.:: Comments on He Qi's Art Work ::.

GOSPEL VIEW FROM CHINA

He Qi first saw Jesus’ face in an old magazine. Now he paints his own images of the biblical story.

"Artwork has no national boundary, but an artist always has his nationality," says He Qi (pronounced ho-chee) of China.

Though a fine-art citizen of the world, He chooses to continue living in his native country. "I love my homeland because my life, my rejoicing, and my suffering have been closely linked with it."

He also loves something more than his homeland. During the Cultural Revolution, He was in the countryside painting images of Mao Zedong. One day he saw Raphael’s Madonna and Child in an old magazine. "I was very moved by the softness of the Virgin’s smile," he told William McGurn of Far Eastern Economic Review (Feb. 26, 1998). "Everywhere around me people claimed to be seeking truth but had their knives out."

Raphael’s painting alone did not convert He, although it did capture his imagination. "There are two different ways in China for people to become a Christian," he says. "One is by the strong influence from his family background; another way is by his own choice—‘step by step.’ I belong to the second way."

He has done doctoral studies in Europe and has been an artist in residence in the United States. Currently he is artist in residence and professor at Nanjing Theological Seminary.

Flight Into Egypt

"The baby Jesus holds an apple. The apple is a symbol of the original sin, and baby Jesus was born in order to redeem people in the world. Please look at baby Jesus; he is only holding, not eating. He would not repeat the original sin." --He Qi.

Mary Magdalene

The two faces in Mary Magdalene are the disciples of Jesus and other people mentioned through the Bible. "Some of the people there became angry and said to one another, ‘What was the use of wasting the perfume? It could have been sold for more than three hundred silver coins and the money given to the poor!’" (Mark 14:3-5; Matt. 26:6-13; John 12:1-8). One disciple was Judas. They were hypocritical, so I painted them to look like drama actors wearing masks.

The Crucifixion

On this image, please see Matthew 25:34-36. I did the painting based on my three visits to southwest China, the mountain area, which is very poor. I found sometimes people did something wrong—even committed a crime—due to their poverty. Some of them became thieves, became robbers, and became prostitutes. I think Jesus had a special concern about the poor and their living right during his life on Earth.

For more information on He Qi, visit the web site of the Asian Christian Art Association (www.asianchristianart.org). Some of his works are available through Ellison Bay Gallery in Wisconsin, owned by Brian and Jeanee Linden (BLinden@embark.com).

Douglas LeBlanc
Associate Editor, Christianity Today
www.christianitytoday.com

this article was published on <CHRISTIANITY TODAY> January 7, 2002, P67-68.