Yu Youhan is best-known by Westerners for his portraits of China's late Chairman, Mao Zedong. But these are no conventional portraits; the PRC's first leader is portrayed in the style of pop art, representations that are both lighthearted and whimsical. From now until August 20, Yu, who is one of the most important political pop artists in China, has a solo show at ShanghART H-space.

God-like

Born in 1943, in his youth the Shanghai-based artist was influenced by Mao, the country's leader from 1949 to 1976. Yu recalls that Mao was regarded as an almost god-like figure, especially during the Cultural Revolution (1966-76). Yu started to learn the techniques of Western art in the 1960s, and was particularly influenced by Cézanne, Van Gogh and Picasso.

From 1988, Yu began to paint portraits of Mao, inspired by Mao posters and sculptures, but also adding in elements of pop art, Chinese ink-wash paintings and folk art. "I was a 'new artist' who had been brought up with traditional Chinese art, but I had a modern vision," Yu said in a video interview last year.

"Why did I paint Mao? I did so, in part, as a memorial to my past political life," he said in another interview. "I borrowed the method of pop art and elements from Chinese folk art to represent an ordinary Mao in a tone of resilience, a little humor, and few critical remarks, all mixed with a little admiration. I am proud that he is no longer a sacrosanct god in my paintings; he becomes an ordinary person."

In this exhibition, Yu provides gallery visitors with a series of Mao images in the guise of some of the world's most iconic paintings. "He replaced the human figures in classic paintings in Western art with Mao image, and borrowed the original paintings' techniques and style to create his artworks," Summer Sun, press officer of ShanghART told the Global Times. "We have had a lot of 'standard portraits' of Mao, but the artist thinks that we can use different ways to illustrate the late chairman. It's not meant to be political criticism, but a unique approach to recreating the image of Mao."

The artworks are named after the original painters Yu has emulated. For example, in Henri Rousseau (pictured left below), he paints Mao and his soldiers in a jungle scene similar to the way Rousseau would have depicted it. In Gauguin, Yu paints Mao in an exotic environment in the typical style of Paul Gauguin. The line "Mao en Tahiti" at the bottom of the painting pays tribute to Gauguin's experiences on the island, and also to his painting, Tahiti Women. He paints Mao in the style of Andy Warhol, and it is interesting to compare Yu's imitation with Warhol's own paintings of Mao.

Borrowed styles

"Westerners, or those who are familiar with Western art and history, will immediately recognize the styles he has borrowed, and who were the original painters. The artist wants to discuss the various possibilities of art," said Sun.

In Ellsworth Kelly, Luciano Fontana, Robert Mangold and M.C. Escher, Yu uses Mao's standard gesture of hand-waving, which is often depicted in sculptures of Mao. The black-and-white M.C. Escher shows white images as the images of Mao waving hands, while its black parts are dove images.

"For people who are not experts in art, the series is also an interesting way for them to get to know about Western art history," said Sun.

Yu's recent abstract paintings, from 2008 to 2010, are also on display. His artworks in this category all consist of a circle in a square canvas that  is filled with small colorful strokes. There are no objects in the paintings and the titles of the works are the dates on which they were created.

"His works reflects the traditional Chinese spirit, like 'the heaven is round and the earth is square,'" Sun said. "Although he uses Western materials, his technique is similar to Chinese traditional ink-and-wash."

According to Sun, Yu's recent abstract paintings are more colorful and brighter than his early works. "They are closely related to the changing times, and he likes observing society," said Sun.

Date: Until August 20, 1 pm to 6 pm

Venue: ShanghART H-space

香格纳画廊H空间

Address: Bldg 18, 50 Moganshan Road  莫干山路50号18幢

Admission: Free

Call 6359-3923 for details