23 - July 6, 2003
Attitude of Coexistence: Non-humans in East Asian Art, Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, November 16, 2024-March 5, 2025.
Provenance
Pierogi, Brooklyn, New York, date unknown; Anonymous gift; given to present collection, 2018.
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