拍品专文
Every detail in Arbitrary Reality (Lot 1309), including the books, paper boxes and human figures, is finely depicted. The pursuit of a kind of detailed reality seemingly made the whole painting embedded with some sort of the meaning of "independent existence'. It stresses the artist's attempt in grasping the realities of society, creating orders and representing the truth. Yet, in depicting such orderly and clearly naturalistic situations, Guan Yong also instills in the scene a sense of danger, deformation and anxiety. For instance, the bookshelves on the left of the image reflect stability and order which is greatly contrasted against the instability and chaos of the emotional figures standing in front of it. The artist's attention to details in representing reality and structure also inherently reminds of a possible lack of control, order and direction of the impetuous nature of reality. The depressed expressions of the human figures, as well as the packed composition of the extremely well-arranged space make viewer feel anxious and suffocated altogether, amplifying the theme of duality.