Born in Liaoling Province in 1963. Currently resides in Beijing. Trained in Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing.
Liu is internationally acclaimed for his sensitive engagement with social issues in China. Fresh Ink will reveal the artist applying his keen eye to Western society for the first time.
When Liu Xiaodong first saw the MFA’s Erlang and His Soldiers Driving out Animal Spirits, he was deeply affected by the extreme violence portrayed in the painting. It reminded him of reports he read on violence in American schools, an issue that he and many of his contemporaries in China find particularly tragic. Liu decided to use his response to Erlang and His Soldiers as an opportunity to explore the issue.
During his residency in Boston in May 2008, Liu selected nine local high school students and painted their portraits. He also invited his sitters to write down their own thoughts on violence as colophons to his scroll. The MFA has acquired this work for its permanent collection.
What to Drive Out? Acrylic on paper, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, 2008
Detail from What to Drive Out? Acrylic on paper, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, 2008
Detail from Unidentified artist, Erlang and His Soldiers Driving out Animal Spirits, ink and color on silk, Ming dynasty, 15th century
