Liu Xiaodong: Borders presents a new series of works by the contemporary painter, who has tirelessly documented sociological settings for over thirty years. The exhibition is comprised of paintings, diary entries and videos developed from the hundreds of drawings, photographs and footage Xiaodong created throughout two research trips led along the U.S.-Mexico border in 2019.  

A restless traveler, Xiaodong combines his energetic curiosity for humanity with an old-style dedication and trust for the power of art and painting, thus offering a parallel landscape of a border often unknown to the U.S. public and not represented in the media. The exhibition also features a forty-minute  documentary shot by filmmaker Yang Bo while Xiaodong was at border, which immerses visitors in vivid depictions of his travels and explorations. 

During his research trips, Xiaodong embedded himself within the region’s communities, temporarily residing in cities such as Eagle Pass, Piedras Negras, El Paso, Ciudad Juarez, Laredo, Nuova Laredo  and Marfa as departure platforms to create his works. His paintings document individuals, locations and contemporary societies in-flux on both sides of the Rio Grande River as a means to fight stereotypes and tell the personal stories he witnessed during his time on the U.S.-Mexico border. He describes a varied world animated and enriched by diversity, where family and collective values stand out as  primordial communal means for peace and fraternity.

curatorial statement

For over thirty years, Liu Xiaodong has been painting and documenting sociological settings. The images often depict beautiful women, handsome men, and lush landscapes, using classic brush strokes and techniques to chronicle everyday life. Xiaodong is considered to be a key figure in the 1990s Chinese Neo-Realist movement.

In his exhibition at Dallas Contemporary, titled Borders, Xiaodong presents a new body of work, painted primarily from direct observation: for eight weeks, he embedded himself within border communities and cities such as Ciudad Acuna, Eagle Pass, Laredo, Marfa and Piedras Negras. These locations acted as points of departure to document individuals and contemporary societies in flux, on both sides of the Rio Grande River. This is not a new approach for Xiaodong; he has travelled the world observing difficult aspects of the human condition and exploring lands of paradoxes, finding common threads and linking experiences in contexts as diverse as rural China, the conflicted border of Israel and Palestine, and refugees in Europe.

From the portrait of a young woman standing on a border bridge waiting for asylum to a group of Mexican policemen finding some shade while controlling a refugees camp, from the dignity of a poor family standing below a tree in their derelict suburb to the simple amusement of a Sunday afternoon spent among families fishing in the Rio Grande, the exhibition reflects Xiaodong’s intimate experience of the region’s diverse communities.Through his paintings, he highlights a world where diversity and individual histories are paramount. Every painting captures a decisive moment, locking individual narratives down forever.

Xiaodong’s paintings materialize from hundreds of drawings, photographs and constant video documentation captured during his journeys, which are also presented in the exhibition. Often described as a ‘painter director,’ the artist chronicles his observations from a distance in daily diary entries, sketching and photographing scenes from reality and arranging them into a storyboard. However, Xiaodong’s work is not pure descriptive imagery, as he always refers to the larger social structures at play, and it demonstrates his energetic curiosity for humanity with an old-style dedication and trust for the power of art.

about the artist 

Liu Xiaodong was born in Jincheng, an industrial town in the north of China in 1963, a time when living in small towns in China was still extremely difficult. Considering art as a possible way to a better future, his parents sent him to live with his uncle, who had previously trained as a painter. Here, Xiaodong learned to use watercolors to copy the British masters and also the Russian school of painting. In 1980 Xiaodong was admitted to the High School affiliated with the Central Institute, and later went on to attend the Central Academy of Fine Arts. After graduating in 1988, he began his career as a professional painter, participating in several exhibitions in China. Throughout 1993 and 1994 Xiaodong spent several months painting and traveling in the US, where in 1994 he married the painter Yu Hong. Upon returning to China, he became a professor within the Oil Painting department of the Academy of Fine Arts, and has gone on to become one of the most prominent Chinese painters of his time. Xiaodong’s practice focuses on the everyday life of people. He predominantly depicts the living conditions of ordinary people in an age of monumental social and economic transformations. In recent years he has traveled extensively to paint life both in China and abroad, and has held solo exhibitions all over the world, most recently in Italy, Germany, Britain and Denmark.

support 

Liu Xiaodong: Borders is made possible thanks to the generous support of Massimo De Carlo Gallery, Milan/London/Hong Kong, with the support of Lisson Gallery.

Lead support for Dallas Contemporary has been provided by Ewing Properties Texas, with major programming support provided by Mark Giambrone. 2021 learning programs are supported by Sue Bancroft and Paula + Jim Crown. We gratefully acknowledge PaperCity Magazine as our media partner.

liu xiaodong

fronteras

Durante más de treinta años, Liu Xiaodong ha pintado y documentando escenarios sociológicos. Las imágenes representan a menudo mujeres hermosas, hombres bien parecidos y paisajes exuberantes, a través de la utilización de pinceladas y técnicas clásicas para narrar la vida cotidiana. Xiaodong es considerado una figura clave en el movimiento Neorrealista chino de la década de 1990.

En su exposición en el Dallas Contemporary, titulada Borders / Fronteras, Xiaodong presenta un nuevo conjunto de obras, pintadas principalmente desde la observación directa: durante ocho semanas, él mismo se insertó en diferentes comunidades y ciudades fronterizas como Ciudad Acuña, Eagle Pass, Laredo, Marfa y Piedras Negras. Estos lugares actuaron como puntos de partida para documentar a los individuos y las sociedades contemporáneas en constante cambio, a ambos lados del Río Grande. Este no es un enfoque nuevo para Xiaodong; el artista ha viajado por el mundo observando aspectos difíciles de la condición humana y explorando tierras paradojales, encontrando hilos comunes y uniendo experiencias en contextos tan diversos como la China rural, la conflictiva frontera de Israel y Palestina y las áreas de refugiados en Europa.

Desde el retrato de una joven de pie en un puente fronterizo esperando asilo hasta un grupo de policías mexicanos buscando algo de sombra mientras controlan un campamento de refugiados, desde la dignidad de una familia pobre parada debajo de un árbol en su suburbio en ruinas hasta el simple momento de diversión de una tarde de domingo entre familias que pescan en el Río Grande, la exposición refleja la experiencia íntima de Xiaodong con las diversas comunidades de la región. A través de sus pinturas, el artista destaca un mundo donde la diversidad y las historias individuales son primordiales. Cada pintura captura un momento decisivo, deteniendo las narrativas individuales para siempre.

Las pinturas de Xiaodong se materializan a partir de cientos de dibujos, fotografías y documentación constante en video capturada durante sus viajes, materiales que también se presentan en la exposición. A menudo descrito como un “director pintor”, el artista narra sus observaciones desde la distancia en las entradas de un diario, dibujando y fotografiando escenas de la realidad y organizándolas en un guion gráfico. Sin embargo, el trabajo de Xiaodong no es una pura secuencia de imágenes descriptivas, ya que siempre se refiere a las estructuras sociales más amplias que están en juego y demuestra su enérgica curiosidad por la humanidad con una dedicación y una confianza en el poder del arte al mejor viejo estilo.