BEIJING, China (Reuters) — Beijing-based artist Liu Zhifeng’s show a record of people’s lives through receipts and aims to make people consider what impact they’re making with each transaction.
His latest work features familiar scenes from everyday life, painted entirely on receipts collected through daily transactions.
Each of his paintings tell a story reflecting the very transaction involved.
One painting done on the receipt of an express delivery package features a dump truck dumping flowers onto grey earth.
Another was done on a restaurant receipt — it features a Chinese flag sticking out of a giant pile of meat and produce.
“This era is just too convenient, too efficient. Whatever (service) you can think of can be provided for, and whatever you can’t think of is also available. You don’t have to move a muscle. But my lifestyle (and art) could be a reflection of this, and a fight back at (the system). To be more blunt, it’s a rebellion,” Liu said of his work.
He dismisses much of the booming contemporary art scene in China as “out of touch” with reality and too philosophical.
Liu, who arrived in Beijing in 2005 from nearby Shanxi province, feels he shares much in common with pre-modern Chinese artists who were inspired by their surroundings and lifestyle.
“But I think (reflections) on our everyday lives are actually quite important. For instance, if you don’t eat, drink, excrete, or sleep, then you have no life, and if you have no life, you have nothing at all. There’s no way you can talk about art. I think most artists don’t really attach importance to this aspect. So I think most artists are not producing or looking at art from the angle of our own lives,” said Liu.
Receipts are also an entrenched part of people’s lives in China.
Shaun Rein, managing director at China Market Research Group, said receipts in China are widely used by businesses to prove their earnings and therefore avoid tax evasion issues with the authorities.
“So unlike in the rest of the world where you can make your own receipts with Microsoft Office, in China because there is so much tax evasion, the Chinese government makes you get plain receipt from the tax bureau directly before you chop it, before you issue it to your clients,” he said.
They are not just an established method for the government to monitor transactions and taxes, but also an integral part of salaries for many employees of private and state-owned enterprises who must rely on their reimbursement to collect part of their wages.
Liu’s receipt series can be found displayed at a mini-gallery at an upscale liquor store in northwest Beijing. So far it has received positive feedback from visitors.
“This is something that links art and our lives together. It’s called art for ordinary people. I think sometimes only a certain social class of people can enjoy it or collect it, but when we see this work, I think ordinary people too can also collect and enjoy art. That’s the feeling I have,” said Guo Guanli, a Beijing-based sales executive.
Although Liu only has six receipt pieces on display currently, he plans on opening a larger gallery when he collects enough of them.