Congratulations to our

First Place Award of Excellence Winner 

Hui Tian

 Hui was awarded the first place for hisoil painting

“Andy Warhol with Skull.”

About Hui Tian:

I became interested in art when I was a teenager. I was born and grew up in Wuhan, China. During high school, I was enrolled in my hometown Wuhan in the Early Youth Palace Fine Art Training Class for five years. From then on, I was determined to be a professional artist. From 1981to 1985, I studied at the Oil Painting Department of Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts and accepted formal artistic training that followed European academic school. 

In 1982, Andy Warhol traveled in China and brought us POP and American contemporary art. This event gave me a strong shock at the time and profoundly influenced my artistic direction. I moved from a classical aesthetic to contemporary art. The 1985 Art Trendy Movement is a milestone of Chinese contemporary art. I participated in many important activities and contemporary art exhibitions during that time.

In 1990, I came to the USA and studied at Brooklyn College Art Department and obtained an MFA in 1993. I have been working and living in New York and New Jersey since then. 

My perspective is that contemporary art is not only about aesthetics, but more importantly about the artist responding to the issues of their times. We are living in an age of global crisis, environmental, economic, medical, political, social inequality, and pandemic times. My art is the shout and cry of my soul in this special time.

About “Andy Warhol with Skull” – Oil (70x52”):
I was inspired by a photo of Andy Warhol with skull.

“Memento Mori” is a Latin phrase, translating to “remember you must die,”which developed with the growth of Christianity.  A bit dark perhaps, but also a reminder to live and enjoy life’s abundance while living your best life. “Memento Mori” is based on the traditional concept of the Vanities that has existed in art for centuries. Its purpose: a reminder that our earthly pleasures and possessions are temporary. Historic depictions of “Memento Mori” can be seen in thousands of works throughout the centuries, including the 15th century painting, “Death and the Miser” by Hieronymus Bosch, “Skull of a Skeleton with Burning Cigarette” (c. 1885/86) by Vincent van Gogh, “Le Pichet noir et la tête de mort” (The Black Pitcher and Death's Head) (c. 1946) by Pablo Picasso, and “Vanitas” (1613) by Clara Peeters, for example. In contemporary times, the “Memento Mori” concept is still providing inspiration amongst notable artists.

List of important exhibitions I was juried into:

2021 "104th Annual Juried Exhibition" Greenwich Art Society, Greenwich, CT

JUROR: Allison Rudnick, Associate Curator in the Department of Drawings and Prints at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

2021 “Art Over Time” National Juried Exhibition BWAC Brooklyn NY

Juror: Charlotta Kotik, curator, Head of the Department of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Brooklyn Museum New York

2021 “2021 International Summer Exhibition” The San Diego Museum of Art Artists Guild,

San Diego, CA -: Anita Feldman, Director of Curatorial Affairs of The San Diego Museum of Art

2021 “Print 2021” National Juried Exhibition BWAC, Brooklyn NY

Juror: Kim Conaty, the Curator of Drawings and Prints at the Whitney Museum of American Art

2021 "2021 Ellarslie Open 37/38 Juried Exhibition" Trenton Ellarslie Museum, Trenton, NJ

Juror: Dr. William R. Valerio: Director of the Woodmere Art Museum

2020 “Wide Open 11” National Juried Art Show. BWAC Gallery, Brooklyn NY

Juror: Paulina Pobocha, Associate Curator in the Department of Painting and Sculpture at the Museum of Modern Art, New York

2020 “Big Picture Exhibition 2020” Jeanie Tengelsen Gallery, NY

Juror: Charles A. Riley Director of Nassau Museum of Art

2020 “Black & White National Juried Art Show” BWAC Gallery, Brooklyn, NY

Juror: Jenée-Daria Strand, Curatorial Assistant of the Brooklyn Museum NYC

2020 “41st International Annual Juried Exhibition” Monmouth Museum, NJ

2020 “70th A-One National Competition/Exhibition” Silvermine Gallery. New Canaan, CT

Juror: Barbara O’Brien Executive Director of the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art,

consulting curator for the Housatonic Museum of Art

2020 “BWAC Member 2020 exhibition” BWAC Gallery, Brooklyn NY

2020 “Diversity and Inclusion” International Juried Exhibition Pollak Gallery, NJ

2019 “2019 Annual Juried Show” Islip Art Museum, Islip, NY

2019 “2019 National Juried Competition Exhibition” LBI, NJ.

Juror: Louis Marchesano, Senior Curator at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

See more about Hui at:  https://tianhuistudio.com/ or https://www.instagram.com/tianhuiart/