by    Styrax  Lee

Sun  Ying 's  studio  was  now  empty,  because  of  her  solo  exhibition,  the  works  had  been  shipped  to  the  gallery.  Currently  was  the  dog  days  of  summer,  and  it  was  so  hot,  instead  of  painting  in  the  living  room,  she  had  moved  all  her  painting  materials  into  the  interior  cell.  As  usual,  she  turned  on  the  music,  and  ranked  the  colors  from  cold  to  warm  in  a  circle  in  the  palette  of  the  pigments  cart.  Every  time  after  her  paintings  were  shipped  away,  Sun  Ying  just  wanted  to  paint  more,  as  she  felt   "  the  studio  is  empty,  so  is  my  heart ".

A  small  oval  painting  stood  still  on  the  easel  -  that  was  a  Sun  Ying  style  bust  portrait,  the  figure  inside  stood  under  the  flowers  looking  out  from  the  picture  in  the  quietness.  Unlike  most  of  her  past  works,  in  which  the  figure  of  a  little  girl  often  appeared,  this  time  turned  into  a  quiet  demure  woman.

"The  little  girl  has  grown  up? "  I  joked.

She  shyly  glanced  that  work  over  her  shoulder,  said  smilingly:   "Ah,  I  didn’t  deliberately  want  to  mature,  unconsciously,  perhaps  it’s  because  I  have  grown  up. "

The  greatest  feeling  about  Sun  Ying’s  new  paintings,  is  that  those   "cute  little  girls "  in  her  paintings  begin  to  precipitate  in  the  background,  going  through  more  delicate  experience  in  the  heart.  That  little  girl,  which  was  once  in  the  painting  taking  forest,  castle,  nuts,  her  beloved  rabbits,  bears,  giraffes  and  squirrels  with  her  off  to  voyages,  although  still  dreaming  about  gliding  with  the  whale  in  the  forest  under  the  night  sky,  has  bid  farewell  to  the  initial  simple,  superficial   "cute "  state,  instead,  now  she  has  possessed  a  more  abundant  and  calm  soul  without  the  loss  of  romance.

Sun  Ying  had  meant  for  painting  since  she  was  little,  however  finally  got  into  Beijing  Film  Academy  majoring  in  Stage  Art  Designing.  This  is  somehow  reminiscent  of  a  similar  experience  of  one  of  the  most  famous  artist  Chen  Fei.  After  her  graduation,  she  have  worked  in  a  film  crew,  then  engaged  in  media,  but  the  more  she  contacted  with  artists  and  galleries  in  work,  the  stronger  her  inner  was  desiring  for  painting.  Back  then,  Sun  Ying  was  a  fan  of  the  fledgling  female  artist  Chen  Ke 's  bright  colors,  she  also  paid  attention  to  Liu  Ye 's  works  -  these  secretly  prompted  her  that  turning  the  picture  emerging  in  her  mind  to  a  real  work  is  nothing  impossible.  In  2008,  when  she  finally  plucked  up  the  courage  to  pick  up  the  brush  after  work,  she  was  already  25.

A  little  late  it  seemed,  but  she  was  very  diligent.  In  2009,  with  her  husband’s  encouragement,  she  resigned  and  became  a  full-time  painter,  painting,  suddenly  became  a  thing  that  do  or  die.   "After  resignation,  I  was  under  great  pressure,  thinking  to  what  extent  I  could  reach,  since  I  had  start  painting   ".

From  the  moment  that  she  picked  up  the  brush,  Sun  Ying  had  got  through  seven  years.  The  dream  she  had  sailed  for,  now,  is  never  too  far.


Styrax  Lee  =  Lee,  Sun  Ying  =  Sun  

Lee:  Normally  what’s  your  creating  schedule?

Sun:  About  two  pieces  a  month,  one  bigger,  one  smaller.  I  have  my  regular  patterns,  I  never  start  a  new  one  unless  the  former  piece  was  finished,  just  to  avoid  distraction.  Every  day  I  arrives  at  the  studio  to  start  the  daily  work  punctually  as  on  duty.  I  get  up  around  7  in  the  morning,  if  in  good  form,  I  usually  paint  until  9  or  10  pm.  I  always  painted  at  home  before,  but  later  there  was  no  room  for  large  paintings,  so  I  found  this  place  as  my  studio  in  the  community.

Lee:  From  your  formal  interview  I  noticed  that,  your  husband  is  very  supportive  of  your  creation?

Sun:  Yes,  it  was  his  support  that  I  quitted  working  and  became  a  full-time  painter,  if  only  by  myself,  I 'm  afraid  I  have  not  such  courage.  So  many  years  he  has  always  been  supporting  me,  he  would  give  me  a  lot  of  advice  about  each  and  every  piece  -  he  told  me  you  have  to  make  your  work  more  in-depth.

Lee:  What  does  he  do?

Sun:  He  studied  sculpture  before,  now  he  is  in  IT  industry.  Many  of  his  advice  and  suggestions  about  my  works  turned  out  to  be  right.  My  first  solo  exhibition  was  in  March  5th,  2011,  I  remember  quite  clearly.  Before  the  exhibition  I  took  my  works  to  the  gallery,  where  I  also  received  similar  feedbacks  –  to  push  my  works  deep-going.  Sometimes,  bystanders’  voice  is  requisite,  it  help  me  re-examine  my  works.

Lee:  Since  you  re-picked  up  painting  brush,  it’s  been  seven  years,  when  is  the  most  difficult  time  for  you?

Sun:  Looking  over  the  past  few  years,  each  stage  I  had  encountered  different  difficulties.  But  the  most  difficult  part  is  still  at  the  beginning.  In  fact,  I’m  not  that  kind  of  person  with  an  impulsion  to  resign  and  do  the  thing  that  I  like  to  do.  I  was  under  great  pressure  when  I  just  quitted,  as  I  kept  it  back  from  family,  and  I  didn 't  know  if  I  can  work  it  out......  But  since  I  had  started,  I  have  to  see  how  far  I  can  go.

Lee:  Did  you  set  a  time  limit  for  your  adventure  in  painting?

Sun:  Yes.  So  I  was  working  very  hard,  painting  for  my  life,  and  was  riddled  with  anxiety.  Time  and  energy  invested  in  painting  went  far  beyond  which  I  spent  at  work.  Just  like  this,  I  pushed  forward  my  process  incessantly  one  work  after  another,  and  it  was  truly  useful.  The  procedure  of  painting  needs  constant  repeat  and  perfection,  continuous  improvement.  But  it  should  be  said,  I  was  quite  lucky,  because  only  painted  two  years  were  Gallery  found,  made  the  first  solo  exhibition  of  her  life.  But  it  should  be  said,  that  I  was  quite  lucky,  because  after  only  two  years  of  painting  I  was    found  by  the  gallery,  achieving  the  first  solo  exhibition  in  my  life.

Lee:  When  you  started  painting  at  home,  did  you  ever  think  about  how  to  make  more  people  notice  your  paintings?

Sun:  I  was  very  eager  to  find  a  suitable  gallery  to  co-operate  with.  But  at  first  I  can    only  post  my  works  on  the  internet.

Lee:  Back  then  which  internet  platforms  did  you  choose?

Sun:  The  first  one  was  Artron  forum,  then  in  2008  I  registered  in  Douban.  This  may  have  something  to  do  with  my  work  experience  in  the  internet  media,  I  have  this  kind  of  consciousness.  After  all,  sharing  and  letting  more  people  see  my  works,  is  not  necessarily  a  bad  thing.  By  posting  on  the  Internet,  people  started  online  communication  with  me.  It  can  be  said  that  in  all,  I  found  a  sense  of  belonging  in  Douban,  there  were  more  and  more  netizens’  support,  being  fans  of  my  paintings,  the  comments  below  every  picture  were  filled  with  their  blessings  and  expectations,  which  virtually  gave  me  great  encouragement  and  inspirations.

Lee:  How  did  the  gallery  find  you?

Sun:  Someone  mentioned  Line  Gallery  to  me,  saying  their  style  is  very  suitable  for  me,  but  my  works  weren’t  mature  enough  at  that  time.  After  establishing  contact  with  gallery  staff,  they  continued  to  pay  attention  to  me  and  my  works,  as  a  result,  the  quantity  and  quality  of  my  works  had  been  raised  within  a  year.  After  watching  the  original  pieces,  we  decided  the  date  of  my  first  solo  exhibition.

Lee:  What  is  your  feeling  about  the  upcoming  third  solo  exhibition?  

Sun:  Every  pace  on  the  way  is  not  so  easy,  a  solo  exhibition  is  like  a  stage  summary  for  a  semester.  Every  solo  exhibition,  is  not  only  about  the  quantity,  but  also  but  also  about  the  quality,  in  which  people  can  notice  your  growth,  your  changes.  And  these  differences,  seem  easy  and  smooth,  in  fact,  I  have  experienced  many  hardships  and  self  overthrow.  If  painting  was  initially  about  interest  and  devotion,  it’s  more  about  earnest  and  persistency.  If  the  paint  is  initially  with  interest  and  love,  now  a  more  serious  and  persistence.  I’m  very  pleased  to  usher  in  my  third  solo  exhibition,  it  at  least  means  I  keep  moving  forward.  I  benefit  a  lot  from  every  exhibition,  many  new  friends  and  even  strangers,  and  their  views  on  my  works,  which  are  quite  precious  for  me.

Lee:  My  impression  about  your  new  works  is  that  the  arrangement  of  ideas  and  depth  in  the  images  became  more  abundant.  For  instance,  your  new  work  The  World  in  a  Flower:  the  hummingbird  girl  looks  into  the  center  of  the  flower  –  a  new  world  where  the  ship  is  sailing  away.

Sun:  Yes,  many  people  didn’t  notice  in  this  tiny  detail  in  this  work.  The  fully  covered  image,  a  sharp  contrast  of  the  girl,  the  flower  and  the  ship,  are  both  attempts  that  I  want  to  try  in  composition.  This  piece  is  also  a  beginning  of  this  batch  of  new  paintings.

Lee:  You  also  began  to  challenge  paintings  with  larger  sizes,  there  is  even  a  work  named  Always  by  Your  Side  with  a  huge  size  of  200x390cm,  which  is  something  you  never  tried  before.

Sun:  Indeed,  I  tended  to  be  conservative  in  the  composition  before,  almost  all  my  works  were  center  alignment,  but  now  I  start  to  spread  out  my  expressions,  with  stronger  visual  impact.  After  I  created  The  World  in  A  Flower  and  Hide  in  the  Corner  of  the  World,  etc,  then  I  returned  on  the  depiction  of  individual  characters,  because  I  think  I  haven’t  painted  enough  about  this  theme.  Starry  Sky  can  be  regarded  as  a  big  changeover  among  these  works.  This  picture  was  such  a  pain  for  me  while  painting,  which  took  nearly  one  month.  According  to  my  formal  experience,  this  work  should  be  
finished  in  a  certain  degree,  but  I  still  wanted  one  step  further,  so  I  tussled  with  it  from  March  to  April.

Lee:  What  do  you  mean  by  tussel?

Sun:  Pitting  against  myself  ceaselessly:  it  seemed  not  bad,  but  I  still  wanted  to  erase  and  redraw,  to  amend  repeatedly,  and  then  started  all  over  again,  until  satisfied.
The  standard  of  satisfaction  is  constantly  upgrading,  I  also  become  more  and  more  strict  to  myself.  The  picture  sometimes  needs  no  less  than  five  to  six  times’  do-overs.  The  climbing  is  for  sure  difficult,  but  after  getting  over  the  summit,  you  will  suddenly  become  bright  open,  and  then,  the  next  challenge.

Lee:  After  you  finished  this  work,  you  went  to  America  for  a  trip?

Sun:  Yes,  we  went  to  the  America  and  took  a  road  trip  for  a  month.  We  watched  a  lot  of  masters’  piece  at  Art  Institute  of  Chicago,  then  headed  for  Yellowstone  National  Park,  and  wandered  in  San  Francisco  and  Los  Angeles,  visited  the  J.  Paul  Getty  Museum  in  LA.

Lee:  It  was  the  first  time  you  watched  the  masters’  original  pieces  in  the  foreign  museums,  what  about  your  feeling?

Sun:  I  learned  a  lot  in  painting  techniques,  and  realized  that  it  was  very  helpful  in  craving  for  the  deepness.  Although  I  had  previously  seen  some  masterpieces  in  domestic  museums,  it’s  still  far  less  impressive.  Van  Gogh,  Monet,  Edgar,  Renoir,  etc,  these  masters’  pieces  were  only  seen  in  the  albums  before,  when  the  original  pieces  were  right  in  front  of  you,  this  kind  of  vibration  and  excitement  can  not  be  expressed  by  any  languages.  What’s  more,  you  can  take  pictures  in  the  museums,  and  they  didn’t  pull  on  a  stiff  rope  in  front  of  the  work,  keeping  a  watching  distance.  This  close  feeling  will  make  people  feel  very  warm,  very  calm.

Lee:  Apart  from  the  museums,  the  scenery  of  Yellowstone  National  Park  has  any  influence  to  your  creation?

Sun:  Sure,  I  painted  Guardianship  when  I  came  back,  the  elk  in  this  work  came  from  the  impression  to  the  forests,  animals  and  natural  scenery  of  Yellowstone.  This  experience  brings  me  a  lot  of  inspirations.  In  my  previous  works,  there  are  a  lot  of  animals:  rabbits,  bears......  But  they  were  from  my  imaginations,  this  time  the  spectacular  creature  of  nature,  brings  me  new  feelings  I  cannot  express.  Later  I  painted  See  You,  Amelie,  the  rabbit  shaped  clouds  in  the  sky  of  this  picture,  were  just  from  the  association  of  a  photo  that  I  took  of  the  sky  above  Yellowstone.  The  scene  reminded  me  of  a  scene  in  the  movie  Amelie.

Lee:  Now  let’s  talk  about  the  largest  work  of  this  exhibition  -  Always  by  Your  Side.

Sun:  I  had  been  struggling  before  I  started  –  should  I  paint  a  work  with  such  a  huge  size.  For  me,  there  are  so  many  challenges  and  problems  that  I  need  to  confront.  After  taking  account  of  the  composition,  I  decided  to  draw  such  a  triptych,  which  two  days  only  to  draft  the  grounding.  From  composition  to  depth,  it’s  a  totally  different  thing  from  a  small  size  painting.

Lee:  How  much  time  did  you  spend  on  this  work?

Sun:  Three  months.  The  last  month  was  to  adjust  the  details  endlessly.  I  wanted  to  express  the  sensation  of  the  whale  flying  above  the  forest  in  the  night  in  my  imagination.

Lee:  Like  you  said,  you  haven’t  drawn  enough  on  the  theme  about  the  little  girl,  so  I’d  like  to  ask:  what  kind  of  figure  the  little  girl  is  in  your  mind?

Sun:  In  fact,  these  figures  I  painted  all  exist  in  respective  scenes.  They  are  not  specific  individuals,  more  like  some  kind  of  sentiment,  which  will  resonate  with  some  viewers,  saying   "this  is  me ".  In  my  works,  I  didn’t  search  for  myself  through  drawing  girls,  but  it’s  possible  that  I  have  inadvertently  brought  my  sentiment  and  emotions  into  the  works  during  the  process.  In  the  past  I  also  have  tried  to  paint  boy,  but  it  felt  not  right.  Perhaps  it’s  related  to  my  original  intentions.  I  like  watching  many  photographic  works  focusing  on  female,  for  instance  the  Japanese  photographer  Shinoama  Kinobu’s  works,  the  beautiful  and  fresh  atmosphere  has  been  always  attracted  to  me.

Lee:  Comparing  to  the  past,  currently  what  has  changed  in  the  expression  of  creation?

Sun:  Now  I  don 't  want  cute  feeling,  hoping  that  my  style  become  more  mature,  and  the  finish  of  the  details  be  more  relaxing.  Like  the  water  surface  in  The  Little  Mermaid,  or  the  trees  in  the  background  in  the  earlier  Peach  Flowers  -  they  all  have  a  comfortable  impressionistic  atmosphere,  I  wish  I  can  maintain  such  a  state  as  much  as  possible.