Shi Xinning

The Red Mansion Foundation, London
Acquired by the present owner from the above in 2006

This work is in very good condition overall. The canvas is slightly slack overall, and could benefit from re-stretching. There are some light traces of superficial and unobtrusive soiling, notably to areas of the white border. There is evidence of minor wear to the four extreme corner edges. There is a spot yellow media accretion to the center of the bottom edge. There is no restoration apparent when examined under ultraviolet light.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
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Part of the artist's celebrated 'Utopian Stories' series which he began in 2000, the present work featuring an idealized, energetic Mao in the company of the Beatles, examines the infiltration of traditional Eurocentric symbolism with China's isolationist past. Far from fulfilling the retrogressive nationalistic ideals often associated with Chinese contemporary painting, in fact, amongst all the genres within contemporary Chinese art, none perhaps is more deeply embedded in the visual memory of the West than Shi Xinning's 'Utopian Stories'. By satirically catapulting Chairman Mao alongside the Beatles - emblematic figures whose memory is rooted in the Western collective conscience - the artist emphasizes the import and omnipresence of Western cultural referents in 20th century Chinese society, whilst also making a sharp commentary on the nature of China's growing international resonance.

Often comparing his approach to that of a film director, Shi Xinning frequently uses newspaper cuttings as the sources for his 'Utopian Stories'; an act which both anchors them to reality and gives them their distinctive grisaille palette. From the readymade source, Shi Xinning develops his narratives, substituting objects or people in the original with his own selections. "I almost always work with a staging of completely incompatible props and scenery," explains the artist "... I am not interested in Mao Tse-tung as a real person. Today, Mao is still an icon in China. He is omnipresent; he defined my childhood and the lives of my parents. I never show him in the real context of the 60s or 70s. I present him as a visual memory." (from interview with Ulrike Münter, July 20, 2007, http://www.chinesische-gegenwartskunst.de/ )