Time: 2025
Material: Oil Painting
Size: 60 × 50 cm
Artist: Yating He
The works presented in this exhibition are grounded in traditional realism, following the creative logic of figurative expressionism. They insist on direct observation and manual execution, rejecting reliance on photographs or digital image references.
At the core of figurative expressionism is not the mechanical replication of reality, but the reconstruction of visual experience through the artist’s immediate perception. In my practice, I consistently confront my subjects with the naked eye, developing an understanding of figures and landscapes through sustained observation. Each brushstroke becomes a direct trace of a dialogue between the body and reality, reactivating and conveying lived experience and emotion in the present moment.
This approach is, in itself, a reflection on contemporary visual culture. In an age dominated by smartphones, cameras, and digital imagery, effortless electronic recording is gradually replacing active human observation, eroding the sense of “being present.”
Amid the growing influence of artificial intelligence in image production, the accessibility and efficiency of digital images further diminish the value of embodied perception. By working directly from life, I seek to reaffirm the rarity and irreplaceability of the artist’s on-site experience. Only through the integrated engagement of eye, hand, and mind can art retain its irreproducible human warmth and vital presence.
Time: 2025
Material: Oil Painting
Size: 60 × 50 cm
Artist: Yating He
The works presented in this exhibition are grounded in traditional realism, following the creative logic of figurative expressionism. They insist on direct observation and manual execution, rejecting reliance on photographs or digital image references.
At the core of figurative expressionism is not the mechanical replication of reality, but the reconstruction of visual experience through the artist’s immediate perception. In my practice, I consistently confront my subjects with the naked eye, developing an understanding of figures and landscapes through sustained observation. Each brushstroke becomes a direct trace of a dialogue between the body and reality, reactivating and conveying lived experience and emotion in the present moment.
This approach is, in itself, a reflection on contemporary visual culture. In an age dominated by smartphones, cameras, and digital imagery, effortless electronic recording is gradually replacing active human observation, eroding the sense of “being present.”
Amid the growing influence of artificial intelligence in image production, the accessibility and efficiency of digital images further diminish the value of embodied perception. By working directly from life, I seek to reaffirm the rarity and irreplaceability of the artist’s on-site experience. Only through the integrated engagement of eye, hand, and mind can art retain its irreproducible human warmth and vital presence.