DING YI (China, B. 1963)

Ding Yi is among the first group of Chinese artists to participate in international exhibitions in the early 90s. In the mid-80s, he devoted himself to exploring theoretical abstractionism. In 1988, he started his Appearance of Crosses series, the title in Chinese was originally a term from press printing indicating the lines which mark the boundaries of a page.


With a myriad of different shades of greens, the iconic '+' and 'y' symbols monotonously entwine across Manifestation of Crosses 92-2 (Lot 155), demonstrating a technical rigor, an impeccable sense of structure and a coolly analytical visual sensibility that accumulates into a crescendo, into the spiritual realm. Abandoning all methods of representation, Ding Yi's painting is an expression of pure reason with the constraint and diminishment of emotions. It is a direct expression of freedom from any social or ideological expectations.