Northern Artists Group 北方艺术群体
From ArtSpeak China (ASC) Wiki
The Northern Artists Group was established in July 1984 and included 15 young members, including Wang Guangyi, Shu Qun, Ren Jian and Liu Yan.
The group emphasized the theoretical in their artworks and focused heavily on marketing their works via different media outlets. According to their joint philosophy, the center of Chinese culture lay in the north, where Rational painting was prevalent. They considered northern culture to be lofty, healthy and possessive of humanist qualities. Influenced by these beliefs, their works were cold, solemn, and stately. The group’s first exhibition was held in February 1987 in a classroom at the Jilin Academy of Fine Arts in Changchun, a northern city and capital of Jilin Province. The exhibition featured over thirty works from six members and included an academic seminar on “Rational Painting.”
