Mixed Media
40.5x120.5cm
Bob Yan has always had an eye for the unconventional and an uncanny ability to capture candid moments of warmth, friendship and love. A little girl dreams of her prince on a white charger or a father places a final block on a woodblock-built tower as a boy looks on expectantly. A little dog watches over a sleeping young man - one wonders who really considers himself the master. His subject is delivered with bold presentation; Bob Yan’s earlier series were defined by large swathes of oil paint applied on the canvas with a palette knife. His recent work is the outcome of a period of soul-searching and a deeper examination of the language that defined his past success. It is no less bold, but much more subtle.
1970 Born in Beijing
1996 Graduated from Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts
2002 Obtained Master’s Degree in Oil Painting Materials Science from the Central Academy of Fine Arts, Beijing
Bob Yan currently resides and works in Beijing, China
Solo Exhibitions
2016 Momentary Lapsed, Leo Gallery, Hong Kong
2016 Refreshed Illusion, Yan Bo Solo Exhibition, Yang Museum, Beijing
2015 Refreshed Illusion, Yan Bo Solo Exhibition, L Gallery, Beijing
2013 Liaoning Museum of Fine Arts acquired New Year's Scene and Mountain Residence
2013 Dragonfly, Yan Bo Solo Exhibition, Eastation Gallery, Beijing
2012 Gardener, Yan Bo Solo Exhibition, Eastation Gallery, Hong Kong
2011 Luster of Time, Bob Yan’s new works exhibition, Hanmo Gallery, Beijing
2010 Bob Yan's new works, Hanmo Gallery, Beijing
2009 Bob Yan's new works, Hanmo Gallery, Beijing
2008 Who Let the Dogs Out?, Yan Gallery, Hong Kong
2008 Bob Yan’s new works, Hanmo Gallery, Beijing
2008 Bob Yan’s new works, Um Gallery, Korea
2007 Bob Yan’s Oil Paintings, Linda Gallery, Beijing, Shanghai, Singapore, Jakarta
2006 Bright Side of Life, Bob Yan's oil paintings, J.P.Art Centre, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
2005 Garden of Duoduo, Hanmo Gallery, Beijing
2005 In the Dog House, Yan Gallery, Hong Kong
2005 Auguries of Innocence, Heng Artland Gallery, Singapore
2004 Dog, Man and Women, Lee Garden, Hong Kong
2003 Dog, Man and Women, Yan Gallery, Hong Kong
2002 Recent Works of Bob Yan, Yan Gallery, Hong Kong
2002 The Colours of My Life, Heng Artland Gallery, Singapore
2001 Friends, Yan Gallery, Hong Kong
2000 One Man and His Dog, Zeeston Gallery, Hong Kong
1999 Summer in the City II, Zeeston Gallery, Hong Kong
1998 Summer in the City, Zeeston Gallery, Hong Kong
1998 Yan Bo’s Oil Painting Exhibition, Pacific Place, Hong Kong
1997 A Day In the Life, Zeeston Gallery, Hong Kong
1996 Bright Sunshine, Zeeston Gallery, Hong Kong
Joint exhibitions
2010 China International Gallery Exposition (CIGE), Beijing, China
2009 Tell, Across the Taiwan Straits Contemporary Art Exhibition
2005 A Colourful World, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Beijing
2005 2nd Chinese Landscape Painting and Landscape Oil Painting Exhibition (Beijing)
2004 Group Exhibition: Fengfeng, Bob Yan, ZhangJin, Beijing
2004 First Jury Selection Exhibition of Fine Arts and Literature, Wuhan
2004 Participated in the creation of mural painting Victims and Defenders, awarded the gold
prize at the 10th National Art Exhibition, Guangzhou
2003 China Today Art Exhibition, Beijing
2003 Shanghai Spring Art Salon, awarded the Distinguished Young Artist prize, Shanghai
2003 3rd Chinese Oil Painting Exhibition, Beijing
2003 The Power of Individuality, exhibition of contemporary artists, Beijing, Shanghai,
Guangzhou
2002 High Summer: Exhibition of Contemporary Chinese Oil Painting, Beijing
2002 Material and Expression, Beijing
2002 Statement, joint exhibition, Guangzhou
2001 Duplicate, group exhibition, Beijing
2001 New Expressions: China Oil Painting Exhibition, Beijing, Guangzhou
2000 New Century 1979 – 1999 Chinese Contemporary Art Works, Chengdu
2000 20th Century Chinese Oil Painting, Beijing, Shanghai
2000 Beijing Invitational Oil Painting Exhibition, Beijing
2000 The Power of Painting, group exhibition, Beijing
1999 Marching Towards the New Century, China Oil Painting Society Invitational Exhibition,
Hong Kong
1998 Beauty and the Beast, group exhibition of three artists, Beijing
1998 Chinese Landscape Painting and Landscape Oil Painting Exhibition, Beijing
1997 Chinese Youth Oil Painting Exhibition, Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen Chengdu
1993 1993 Chinese Oil Painting Annual Exhibition, Beijing
1992 1992 Chinese Oil Painting Annual Exhibition, Hong Kong
1991 Chinese Oil Painting Annual Exhibition, Beijing
1991 Chinese Seasons Exhibition, awarded Bronze Medal, Beijing and Tokyo
Underlying Bob Yan’s current series is a new material processed from a combination of different plasters and gels. The unusual effect defies simple expression and has to be seen and felt. It is solid and hard – definitely man-made and constructed – yet at the same time fluid and soft. Colors are layered and appear diffused and encased within the plaster-like material, creating an unusual sense of depth and movement. The colors seem to soften and fuse – imagine the surface of an ice-skating rink and you might get a sense of the effect of the material.
Bob Yan’s new series carries on the naiveté and playfulness that he is known for. However, it extends the artist’s sense of simplicity in presentation. Lines have become much more prominent and are used to create outline objects rather than fully detail them. In place of a purist approach to abstract or figurative, Bob Yan has instead forged a difficult balance that somehow brings forth the strengths of both.
The Seven Layers of Stupa
Mongolian Garden
Flowers
Bloom
Prince on a White Charger
Cubes
Polka Dots
Clouds and Hill
Hide
Landscape
One Night
Clouds
Edge
Spring
Water
Ball
