Xia Yu

What Xia Yu portrays is merely a glance of contemporary urban life, not comprehensive but representational enough. The figures in his work are perpetually roaming between their residence and work, city and nature, and seamlessly shifting among chores and tasks, daydream and recreation, switching between various identities and roles in the interval of one living space after another. There seem to be diverse choices offered to the contemporary lifestyle, but it appears that it is no longer possible to own a place of refuge or a spiritual escape like ancient literati. Life has never been so vibrant and limited, common and exhausting. The new era urges every individual to be trained as a master of time management and become a philosopher of life under the framework of consumerism with the slogan of “Work hard, play hard.” Xia Yu’s paintings precisely expose the defects of a typical life, confronting the dull moments that continually appear, which can be lovely in their unpretentious truthfulness.

1981 Born in Anhui, China

2004 Graduated from China Central Academy of Fine Arts, BA in Oil Painting

Currently lives and works in Beijing

Solo Exhibitions

2021 Xia Yu: Here and Now, Hive Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing, China

2019 Xia Yu: Subjunctive Mood, Hive Center for Contemporary Art (Shenzhen), Shenzhen, China

2017 Xia Yu: Orchard, Hive Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing, China

2015 Narrative: Xia Yu Solo Exhibition, Hive Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing, China

2014 New Youth: Works by Xia Yu, Hive Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing, China

2013 Old Paintings: Xia Yu’s Solo Exhibition, Chinese Academy of Oil Painting, Beijing, China

          Forgotten Memories: Xia Yu’s Solo Exhibition, Line Gallery, Beijing, China

2011 Awkward: Works of Xia Yu, Line Gallery, Beijing, China

          Xia Yu’s Solo Exhibition, 798 Times Space, Beijing, China

Group Exhibitions

2020 Shape of Lovers, Hive Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing, China

          The Salvation of Shahrazad: Memo of the New Generation Painting, Hive Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing, China

          Being of Evils, Hive Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing, China

2019 Light Profoundness: The Worldlet of East Asian Artists, Hive Center for Contemporary  Art, Beijing, China

2018 The Clouded Peach Blossom Spring: Selected Works of Chinese Contemporary Artists as Exemplars, Hive Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing, China

          Saudade – Irretrievable Place in Time, Museu Coleção Berardo, Lisbon, Portugal

          Oriental Peach Valley: Contemporary Chinese Art with Sources of the Traditional Oriental Aesthetics, Leipzig Spinnerei Art District, Leipzig, Germany

          Déjà vu: Painting as the Art of Signification, Hive Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing, China

2017 Y23-Hina’s Scroll, SZ Art Center, Beijing, China

          Full of Tigers on the Roof, Hive Center for Contemporary Art, Shenzhen, China

2016 A Ride to Combine: Hive’s Special Exhibition 2016, Hive Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing, China

          Painting as Strait Gate: Post 80s Artists Invitation Exhibition, Hive Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing, China

          Over-Painting: Mitigating the Dilemma of Contemporary Art, Whitebox Art Center, Beijing, China

          Unrealities in the Reality: The intellectual dimension of daily life, Boxes Art Space, Shenzhen, China

          Cross Thinking, Triumph Art Space, Beijing, China

2012 Exploding, 2012 China Young Artist Project Exhibition, China International Exhibition Center, Beijing, China

          Excavation & Discovery: The 3rd Chinese Oil Painting Exhibition of the Newcomers, Chinese Academy of Oil Painting, Beijing, China

          Spirit and Honesty: Exhibition of Sketch and Copy, Chinese Academy of Oil Painting, China

2011 Whisper: Summer Collection of Line Gallery, Line Gallery, Beijing, China

          Spring Chill: Contemporary Art Exhibition, LDX Contemporary Art Center, Beijing, China

          Art Archives Of the 80’s Generation (1), Song Zhuang Art Center, Beijing, China

Award

2012 First Prize in Excavation & Discovery: The 3rd Chinese Oil Painting Exhibition of the Newcomers