  n Thursday, 19 February, the opening reception for Yan Pei-Ming : YES!—a solo exhibition by the Chinese-born French artist—will be held at the Walter and McBean Galleries of San Francisco Art Institute. The exhibition will be on view from 20 February to 23 May 2009.
Having grown up in Shanghai during the Cultural Revolution of the 60s and 70s, then moved to France in 1980 (first to Paris, then to Dijon, where he still lives), Yan Pei-Ming is an apt representative of a generation of global citizens. It is not the first time for him to hold a solo exhibition in New York. In May, 2007, New York Gallery David Zwirner held the first solo exhibition of Yan Pei-Ming, which had key impact on the reputation of Yan Pei Ming, who is already acclaimed as a talented portrait artist. Just in early Feburary, 2009, a Yan Pei-Ming "Mao" portrait from 2004 sold for $459,000 at Sotheby's Contemporary Art Auction in London.
Yan’s economical portraits of iconic or historic figures (for example, Mao himself, Pope John Paul II, Bruce Lee, and Barack Obama) are, in the most straightforward sense of the word, actions. And, like most actions, these too admit of multiple interpretations. His recent work overtly concerns socio- and geopolitical conflict and the related humanistic questions it engenders. Children from economically underdeveloped nations who suffer from brutality, starvation, poverty, and other disasters are poignantly portrayed side by side with UN secretaries-general and soldiers who have fought in the war in Iraq. Finally, as a way to stimulate and increase public awareness, Yan takes his work beyond the conventional museum space and places it—in the form of flags, posters, and various other “outdoor” manifestations—in the public sphere.
 Hou Hanru, the distinguished curator and critic, once said this of Yan Pei Ming. "Ming is certainly one of the most determined and intransigent painters of our time," adding: "Looking at Ming’s powerful work, one becomes fully aware of the tension, and the inseparable connection between art and life."
Editorial Note: One of the U.S.’s oldest and most prestigious schools of higher education in contemporary art, the San Francisco Art Institute was founded in 1871,. It boasts an illustrious list of alumni in all of its areas of focus. The Water and McBean gallery, the exciting new structure for exhibitions and public programs, looks beyond the traditional histories and narratives of exhibition practice while providing access to artists for the students in the shape of residencies, studio visits, workshops, and off campus community projects. For more information, please visit:www.sfai.edu andwww.waltermcbean.com
Below are part of the works from the exhibition(Courtesy of the artist, David Zwirner, New York, and Galleria Massimo De Carlo, Milan, Italy):
New Born, New Life, Water Color on Paper, 154x230cm, 2008
Life Souvenir, Oil in Canvas, 250x200cm, 2008
U.S. Dollars, Water Color on Paper, 2008($1, $5, $10, $20, $50 & $100)
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