Press Release 2010/02/15

Yang Fudong: The General’s SmileDecember 19 (Sat.), 2009 – May 23 (Sun.), 2010

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The Hara Museum of Contemporary Art is pleased to announce the first solo exhibition in Japan by Yang Fudong, aChinese film artist who has been highly active on the international scene in recent years. As an artist with a strong
attachment to 35mm film, Yang creates films that are noted for their unique, finely grained textural quality and theuse of highly refined and perfectly composed imagery. His films--at times documentary in tone, at times
theatrical--depict fragments of contemporary Chinese society, transforming at dazzling speed, and the people wholive within it. This exhibition introduces the magic of Yang Fudong’s world by presenting a number of his
cinematic gems, some being shown in Japan for the first time. These include The General’s Smile (2009), a
large-scale video installation about the universality of human life presented in a scene of a banquet held for a senior
military officer, and Seven Intellectuals in a Bamboo Forest Part 3 (2005), one part of a series that depict
well-educated, modern-day young urbanites as they reveal their inner thoughts in various situations modeled after
the popular tale of seven famous intellectuals in ancient China who seek refuge from the world in a bamboo forest
where they engage in intellectual discourse.
Exhibition title:
Yang Fudong: The General’s Smile
Dates:
December 19 (Sat.), 2009 – May 23 (Sun.), 2010 *the exhibition has been extended (originally until March 28)
Organized by:Hara Museum of Contemporary Art
Supported by:
Japan Arts Fund, MRA Foundation Japan
Cooperation provided by: NEC Display Solutions, Ltd., Ufer! Art Documentary, Super Factory, SUZUKI EIGA,ShanghART Gallery
Place:
Hara Museum of Contemporary Art, 4-7-25, Kitashinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 140-0001
Tel：03-3445-0651 Fax：03-3473-0104 E-mail：info@haramuseum.or.jp
Website http://www.haramuseum.or.jp Mobile site http://mobile.haramuseum.or.jp
Hours:
11:00 am - 5:00 pm, Wednesdays (except on May 5 as it falls on a national holiday) until 8:00 pm*last entry 30 min. before closing
Closed:Mondays (open on March 22 and May 3), March 23 and May 6
Admission:
General 1,000 yen; Students 700 yen (high school and university) or 500 yen (elementary andjunior high); Free for Hara Museum members, students through high school every Saturday
during the school terms. 100 yen discount per person for groups of 20 or more.
Directions:
5 min. by taxi or 15 min. on foot from JR Shinagawa Station (Takanawa exit); or from thesame station take the No.96 bus, get off at the first stop (Gotenyama), and walk 3 min.
NOTE: 35mm B & W film version of the work Backyard - Hey, Sun is Rising! (13 min.)—which is normally screened with a DVD
player—will be shown every Sunday. Please contact us for details.

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Featured works[Gallery I] Backyard - Hey, Sun is Rising!, 2001, 35mm B&W film/DVD (13 min.)[Gallery II] The General’s Smile, 2009, multiple-channel video installation[Gallery III] The Half Hitching Post, 2005, 35mm color film/DVD (7 min.)[Gallery IV] Seven Intellectuals in a Bamboo Forest Part 3, 2005, 35mm B&W film/DVD (53 min.)[Gallery V] Blue Kylin Part 1, 2008, multiple-channel video installation

YANG Fudong (楊福東)Born in Beijing in 1971 and graduated from China Academy of Fine Arts in Hangzhouin 1995, Yang Fudong is garnering international attention for his photographs andfilms. He has shown work at numerous international exhibitions such as the 4thShanghai Biennale (2002), Documenta 11 (2002), the 50th Venice Biennale (2003)
and the 52nd Venice Biennale (2007). In Japan, his work was featured in the 1st
Yokohama Triennale (2001) and the 3rd Fukuoka Asian Art Triennale (2005), as wellas in many group exhibitions. He currently resides in Shanghai.
*The artist is scheduled to participate in the Aichi Triennale 2010 (2010).
【Images for Publication】
Please include the following credit along with the captions below:
Please do not trim or alter the images. Putting text over the images is also prohibited.

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A. Yang Fudong, The General’s Smile, multiple-channel video installation, 2009
Installation view at the Hara Museum of Contemporary Art photo: Keizo Kioku
B. Yang Fudong, The General’s Smile, multiple-channel video installation, 2009
C. Yang Fudong, Backyard - Hey, Sun is Rising!, 35mm B&W film/DVD, 13 min., 2001
D. Yang Fudong, Seven Intellectuals in a Bamboo Forest Part 3, 35mm B&W film/DVD, 53 min., 2005
E, F. Yang Fudong, The Half Hitching Post, 35mm color film/DVD, 7 min., 2005
G. Yang Fudong, Blue Kylin Part 1, multiple-channel video installation, 2008
*Please add the following credit for images B to G: ―Courtesy of the artist and ShanghART Gallery‖■For publicity material, please contact:
Hara Museum of Contemporary Art (Nakamura) Tel: +81-3-3280-0679 Fax: +81-3-5791-7630
E-mail: press@haramuseum.or.jp (do not include these details as contact information in the article for publication)*Click http://www.art-it.asia/u/HaraMuseum/ to see the Hara Museum BLOG!
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