Two Fujian-native sculptors have made their name with quirky animals. Chen Wenling turns amiable lucky pigs into overfed snarling beasts. Chen Zhiguang creates swarms of giant ants, some quite human.

Chen Wenling
Born in 1969 in Anxi, Fujian Province
Graduated from Fujian Arts and Crafts Institute
Attended the Central Academy of Fine Art, sculpture department
Lives and works in Beijing and Xiamen

Sculptor Chen Wenling's breakthrough came in 2006 at the Shanghai Biennale.

He hit the international art world jackpot with a huge pig sculpture featuring a pig-snouted red auto with long red tongue - and at its tip dangle a golden pig and overfed humans.

Transforming the amiable pig, Chinese symbol of prosperity, into a gross and vicious beast has become one of Chen's trademarks, a symbol of what materialism is doing to society. Humans, too, are distasteful - some hugely and sleekly fat like the pigs, others gaunt and starved.

"My life was changed completely (by the success)," says the 38-year-old artist, a bit wistfully, though he can lament all the way to the bank. "I found myself terribly busy, not in working on sculptures, but traveling, taking at least two overseas trips in one month."

Today he is fully booked with exhibitions, seminars and other events. He works in Beijing and recently visited Shanghai.

"I am so exhausted," he says, "but this is how an artist gets international exposure."

A 2,000-square-meter studio in Beijing replaces his former 200-square-meter space, and the price of his sculptures reaches a figure that he can still scarcely imagine - some over US$20,000.

He works in bronze and paints his sculptures, often shiny, bright red, sometimes neutral flesh tones. The famous pig-auto is an outdoor sculpture with a tongue more than two stories high.

"Today I can totally identify with the condition of those unknown young artists, because I used to be one of them," he says.

Perhaps that's why Chen occasionally purchases some of their artworks, maybe he finds a shadow of himself among them.
 
In fact, Chen's name first became known through his "Red Children" series - Hong Kong director Wong Kar-wai was one of the buyers. But it is his "Personate Pig" series that really sent him to the forefront of Chinese contemporary art.

"In Chinese culture, the pig is the symbol of fortune," Chen explains.

But the traditional mild piggy becomes bloated, ferocious and irascible in Chen's art pieces - he says the transformation is a result of the materialistic society.

"Survival only comes from extremes," says Chen. "I want to challenge the extremes both in work and life."

These pigs are one of his "extremes." They often appear in a maniac state, expressing extreme happiness or anger. His pigs are dangerous.

"Can you believe that I was almost stabbed to death in a robbery a decade ago?" Chen suddenly switches the topic. "I lost so much blood, but finally I crawled a long way for help, and I was saved."

The particular experience might be one reason for the harsh darkness reflected in his pigs and human sculpture, but harsh, crass reality is another.

"I come from a peasant family, so I have a wild personality," he adds. "I am against any egalitarianism or mediocrity in art."

Although Chen says he could "sit well" on his pig sculpture series for another couple of years, he has started a series titled "Chinese Landscapes."

"I treasure my creativity," he says. "I don't want to waste it in repetition."

Chen Zhiguang
Born in 1963 in Xiamen, Fujian Province
Graduated from Fujian Normal University in 1988
Advanced study in Germany in 2001

It's easy to ignore ants on earth, but it is hard to ignore the metal ant sculptures created by Chen Zhiguang.

Chen's ants usually appear in groups with various postures, even in swarms.

"I never compare ants to human beings, but human beings to ants," Chen says.

"I admire the team spirit of ants: Team spirit is the basis of ants' survival for hundreds of millions of years on earth," he explains. "I also want to use the ant symbol to remind human beings to respect tiny creatures on the globe."

Some of his ants, each around half-a-meter, swarm over the ground, on stairways and walls. His stainless steel army is formidable. Others take human poses and play traditional instruments.

He recently exhibited the "Tao of Ants" at the Shanghai Duolun Museum of Modern Art.

Many people think ants are identical, indistinguishable, anonymous. But in Chen's eyes, each ant is an independent individual with its own special characteristics. That's why some ants take a cat-like shape (with a few extra limbs), quite individual, some male, some female.

"To capture the daily activities of ants, I often study them closely to capture their different movements," Chen says.

The hunting, patrolling, migrating and breeding of ants is a repeated cycle, which the artist says is akin to the Chinese Zen.

"It is the real nature behind the ant's survival," he explains. "Just think, ants are so tiny, but the ant army sticks strictly to its daily routine. As a result, they extend their territory and the species' vitality is carried on."

Chen also portrays his ant army in photographs and in oil on canvas. He poses his troops in different famous settings, marching on the Great Wall and in the Beijing Olympic Stadium.

"I am now planning to shoot them in front of the Jin Mao Tower," he says. "I think the ant army would be very compelling when they show up at this piece of cold armored concrete."

Before Jin Mao Tower, Chen's ants have already crawled along the Bund and visited the Oriental Pearl Broadcasting and Television Tower.

"Art should be an interesting career, and it really demands an exuberant creativity," he concludes.

(Shanghai Daily October 24, 2007)