Sui Jianguo (), professor and ex-chairman of the Department of Sculpture in Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing, is a contemporary Chinese artist.
Sui was born in Qingdao, China in 1956. Both of his parents were factory workers and were largely absent during his early childhood due to the workload imposed on them by the Mao government. Growing up, Sui witnessed the harsh realities of the Mao years. During this time, Maoist socialist realism became the approved art style. This style generally portrayed Maoist ideals in a romantic positive light. These images were used to create a cult of personality for Mao. At the age of ten, schools were closed as part of the Cultural Revolution, and Sui began to work in the factories with his parents. In an interview he stated that he was "transfixed in the age of Mao worship, when Mao was virtually a God at home". Painting was not a career option for Sui until the age of eighteen when he broke his arm, which took him away from factory work. According to Sui, during this period he contemplated his "spiritual" life and what he wanted to do with his future. Soon after, and with the permission and guidance of his father, he began studying painting at night under the cover of darkness.
Upon his return to the factory Sui painted propaganda posters of Mao in the socialist realist fashion. His studies and practice gave fruit to his first true work: a traditional Chinese landscape painting, which he completed in 1976 after the death of Mao. After his death, the Chinese government loosened its grip on the population, and educational reforms were quick to follow. Sui took advantage of the new freedoms, and moved to Jinan and then Shandong, where he received his major in sculpture. A few years later he earned his master's degree in Arts at the central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing. According to Sui, by the time he had enrolled in college, he had decided he wanted to do sculpture, inspired by his years in the factories, where people would tell him he had "skill in using his hands". After gaining his master's degree, Sui travelled to the Netherlands, Australia, Japan, and other places to display his art. He also worked as a guest professor or speaker at several universities outside of China. Finally, Sui returned to become chairman of the department of sculpture at the Central Academy of Fine Arts.
Sui became internationally prominent through the use of âÂÂnaturalistic sculpturesâ that made use of rocks, boulders, and steel. These early sculptures brought him into the international scene. His true acclaim came in 1997 when he crafted his first Mao suit, a sculpture that imitated Chairman Mao's communist jacket. His jackets interested famous collectors such as Uli Sigg, and helped him gain international recognition.
Sui has been an active artist on the stage of modern and contemporary art in China. He has had numerous solo and joint exhibitions in Japan, Australia, Hong Kong, India, Taiwan, and most recently in the United States, in addition to his active schedules in China, and several high-profile exhibitions worldwide. He likes to work with hard and heavy materials such as granite and metals. His techniques of sealing, binding, tying and hammering created a relationship of association and confrontation between his materials, which resonate with his perception of life and his internal conflicts. Among his known works in the early 1990s are Land Depression, in which he entwines huge boulders in nets made from steel ropes, and Sealed Memory, a closely welded cabinet of thick steel sheets, which gives an oppressive sense of weight and blockage. Memory is a wall made out of old railroad ties. The ties have been ground down just as humans are ground down by life, and they become part of a dividing wall, a boundary.
Many of Sui's early works reflect his personal experiences and explore, to a lesser or greater extent, and his anxieties and feelings of imprisonment. He began his Mao Suit series in 1997. This series can be regarded as the conclusion of an important stage in his self-exploration. He draws on the powerful image of the Mao suit, not as an element of revolutionary attire but as a symbol of restriction and limitation. Sui suggests that none of the Chinese have truly taken off their Mao suits even though the revolutionary era is over. Sometimes Sui makes the Mao suits resemble Buddhas and at other times he turns them into hard shells. Recently, Sui has made fairly humorous, soft and almost transparent Mao suits. The Mao suit is perhaps coming to represent to the artist an object of fun.
In a more recent work, the red dinosaur, a symbol of imperialist China, like communist China, with the engraved door on the chest mentions "Made in China". This is a glance toward plastic toys from the start of the Chinese economic flight, and a symbol of an antiquated China moving toward being contemporary. Throughout the 1960s, it seemed that everything was "made in Japan", in the 1970s "made in Taiwan", and in the 1980s "made in China". The fabrication of finished products based on models and imported raw materials has become the economic norm of emerging countries.
Sui's work explores Mao's Cultural Revolution. Through his work and educational efforts, abstract and conceptual sculpture have been well accepted by the ordinary Chinese people and by the authorities. His works have been recognized by the Western art world.
Earth Force was one of Sui's earlier works and came to his mind in 1987. The inspiration came when he was experimenting with conceptual and symbolic aspects of materials and mediums. His need to experiment with rocks came after Tiananmen Square; it was during this stage that Sui began working with more quiet materials. Earth Force consists of twenty 100 kg boulders. Each boulder is entangled in a web of ribbed steel. The final work was presented in Beijing in 1992.
Sui Jianguo's Mao Jackets are perhaps his most iconic work. Sui began thinking of the Mao Suit or Sun Yat Sen suit when he visited the birthplace of Sun Yat Sen in August 1996. A finished product finally emerged a year later when Sui was in Australia for a fellowship. A "scholarly discussion" is credited with yielding the first outlines or frame of the suit.
While there are several representations of these jackets, most of them are a hollow sculpture of a Mao suit. Sue Wang states that "utilizing various forms and sizes to simultaneously release the excitement and inhibition associated with this object, the artist used a satirical approach to express the conflict between escape and repression".
The Mao suit itself is representative of Sui's strong ties with China's Maoist past. During the Cultural Revolution Sui and many other Chinese were influenced by Mao's cult of personality. Sui goes into further detail, stating "Mao was virtually a God at home". The empty, hollow suits are seen by some as symbols of Mao's empty promises. Sui stresses that the suits are not much as a criticism but more of a medium to convey his ideas and emotions about his Maoist past. Upon completion of this project Sui felt like he had reached a certain type of resolution. Sui claimed, "I'm putting him to rest. This way I can grow up".
Sui's Red Dinosaurs or Jurassic Age series have also become a trademark of his work. These dinosaurs focus more on China's recent exporting nature, allowing Sui to evaluate the contemporary Chinese export culture. According to 798 ART district, the "Made in China" stamped on several of the dinosaurs' midsection "relates directly to some topics on economical relations". Sui intends to cause the audience to consider who is making a product, where it is going, and why. Sui sometimes cages the dinosaurs. When asked about this, Sui stated that he was suggesting that China's economic expanse "in some ways is not good for China, for the environment and human life... I don't want him to continue getting bigger".
The dinosaurs are usually made out of fiberglass and can stand up to 310 cm tall.
Sui's Made in China series revolves around China's new identity as a world producing power. The works are usually banners stating "Made in China".
Some of Sui's most recent work has been on the Limited Motion series. Limited Motion was created in order to express the feelings of "imprisonment" felt by Sui Jianguo. The series of works made its debut in 2011 and was shown in the Museum Beelden aan Zee in The Hague.
For this series Sui creates steel structures that house steel spheres. These spheres are able to move due to an internal motor. As seen with previous works, the works in this series vary in size as well as shape. For example, one of the Limited Motions is housed in a cage, and another is housed in a box. In the grander scope of the work, however, certain crucial details manifest themselves in the project that allow the artist to fully share his feelings and intentions via the artwork. The first of these details is the solid unrelenting structures themselves. Their harsh exterior perhaps refers to the oppressive stance the Chinese government has on censorship. The exterior shells are weathered, perhaps indicating the attempts made upon the structure to weaken it or tear it down, yet we still see it standing in place.
2012 "Sui Jianguo's Discus Thrower" The British Museum, London, UK
2012 "Sui Jianguo" Pace Beijing, 798, Beijing, China
2012 "Restrained Power: Sui Jianguo's Work", MOCA, Singapore
2011 âÂÂthe Hague Under Heaven---Suijianguo Sculptureâ Museum Beelden aan Zee, Hague, Holland
2010 âÂÂMade in China by Sui Jianguoâ Art Issue Projects, Beigao District, Beijing, China
2009 âÂÂMotion/Tension : New Work by SuiJianguo", Today Art Museum, Beijing, China
2008 âÂÂArt Time Square-Exhibition of works by Sui JianguoâÂÂ, Hong Kong, China
2008 âÂÂRevealing TracesâÂÂ, Joyart, Beijing, China
2007 âÂÂDian Xue - Sui Jianguo Art WorksâÂÂ, OCAT, Shanghai, China
2007 âÂÂSpeeding up â Sui Jianguo Space VideoâÂÂ, Arario, Beijing, China
2005 âÂÂSui Jianguo: The Sleep of ReasonâÂÂ, Asian Art Museum, San Francisco, US
1999 âÂÂClothes Veins StudyâÂÂ, Passage Gallery, Beijing, China
1997 âÂÂYou Meet the Shadow of Hundred YearsâÂÂ, Victoria College of the Arts, Melbourne, Australia
1996 âÂÂExhibition of Works by Sui JianguoâÂÂ, Hanart Gallery, Hong Kong
1995 âÂÂDeposit and FaultâÂÂ, New Delhi Culture Center, India
1994 âÂÂExhibition of Works by Sui JianguoâÂÂ, Hanart Gallery, Taipei, Taiwan
1994 âÂÂRemembrance of SpaceâÂÂ, CAFA Gallery, Beijing, China
2013 "Space Drawings" "FITUNFIT", Museum KAdE, Amersfoort, Holland
2011 âÂÂLeaving Realism BehindâÂÂ, Pace Beijing, Beijing, China
2011 âÂÂStart from the Horizon-Chinese Contemporary Sculpture Since 1978âÂÂ, Sishang Art Museum, Beijing, China
2011 âÂÂIdeology and ManifestationâÂÂ, Wenxuan Art Museum, Chengdu, China
2011 âÂÂthe 4th Guangdong TriennialâÂÂ, GMOA, China
2011 âÂÂSuper-Organism-CAFAM Biennale", Beijing, China
2011 âÂÂCollection History-China New ArtâÂÂ, MOCA, Chengdu, China
2011 âÂÂMartell Artists of the Yearâ Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou
2010 âÂÂMade in Pop LandâÂÂ, National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea
2010 âÂÂThe city of forking pathsâ The sculpture project of the expo boulevard, World Expo Shanghai 2010, Shanghai
2010 âÂÂThe constructed dimension - 2010 Chinese contemporary art invitational exhibitionâ National Art Museum of China
2010 âÂÂSculpture - Sui Jianguo and his studentsâÂÂ, A4 gallery, Chengdu, China
2009 âÂÂThe home courtâ White Box Museum of Art, 798, Beijing, China
2009 âÂÂBeijingâÂÂHavana The Revolution of ArtâÂÂ, The National Museum of Fine Arts, Havana, Cuba
2009 âÂÂI Can Believe Chinese Contemporary ArtistâÂÂs" (Invitation) Exhibition & Star Art Museum Opening Exhibition
2009 âÂÂEmbrace Suzhou - Exhibition of Chinese Contemporary ArtâÂÂ, Suzhou Art Museum, China
2009 âÂÂ09 Art Changshaâ Hunan Museum, Changsha, China
2009 Conversation With Chinese Contemporary Sculpture, Millennium Park, Chicago, US
2009 State Legacy-Research in the visualisation of political history, Manchester, MMU, UK
2009 "SpectacleâÂÂto each his own", Museum of Contemporary Art, Taipei
2008 âÂÂArt and Chinese RevolutionâÂÂ, Asia Society, New York, US
2008 âÂÂBeyond-SothebyâÂÂs at ChatsworthâÂÂ, Chatsworth, UK
2008 âÂÂConciliatory-Bozinan BiennaliaâÂÂ, Bozinan Art Museum, Poland
2008 âÂÂCome OverâÂÂ, Li Space, Caochangdi, Beijing, China
2008 âÂÂHanging in Sky Drifting on SurfaceâÂÂ, Linda Gallery, 798 Beijing, China
2008 âÂÂReflective AsiaâÂÂ3rd Nanjing TriennialâÂÂ, Nanjing Museum, Nanjing, China
2008 âÂÂHypallage â The Post - Modem Mode of Chinese Contemporary ArtâÂÂ, The OCT Art & Design Gallery, Shenzhen, China
2008 âÂÂHalf - life of a Dream â Contemporary Chinese ArtâÂÂ, SFMOMA, US
2008 âÂÂShips at Seaâ â Henk Visch & Sui Jianguo, C - Space, Beijing, China
2008 âÂÂNew World OrderâÂÂ, Groninger Museum, Groningen, The Netherlands
2008 âÂÂFree FallâÂÂ, Chen Ling Hui Contemporary Space, Beijing, China
2008 âÂÂCrouching Paper Hidden DragonâÂÂ, F2 Gallery, Caochangdi, Beijing, China
2008 âÂÂHunting BirdsâÂÂ, Tang Contemporary, Beijing, China
2007 âÂÂEnergyâÂÂSpirit, Body, Material, The First TodayâÂÂs Documents 2007âÂÂ, Today's Art Museum, Beijing, China
2007 âÂÂForms of ConceptsâÂÂthe reform of concepts of Chinese contemporary Art 1987-2007âÂÂ, Hubei Art Museum, Wu Han, China
2007 âÂÂRed Hot - Asian Art Today from the Chaney Family CollectionâÂÂ, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, US
2007 âÂÂMetamorphosis: The Generation of Transformation in Chinese Contemporary Art âÂÂ, Tampere Art Museum, Finland
2007 âÂÂFashion AccidentallyâÂÂ, Museum of Contemporary Art, Taipei, Taiwan
2007 âÂÂWhat is Monoha?âÂÂ, B.T.A.P., Beijing, China
2007 âÂÂBreatheâÂÂ, Jinan, China
2007 âÂÂTop 10 Chinese Contemporary SculptorsâÂÂ, Asia Art Center, Beijing, China
2007 âÂÂChinese Contemporary SocartâÂÂ, The Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia
2007 âÂÂWe Are Your Future - Special Project for 2nd Moscow BiennaleâÂÂ, Russia
2006 âÂÂCity in Progress / Live from Zhang JiangâÂÂ, Shanghai, China
2006 âÂÂDouble - kick CrackerâÂÂ, Tang Contemporary, Beijing, China
2006 âÂÂSusi - Future & FantasyâÂÂ, Metropolitan Museum of Manila, The Philippines
2006 âÂÂAbsolute ImagesâÂÂ, Arario Tian, South Korea
2006 âÂÂChina TradeâÂÂ, International Center for Contemporary Asian Art, Vancouver, Canada
2006 âÂÂJianghuâÂÂ, Jack Tilton Gallery, New York, US
2006 âÂÂBetween Past and Future: New Photography and Video from ChinaâÂÂ, Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin, Germany
2006 âÂÂOn the EdgeâÂÂ, Davis Museum and Culture Center, Wellesley College, Massachusetts, US
2005 âÂÂBeautiful CynicismâÂÂ, Arario, Beijing, China
2005 âÂÂTen Thousand YearsâÂÂ, Postmodern City, Beijing, China
2005 âÂÂTo Each His OwnâÂÂ, Zero-Space 798, Beijing, China
2005 âÂÂXianfeng! Chinese Avant-garde sculpture, Museum Beelden aan Zee, Scheveningen, The Netherlands
2005 âÂÂTransportation BoxâÂÂ, Jianwai SOHO, Beijing, China
2005 âÂÂOn the Edge - Contemporary Chinese Artists Encounter the WestâÂÂ, Cantor Center for Visual Arts, Stanford University, California, US
2005 âÂÂBetween Past and Future: New Photography and Video from ChinaâÂÂ, Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, US
2004 âÂÂNow - Conceptual Estate in ShanghaiâÂÂ, Shanghai, China
2004 âÂÂThe First Nominative Exhibition of Fine Art LiteratureâÂÂ, Wuhan, China
2004 âÂÂSculpture by the SeaâÂÂ, Sydney, Australia
2004 âÂÂGods Becoming MenâÂÂ, Frissiras Museum, Athens, Greece
2004 âÂÂWhat Is Art - Two Wrongs Can Make One RightâÂÂ, Xian Art Museum, Xian, China
2004 âÂÂPlaying With Chi EnergyâÂÂ, House of Shiseido, Tokyo, Japan
2004 âÂÂLâÂÂart àla PlageâÂÂ, Nice, France
2004 âÂÂExposition des Sculptures ChinoisesâÂÂ, Jardin Des Tuileries, Paris, France
2004 âÂÂBetween Past and Future: New Photography and Video from ChinaâÂÂ, International Center of Photography / Asia Society, New York, US
2004 âÂÂLe Moine et le DémonâÂÂ, Lyon Contemporary Art Museum, Lyon, France
2004 âÂÂBusan Sculpture ProjectâÂÂ, Busan, South Korea
2004 âÂÂLight As Fuck!âÂÂ, National Museum of Contemporary Art, Oslo, Norway
2004 âÂÂBeyond BoundariesâÂÂ, Shanghai Gallery of Art, Shanghai, China
2003 âÂÂOpen the Sky: Contemporary Art ExhibitionâÂÂ, Duolun Art Museum, Shanghai, China
2003 âÂÂThe Sea and the Music: Modern Sculpture ExhibitionâÂÂ, Xiamen, China
2003 âÂÂLeft WingâÂÂ, Left Bank Plaza, Beijing, China
2003 âÂÂConceptual EstateâÂÂ, Shenzhen, China
2003 âÂÂExhibition of Modern Ceramic ArtâÂÂ, Fushan, China
2003 âÂÂSecond RealityâÂÂ, Pingod Space, Beijing, China
2003 âÂÂRed Memory - Left Hand and Right HandâÂÂ, 798 Art District, Beijing, China
2003 âÂÂTodayâÂÂs Chinese ArtâÂÂ, Shijitan, Beijing, China
2003 âÂÂOpen TimeâÂÂ, National Art Gallery, Beijing, China
2003 âÂÂContemporary Sculpture - China Korea JapanâÂÂ, Osaka Museum, Japan
2003 âÂÂBeaufort Triennial Contemporary Art by the SeaâÂÂ, Museum of Modern Art, Oostende, Belgium
2002 âÂÂParis â PékinâÂÂ, Palace Cardin, Paris, France
2002 âÂÂMirageâÂÂ, Suzhou Art Museum, Suzhou, China
2002 âÂÂ1st Guangzhou TriennialâÂÂ, Guangdong Art Museum, Guangzhou, China
2002 âÂÂBeijing AfloatâÂÂ, B.T.A.P., Beijing, China
2002 âÂÂMade in ChinaâÂÂ, Wilhelm Lehmbruck Museum, Duisburg, Germany
2002 âÂÂTriennial of Chinese ArtâÂÂ, Guangzhou Museum, Guangzhou, China
2002 âÂÂModernity in China - 1980-2002âÂÂ, Fondacion Armando Alvares Penteado (FAAP), São Paulo, Brazil
2002 âÂÂArtists of IdealâÂÂ, Contemporary Art Center, Verona, Italy
2002 âÂÂMade By ChineseâÂÂ, Gallery Enrico Navara, Paris, France
2002 âÂÂMade in ChinaâÂÂ, Ethan Cohen Fine Art, New York, US
2001 âÂÂTransplantation In SituâÂÂ, He Xiangning Art Museum, Shenzhen, China
2001 âÂÂDream 2001 - Contemporary Chinese Art ExhibitionâÂÂ, Red Mansion, London, UK
2001 âÂÂForeverâÂÂ, Canadian Embassy, Beijing, China
2001 âÂÂOpen 2001- Fourth International Sculpture and InstallationâÂÂ, Venice, Italy
2001 âÂÂArt on the BeachâÂÂ, Nice, France
2001 âÂÂBetween Earth and Heaven: New Classical Movements in the Art of TodayâÂÂ, Museum Of Modern Art, Oostende, Belgium
2000 âÂÂShanghai Spirit - Shanghai BiennaleâÂÂ, Shanghai Art Museum, Shanghai, China
2000 âÂÂSui Jianguo and Zhan WangâÂÂ, Galerie Loft, Paris, France
2000 âÂÂSharing Exoticisms - Contemporary Art Lyon BiennaleâÂÂ, Lyon, France
2000 âÂÂChinese Contemporary Sculpture Invitational ExhibitionâÂÂ, Qingdao Sculpture Museum, Qingdao, China
1999 âÂÂSecond Annual Contemporary Sculpture ExhibitionâÂÂ, He Xiangning Art Museum, Shenzhen, China
1999 âÂÂGate of the CenturyâÂÂ, Chengdu Art Museum, Chengdu, China
1999 âÂÂAvant-garde in ChinaâÂÂ, Galerie Loft, Paris, France
1999 âÂÂLes Champs de la Sculpture 2000âÂÂ, Paris, France
1999 âÂÂThe Fourteenth International Asia Art ExhibitionâÂÂ, Asia Art Museum, Fukuoka, Japan
1999 âÂÂVolume and Form - Singapore Art FestivalâÂÂ, Singapore Art Museum, Singapore
1999 âÂÂFour ArtistsâÂÂ, Beijing Art Warehouse, Beijing, China
1999 âÂÂDeparture From ChinaâÂÂ, Beijing Design Museum, Beijing, China
1999 âÂÂChina 1999âÂÂ, Limn Gallery, San Francisco, US
1999 âÂÂTransience: Chinese Art at the End of the Twentieth CenturyâÂÂ, David and Alfred Smart Museum of Art, University of Chicago, US
1998 âÂÂPersonal Touch - Chinese Contemporary ArtâÂÂ, TEDA Contemporary Art Museum, Tianjin, China
1998 âÂÂFirst Annual Contemporary Sculpture ExhibitionâÂÂ, He Xiangning Art Museum, Shenzhen, China
1998 âÂÂIm Spiegel der Eigenen Tradition - Contemporary Chinese ArtâÂÂ, German Embassy, Beijing, China
1998 âÂÂA Revelation of 20 Years Contemporary Chinese ArtâÂÂ, Forbidden City, Beijing, China
1998 âÂÂVivre Life - Eight Artists ExhibitionâÂÂ, Wan Feng Gallery, Beijing, China
1997 âÂÂDream of China - Chinese Contemporary ArtâÂÂ, Yan Huang Art Museum, Beijing, China
1997 âÂÂContinue - Five Sculptorsâ Exhibition", CAFA Gallery, Beijing, China
1997 âÂÂSui Jianguo & Li GangâÂÂ, Contemporary Chinese Sculpture, Red Gate Gallery, Beijing, China
1997 âÂÂA Point of Contact â Korean, Chinese and Japanese Contemporary ArtâÂÂ, Taegu Culture Hall, Taegu, Korea
1996 âÂÂFirst Academic Exhibition of Chinese Contemporary Artists,â Hong Kong Art Center, Hong Kong
1996 âÂÂReality, Present, and Future - Chinese Contemporary ArtâÂÂ, Beijing International Art Museum, Beijing, China
1996 âÂÂFrom the East of Asia - Installation & PaintingâÂÂ, Kodama Gallery, Osaka, Japan
1996 âÂÂWorks Nominated by Art Critics (Sculpture and Installation) in Jiangsu Monthly MagazineâÂÂ, Beijing, China
1995 âÂÂWomen SiteâÂÂ, Beijing Contemporary Art Gallery, Beijing, China
1995 âÂÂPlan for DevelopmentâÂÂ, CAFA Gallery, Beijing, China
1995 âÂÂFrom the Middle Kingdom - Chinese Avant-garde Art Since 1979âÂÂ, Centre d'Art Santa Monica, Barcelona, Spain
1994 âÂÂSubstance and Creativity: Asian Arts and Craft from Its Origin to the Present DayâÂÂ, Hiroshima, Japan
1993 âÂÂSui Jianguo and Wang Keping Sculpture ExhibitionâÂÂ, Chinese Modern Art Center, Osaka, Japan
1993 âÂÂChinaâÂÂs New Art post 1989âÂÂ, Hong Kong Art Center, Hong Kong
1992 âÂÂContemporary Young Sculptors, National Academy of Fine Arts, Hangzhou, China
1992 âÂÂPosition '92âÂÂ, CAFA Gallery, Beijing, China
1990 âÂÂExhibition of Art Workshop No.1âÂÂ, CAFA Gallery, Beijing, China
1986 âÂÂExhibition of Young Artists in ShandongâÂÂ, Jinan, China