Zhang Yirong

1979, Shaanxi China

Introduction

Zhang Yirong was born in 1979 in Shaanxi, China. She first received her training in classical Chinese ink painting at a young age from her father, Zhang Xiubiao. In 2001 she obtained her BA from Communication University of China, Beijing and an MA from Peking University in 2008. Upon graduation, she practiced ink painting and has created meticulous works that display her ability to capture painted subjects in exquisite and analytical details.

Her art, which often feature a feminine sensitivity and natural style, is swept up in a wide range of classical influences and inspirations from the Song and Yuan Dynasties, particularly the Song Dynasty artistic tradition of direct observation. Zhang’s elegantly wrought compositions avoid hackneyed themes and instead focus on an organic source of perfected beauty. 

She is known for her quietly sophisticated butterfly and flower painting. Her work is in the collection of the Brooklyn Museum, New York and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, United States.  She has had exhibitions in the US, China and Hong Kong, including several of our group exhibitions: Beyond the Jade Terrace in 2014, showcasing four young woman Chinese artists; Art Basel Hong Kong in 2015; joint exhibition Tai Xiangzhou & Zhang Yirong: One with the Universe and Art Taipei in 2017; charity exhibition HOPE in 2018; Women Ink | China Hong Kong in 2019; and Contemporary Forms of Ink Painting in 2020.


BIOGRAPHY
1979 Born in Shaanxi, China

2001 BA from Communication University of China, Beijing, China

2008 MA from Peking University, Beijing, China

Present Lives and works in Beijing, China


SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2017      

  • Ink painting of Zhang Yirong, Catherine Palace, Moscow, Russia
  • Buddha and Flower, Uspace, Suzhou, China


SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2022  

  • She/Her/Hers: Women in the Arts of China, Harn Museum of Art, University of Florida, Gainesville, USA

2021

  • Ink Dreams: Selections from the Fondation INK Collection, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, USA

  • Dreaming Together: Asia Society’s Triennial, New York Historical Society, New York, USA

2020   

2019  

2018            

2017   2015  
 2014 
2013  
  • Ink paintings by Constance Fong and Yirong Zhang, The Chinese Porcelain Company, New York, United States
2012 
  • Ink paintings by Constance Fong and Yirong Zhang, The Chinese Porcelain Company, New York, United States
2011  
  • Another Landscape, Edge Gallery, Hong Kong
  • The Chinese Porcelain Company, Asia Week New York, United States

SELECTED COLLECTIONS
Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, USA
Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, USA
Harn Museum of Art, University of Florida, Gainesville, USA