On May 1, 2024 CAFA Graduation Season was officially unveiled at CAFA Art Museum. Just as the theme “Direction of the Heart” contains good wishes and sincere expectations for Class of 2024 at CAFA, 2024 CAFA Graduation Season does not only contain their art achievements,  their enthusiasm and perseverance in creation are also reflected, which further conveys the imagination and expectations of young students as they embark on the road to the future.

Huajiadi, 60.3x85.7cm, Gouache on paper, 2023Huajiadi, 8x10cm, Copperplate etching, 2024

Fragments of My Life

By Wang Xianfeng, Printmaking Department of CAFA

I was born in Malaysia and grew up in a multicultural environment. Usually, I meet people with various skin colors, appearances and backgrounds who speak different languages and I can access environments that were completely different from my own living background. While I was young and slow-moving, though I was used to this situation, I still felt strange inside. When confronted with these unfamiliar environments, I am accustomed to quietly observing every move of others. I found that among these people whose living habits are different from my own, their actions always have a unique sense of rhythm and vitality. This observation fascinated me so much that I chose to pick up a brush and record these people and things on paper. I keep doing this now and it has become an integral part of my life.

Exhibition View at CAFA Art Museum during 2024 CAFA Graduation Season

After I was enrolled in the Printmaking Department of CAFA, my teacher commented that my work had a sense of “familiar strangeness.” This may be the best explanation of my work. Whenever I enter a new environment, I always feel like I've been there before. I realized that this is a natural defense mechanism that it helps me find a sense of security in unfamiliar environments. It may stem from my memories and psychological reactions to past experiences, and it is also a mixed experience of curiosity and reflection of the insecurity in a diverse environment.  I try to present this complex emotional experience in my creation. I hope that when visitors watch my works, they can also feel this intertwining sense of familiarity and unfamiliarity, and further to experience the curiosity and uneasiness deep in my heart.

My Workshot at Etching StudioYard of CAFA, 15x20cm, Copperplate etching, 2023

“Fragments of My Life” is the title of my graduation project series. These continue my original intention in art creation, which is to take the people and things I encounter in daily life as my materials. I am used to overlooking the panoramic view from a distant perspective. This may be my defense mechanism against unfamiliar environments, or it may be said that I am not good at getting closer to objects. They respectively record the people and things that I have encountered while traveling to different places in the past few years. They are also a dialogue between me and the world, representing my emotions deep inside. 

CAFA Anniversary Day, 15x20cm, Copperplate etching, 2023Night, 7.5x9.5cm, Copperplate etching, 2024Sanlitun, 50x71cm, Gouache on paper, 2023Tomb-sweeping Day, 40x55cm, Copperplate etching, 2024Social Shake, 60x68cm, Copperplate etching, 2024

Courtesy of Wang Xianfeng, edited by CAFA ART INFO.