Artwork Description

Title: Deep Blue Sky
Artist: Zhang Dali
Date: 2014
Medium: Oil on Canvas
Dimensions: 20.9 x 31.5 in (53 x 80 cm)
Framing: Framed

Artwork Identification
Deep Blue Sky is a contemplative oil painting by Zhang Dali, a key figure in the development of socially engaged contemporary art in China. Measuring 53 by 80 cm, and presented in a professional frame, this horizontal-format work subtly explores the relationship between individual perception and constructed environments. Dominated by a serene ultramarine palette, the composition’s openness invites reflection on the presence of absence—an underlying theme in Zhang’s multidisciplinary practice.

Artistic Style and Influences
Zhang Dali’s works are characterized by a fusion of conceptual rigour and visual restraint. In Deep Blue Sky, the artist employs a reductive approach to form and palette, echoing his ongoing preoccupation with truth, history, and spatial politics. While known for his provocative graffiti and sculptural series like Chinese Offspring, Zhang’s paintings often assume a quieter tone, layering metaphor with visual clarity. His early training at the Central Academy of Fine Arts, combined with formative years in Italy, informs a cross-cultural aesthetic—one where Italian fresco tradition, Chinese literati minimalism, and Western conceptualism intersect.

Historical Context
Produced as part of Zhang’s post-2010 return to canvas-based work, Deep Blue Sky can be situated within the broader arc of his interrogation of state narrative, urban transformation, and visual media. The sky—typically a symbol of freedom—is here rendered vast and contained, gesturing toward both ideological control and longing for transcendence. During this phase of his career, Zhang’s works moved beyond direct political protest to more nuanced meditations on place, memory, and subjectivity, as exemplified in his Square exhibition (Klein Sun Gallery, 2014).

Provenance and Authenticity
Provenance documentation can be provided upon contact.

Condition and Conservation
Deep Blue Sky is in excellent condition. The canvas is structurally stable, with no visible signs of damage, cracking, or discoloration. The oil surface is well preserved, exhibiting a consistent finish and strong color retention. The work is housed in a contemporary frame that complements its quiet, minimalist mood.

Artistic Significance
This painting offers a more introspective and poetic facet of Zhang Dali’s politically charged practice. Deep Blue Sky exemplifies how the artist adapts monumental themes—urban alienation, surveillance, freedom—into an intimate visual language. As interest in critical Chinese contemporary art continues to expand globally, Zhang’s work occupies a vital position in both institutional collections and connoisseurship-driven private holdings. This piece offers an opportunity to acquire a contemplative and refined expression of Zhang’s enduring artistic concerns.