"Earthy" sculptor Yu Dejiao
Women want to break free from the mobile phone but are tightly strangled by the hand behind them, the man is hanging his neck but still playing with the mobile phone, in front of the screen is the beautiful leg temptation behind but hidden a high dagger ... "Times and Civilization" - Yu Dejiao sculpture exhibition This group of sculptures named after "Mobile Phone Temptation", many viewers will smile after watching it, sighing "too image, these are things often encountered in Internet life."
Just like the group of works of "Mobile Phone Temptation", grounding gas, sticking hot spots, and no viewing threshold are the most prominent styles of Yu Dejiao's works. Born into a family of masons in the north, he never attended the Academy of Fine Arts for a day. Bidding farewell to his hometown of Henan to work as a security guard in Guangzhou opened the door of his art. After more than 20 years of self-study in sculpture, he brought his works to CCTV. In January 2022, the "Times and Civilization" - Yu Dejiao Sculpture Exhibition was launched in Tianhe, Guangzhou, exhibiting more than 120 of his outstanding original works.
Playing with mud sows the seeds of art
Yu Dejiao comes from an authentic northern mason family, and his parents are hard-working and simple rural people. When Yu Dejiao was young, his father had to stay at the edge of the kiln because he was burning the kiln, so he had to burn the kiln and read books at the same time to kill time. Under the influence of his father, the young Yu Dejiao fell in love with reading, and "Yang Jiajian" and "Yue Fei" and other well-known figures in Chinese history became his heroes.
When he was eleven years old, Yu Dejiao pinched a statue of Yue Fei with mud according to the character image in the comic strip, and his father was very happy to see it, and even said three times, "Be well!" His father's praise and encouragement made Yu Dejiao feel very accomplished, and he liked to play with mud more and more. As a result, the dirt that can be seen everywhere in the rural fields has become the link between Yu Dejiao and the hero in his heart. Between the mud and water, Yu Dejiao's hands glowed with different brilliance.
The little Yu Dejiao was able to use ordinary mud to pinch out so many lifelike shapes, and the people in the village all praised and praised them after seeing it. When recalling these past events many years later, Yu Dejiao said that it was the simple and sincere encouragement and support of his family and villagers that gave his young self the motivation and courage to insist on sculpture. In the long process of getting along with traditional culture and rural soil, Yu Dejiao received countless nourishment and love from this land and civilization. In the process of Yu Dejiao's later mature sculpture art creation, these have become his inexhaustible and inexhaustible important nutrients.
Open the door of sculpture art in Guangzhou
Less than 20 years old, Yu Dejiao, led by his brother at home, went south to Guangdong and began to roam. After coming to Guangzhou, the strong artistic atmosphere made Yu Dejiao feel very happy. The sculptural seeds he had planted in his heart since he was a child began to sprout again.
During the Spring Festival of that year, Yu Dejiao returned to his hometown and told his family that he wanted to learn the art of sculpture. Fortunately, his idea was supported by his father. His father told him that he could spend ten years working part-time and self-studying without sending money home. His father's enlightenment made Yu Dejiao very moved. "You know, in that era, rural children basically went out to work in big cities to earn money, and went back to their hometowns to build houses to get married and have children. My father did this, which was the biggest help for me. Yu Dejiao said.
Returning to Guangzhou years later, in order to have time to create sculptures, Yu Dejiao quit his original job and found a job as a security guard in Fangcun, Guangzhou. Although the salary is not as good as the previous job, it is better than the free time. After work, Yu Dejiao will devote his time and energy to reading and sculpture.
While working and self-studying, Yu Dejiao in addition to basic daily expenses, the rest of the salary is spent on sculpture creation and theoretical knowledge learning. In the small dormitory arranged by the company, Yu Dejiao matured step by step from the dream of sculpture.
In 2008, in the tenth year of coming to Guangzhou, Yu Dejiao, with the support of the company, borrowed the company's venue and opened the first sculpture exhibition in his life, which attracted the attention of people from all walks of life. From making statues of clay shapes only with interest as a child, to now officially exhibiting his works to the public, Yu Dejiao has walked thousands of kilometers from his hometown to Guangzhou, and it took more than 20 years from obscurity to society. After that, Yu Dejiao quit his security job and devoted himself to sculpture creation.
After three years of retreat, he devoted himself to sculpture creation
Yu Dejiao, who quit his job, chose to open his own studio in a corner of Huadu District. He believes that artistic creation requires a quiet and engaging environment, but it cannot leave the real world and lively crowds, otherwise the works of art created will be divorced from reality and the masses. Huadu is such a quiet place.
Opening a studio was a key step in Yu's transformation into a professional sculptor. He held exhibitions in Guangzhou in 2009 and 2011, and was interviewed and reported by mainstream media. Exhibitions and reports have gradually made Yu Dejiao famous, and the demand for cooperation has followed. Square sculpture, corporate sculpture, thematic sculpture, etc. became the main products of Yu Dejiao for a period of time.
However, Yu Dejiao knew in his heart that these commercial works seemed to be drifting away from his own artistic pursuits. Therefore, in 2018, Yu Dejiao decided to retreat for 3 years, reduce social interaction, study wholeheartedly, and create more works that are in line with the times. "Sculpture is my inner pleasure, not my tool for making a living. I want to use sculpture to express my thoughts on life and my views on the world. ”
"Rodin is Rodin of Rodin's time, Van Gogh is Van Gogh of Van Gogh's time, and what is our time?" Yu Dejiao asked the question of the era of artistic creation, and he was also answering this question with his own artistic practice. Today, Yu Dejiao has more than 600 original works. In June last year, the CCTV "Craftsman Craftsmanship" program group reported on Yu Dejiao's sculpture artistic creation.
"Grassroots people can understand"
"Times and Civilization" is Yu Dejiao's latest sculpture exhibition, which selects more than 120 works from more than 600 of his original works.
"I have a sense of mission in my heart, that is, I want to use my works to inspire people to think about nature and society, and to summon the truth, goodness and beauty in people's hearts, so I put all my heart into creation." Yu Dejiao said that the exhibits are subdivided into five themes: the endorsement of life, spirit and civilization, thought and truth, era and morality, and the soul of the nation. These works show the spiritual nourishment and inspiration he draws from traditional Chinese culture, the interpretation of Taoist culture, the emphasis on artistic creation facing life, and vividly depicting the relationship between people and the world around them. "It's an artistic feast dedicated to the people." Wang Qin, chairman of the Tianhe District Literary Association, said. The more than 120 sculptures on display are suitable for all ages, and they are works that can be understood by grassroots people.
From kneading clay people to making sculptures, dealing with the soil every day, smelling the aroma of the soil, Yu Dejiao said that there is always an indescribable sense of intimacy. The media also called him an "earthy" sculptor. Yu Dejiao, who has just entered his prime, is in the critical period of the artist's creation, and he is full of expectations for his future creation. Speaking of the next creative plan, Yu Dejiao said that he will continue to feel the social changes and people's lives from the pulse of the times.
Times and Civilization - Yu Dejiao Sculpture Exhibition
Duration: 6 January – 15 January 2022
(9:00-17:00, closed on Mondays)
Venue: Tianhe Space, a citizen of Guangzhou Literature and Art
(Tianhe Art Garden)
(Tianhe District Zhongshan Avenue West Tianhe Park Small North Gate entry) Writing / Photography:
Nandu reporter Xia Jiawen intern Xiao Yiran