Li Tianbing

Born in Guilin in 1974, Li Tianbing, also known as Tianbing Li, develops a form of painting in which images from his childhood become material for storytelling. He settled in Paris at the age of 22 and continued his studies there at the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts. His approach brings contemporary Western references into relation with Chinese visual, cultural and historical resources; he takes up traditional painting techniques to express his origins and question his history.

A small album of five black-and-white photographs, showing him between the ages of three and five, is an important starting point for his work. According to the gallery biography, his father, who had been a soldier in an army propaganda unit, had borrowed a camera to photograph his son. From 2006 onwards, his paintings include portraits of his childhood and portraits of an imaginary brother. These works combine reality, fiction and fantasy in evoking a reconstructed childhood, while also addressing, on a broader scale, the memory of a generation. The artist places his own image and imaginary characters, in monochromes of grey, within scenes of China, past and present, rural as well as urban.

The biography lists an exhibition at the Musée de Gajac in Villeneuve in 2005. In 2018, he presented «Sea of Desire» at the Fondation Carmignac, on the island of Porquerolles. The group exhibitions listed for 2021 include «2021 Summer Show» at Cuturi Gallery in Singapore and «The Contemporary Human Condition» at JD Malat Gallery in London. The list of his exhibitions also mentions «Chinese Whispers. Recent art from the Sigg Collection» at Kunstmuseum Bern. Paris Musées lists the book *Li Tianbing, Kaléidoscope*, attributed to Emmanuel Lincot, Marion Petitdidier and Tianbing Li; this 83-page book contains black-and-white and colour photographs.

Works recorded at auction

Piguet

Portrait d'enfant

Oil on canvas

Original catalogue wording

Portrait d'enfant
huile sur toile

Catalogue period : 2020-06-19 — 2020-06-30

Published result : 4800 CHF

Fees not specified in the available data

Estimate : CHF 4000–6000

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