Artist of the Day | Leng Jun

Who is Leng Jun?

Born in Sichuan in 1963, Leng Jun's representative works include the sketch "Mona Lisa - Design of a Smile" and the oil painting "Xiao Luo".

Artwork Auction Records:

2012 Hurun Art List: Ranked 39th, with a total sales volume of 65.56 million RMB.
2011 Hurun Art List: Ranked 34th, with a total sales volume of 35.37 million RMB.
2010 Hurun Art List: Ranked 36th, with a total sales volume of 12.01 million RMB.
In 2010, the artwork "Xiao Luo" was sold for 31.36 million RMB.

Leng Jun is one of the most renowned painters from Wuhan nationwide and a highly sought-after subject for newspapers and magazines. His artworks can fetch tens of millions of RMB at auctions, making them some of the hottest collectibles on the market. Although his name resonates across the country, he rarely appears in the public eye. He is Leng Jun, the leading figure of contemporary Chinese hyperrealistic oil painting.

He did not graduate from a prestigious art academy, yet he possesses the most precise artistic techniques that remain unmatched by anyone.

Leng Jun has repeatedly won grand prizes at prestigious exhibitions, garnering widespread attention and recognition from the art world. Yet, he maintains a calm and grounded mindset, jokingly referring to his "hyperrealistic ultimate skill" as nothing more than "flashy tricks". He is currently one of the highest-valued artists in China, but he lives a secluded, exceptionally simple, and pure life.

Cultural Relics - New Product Design (1993)Five-pointed Star

Whether it is an oil painting or traditional Chinese painting, Leng Jun's works always give viewers a near-perfect sense of reality. It is exactly this strong personal style that has won him tremendous praise. In a contemporary art scene where easel oil painting faces intense skepticism and realism is often left in the cold, Leng Jun stands out in the Chinese art world with his hyperrealistic style.

This highly pure restoration of reality also makes his work highly controversial. Regarding the outside world defining his style as "hyperrealism", Leng Jun disagrees: "This concept is inaccurate. It is more appropriate to call it 'Hyper-limit painting', meaning it has reached the absolute limits of oil painting."

What is special about his paintings?

The Da Vinci Code in Leng Jun's Masterpieces

An exhibition showcased 63 sketches created by Leng Jun in recent years. Among them, two portraits, "Portrait - Xiao Tang" and "Portrait - Xiao Jiang", made a stunning appearance, leaving a profound impression on the audience. With an artistic language detailed to the ultimate visual limit, Leng Jun's works form a unique banner in today's Chinese art scene, holding a status and achievement in art history and academia that cannot be ignored. His work "Portrait - Xiao Luo" sold for a sky-high price of 31.36 million RMB in 2010.

Xiao Luo: Brought together by art - The persistent genius wins the beauty's heart

When Leng Jun was working on his first portrait oil painting, "Mona Lisa - Design of a Smile", Xiao Luo, who harbored an artistic dream, frequently visited his studio. She was a primary school teacher. Over time, she witnessed the difficulties of Leng Jun's creative process and was deeply moved by his rigorous attitude and relentless pursuit of detail. Resolutely quitting her stable job, Xiao Luo became Leng Jun's second model.

Xiao Tang: Finding a pearl in the sea - Discovering the ideal model in a small restaurant

In 2006, Leng Jun was in a resting phase between creations and was struggling to find a new model. One day, Leng Jun and his wife Xiao Luo were eating at a restaurant on Station Road in Hankou. He noticed a quiet and well-behaved waitress, who turned out to be Xiao Tang. Leng Jun recalled that when he first saw Xiao Tang, she was dressed simply and wasn't the kind of girl who would immediately stun people with her beauty. However, her rustic attire could not hide her pure and innocent aura, which perfectly matched the exact character he wanted to create.