The Artist’s Questionnaire:
Zhang Yunyao

1

Q: Who was your first art crush and why?

ZY: The Chinese painter of the Song dynasty, Li Cheng. Because this artist’s Chinese landscape paintings enlightened me about what artistic conception is.

2

Q: Goldin is God, Bourgeois is Buddha, Rauch is Ra, you are…?

ZY: I am a drawer. Why are these three artists compared to God, Buddha and Ra?

3

Q: What work would you most like to be remembered for, and what’s its story?

ZY: I hope the work I’m remembered for is the craziest and most difficult to express — like a taboo idea from my ecstasy desire. I don’t think there would be a narrative or story.

4

Q: Describe your studio in no more than five words.

ZY: My studio is granular production.

5

Q: Is there a routine or ritual you’ve developed while making art?

ZY: I always drink tea.

6

Q: If you could collaborate with any artist (dead or alive) on a single piece, who would it be and what would you create?

ZY: With Luc Tuymans. I would create a really traditional fresco.

7

Q: Practical and financial considerations aside, in which city would you like to live and work?

ZY: A city on Solaris.

8

Q: If you could erase one piece of art from history, what would it be and why?

ZY: Nude Descending a Staircase, No. 2 by Marcel Duchamp. Would Duchamp have been the same kind of game changer then?

9

Q: Can you remember the first time you felt awe in front of a work of art?

ZY: Awe, not really.

10

Q: If your art could start a revolution, what cause would it champion?

ZY: Freedom of expression.

11

Q: Is there a museum that you always return to?

ZY: The Louvre.

12

Q: If you were to create a self-portrait without showing your face, how would you represent yourself?

ZY: I would invite an ape to represent me.

13

Q: Which musician or band best mirrors your artistic practice?

ZY: DyE.

14

Q: Imagine that your art is a superhero. What are its powers and its kryptonite?

ZY: I don’t have answers for this question.

15

Q: Which work of art gives you comfort over and over again?

ZY: An ancient Roman sculpture simply titled Marsyas in the collection of the Louvre.

16

Q: If you could have any mythical creature as a studio assistant, what would it be and how would it help you?

ZY: It would be Brahmā, the god of creation, knowledge and the Vedas in Hinduism. As creator of the universe, he could help me make anything.

17

Q: Imagine you’re hosting a dinner party with three famous artists. Who are they, and what are you cooking?

ZY: Hans Bellmer, Ruth Asawa, H. R. Giger. I’m cooking dinosaur meat.

18

Q: If your art could cure one human flaw or disease, what would you choose and why?

ZY: If my art could cure one disease, then it would be pulmonary fibrosis. Because in that case my art could cure my father.

19

Q: Imagine you’ve been commissioned to create a piece that can be seen from space. What would it be and where would you place it?

ZY: It would be a monument made from space capsules that humans have recovered. It would be placed on a space station.

20

Q: The art world collapses. What profession are you switching to?

ZY: Switching to astronaut.