Zhang Jian Long

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About the artwork

Zhang Jian Long's 'Playtime' series often depicts its characters in the throes of dual emotions. Wonder and curiosity coupled with grimaces of pain reflect the unwillingness and fear that children experience when faced with the adult world. In ‘Playtime 8’, the artist shows us a seemingly placid scene of a man engaged in an idle game of string with a dragonfly caught in its midst. However, the child next to him exhibits an expression that is ambiguous in the sense that it could reflect both excitement and disagreement. Displaying a child’s sensitivity and the ability to perceive more than the adult who is caught up in his mindless game, the image shows the undeniable discrepancy between the world of children and men - the perceptive oceans that lie between their views of actions and consequences.

About the artist

In 1982, Zhang Jian Long was born in Lanzhou, Gansu Province, and graduated from the Fine Arts Department of Nanyang Normal University, Henan Province, in 2004. His graduation art piece was published in the 2003 Annual Works of China Fine Arts Academies and he has since exhibited extensively in China. Zhang's paintings attempt to look through a child’s eyes, depicting an ideal world of innocence and joy. Free from the confines of modern society, Zhang's works show us the human spirit's full, unbridled potential while also shedding light on the constraints of modern society and 'adult' life.