Jian Feng is a native of Sichuan province and a graduate of the Sichuan Fine Arts Institute, Chongqing . He currently lives in Paris where he is a professional artist. 
His painting “The Wish, 1984” was an award winner at the Sixth National Exhibition, Beijing. It was also the first contemporary Chinese oil painting Robert Hefner acquired in 1985, representing the beginning of The Hefner Collection.
The Wish, 1984
Oil on Canvas
49" x 65" (124 1/2cm x 165cm)About this work
In this allegorical picture, a young Sichuanese man writes down information found on a wall poster that invites students to enroll for classes that prepare them for university entrance examinations. On the back of his bicycle are empty baskets; one holds a scale for weighing produce he has presumably sold at the free market. Tied to a back brace are textbooks he has possibly purchased with profits from his sales. The Chinese characters for the capital of Sichuan, painted in the top left corner are a tribute to Deng Xiaoping, also a Sichuanese, who began his political and economic reforms in his home province, giving hope to Chinese youth like the subject in this painting.
