By Shu Pengqian

Traditional Chinese opera wouldn’t be regarded as an exciting pastime by most young people. But Wu Shuang loves it so much that he has integrated it into his art.

The exquisite costumes, dramatic facial makeup and interesting stories in traditional operas have compelled Wu to adapt them into his paintings.

因为戏曲精美的服饰、传神的人物神态、动人的故事情节，画家吴双决定选择戏曲人物作为绘画元素。

“People who are born in the 1980s and grow up in the south seldom like the traditional Chinese opera, except for me,” the 35-year-old artist who was born in Chuxiong City, Yunnan Province said. “I like the way stories are narrated in Chinese opera.”

“生长在南方的80后其实喜欢戏曲的人不是很多,但我喜欢戏曲的表达方式。”

Many traditional Chinese operas are adapted from ancient novels or legends that the public might recognize in Wu’s paintings.

But Wu removes the characters from their traditional settings and has them perform in a modern environment.

Xu Xian and Bai Suzhen, two characters from the opera Lady White Snake, which is adapted from Qing Dynasty writer Feng Menglong’s eponymous novel, meet at a crossing in Dabeiyao, Chaoyang district, Beijing.

Tang Seng, the Monkey King’s teacher in the Chinese classical novel Journey to the West, is being nagged by a female opera artist in front of Sidong Restaurant in Houhai, Beijing.

And Jiang Gan, a scholar from the ancient Chinese book Romance of the Three Kingdoms, which was written by Luo Guanzhong in the Ming Dynasty, is plotting with another character by the side of Jintailu Road in Beijing.

《白蛇传》中的白娘子和许仙，《西游记》中的唐僧与孙悟空，《三国演义》中的蒋干盗书……这些家喻户晓的人物和故事在吴双的画中被重新展现。

Wu integrates modern and ancient elements into his paintings, creating a time-travel effect.

“Viewers are like my confidants,” Wu said. “Their first impression of my works is important.”

Thus, he prefers to let viewers decide whether these images are an expression of cultural integration or cultural conflict.

The Chinese Opera series was created during the time Wu lived in Beijing.

Before arriving in China’s capital, Wu had lived in the south his entire life. In 2005, he began his studies at the Academy of Arts & Design, Tsinghua University.

This decision represented a milestone in his career. The bustling metropolis inspired him to create his most famous works.

2005年，吴双决定来到北京闯荡，当一个“北漂”，他事业上的一个新的里程碑就此建立。

However, in the beginning Wu’s life in Beijing wasn’t easy. He was a Beipiao – a proper noun that describes Chinese who are not local Beijingers and who have to work hard to live in the city.

“I had no friend in Beijing nor much money at the time,” Wu said. “I felt so lonely and worried.”

This negative mentality has had an obvious impact on his Chinese Opera series. Violent scenes, such as flames in a battlefield or fighter jets, occur frequently in his creations.

“These pictures are a vivid metaphor of my state of mind at that moment,” he said.

“我在北漂期间创作的作品,都是有不平静的背景……这些都是我内心不安的真实写照。”

Nevertheless, Wu didn’t give up and persisted in pursuing his dream. Now, as he recollects the past, he doesn’t regret his Beijing experience. “If I could turn back the time, I would do it again,” he said.

Wu left Beijing in 2009 to become an art teacher at BeiHai College of BeiHang University in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

In the southwestern city, he began to create another series, The Monkey King is a Girl, a continuation of his Chinese Opera series.

“悟空是个女孩”系列作品是对戏曲作品的一个延续

Wu had included the Monkey King in many of the paintings in his last series, including “Palm-leaf Fan,” “I Am Angry” and “Fly Higher.” But he did not consider doing an exclusive series on the monkey until he listened to a song one day.

“When I was listening to the English song ‘God is a Girl,’ the Journey to the West suddenly came to mind,” Wu said. “The Monkey King often turns into a girl with the use of his magic and protects his teacher Tang Seng from demons who disguise as pretty women. It is interesting, and I wonder if it is possible that the Monkey King actually is a girl.”

“我属猴,在画戏曲系列的时候就用不少孙悟空的形象,比如说《芭蕉扇》 《火烧的云、红烧的心》 《我是愤怒》 《飞得更高》等等。后来听了一首英语歌《GOD IS A GIRL》,又回想起《西游记》中悟空没事就喜欢使72变，变成大姑娘，比如说高老庄那章，差点就‘嫁’给八戒了。悟空还总把漂亮的妖精,特别是喜欢唐僧的妖精一棒打死。“

After not being able to get rid of the seemingly absurd idea all day, Wu put it into practice. He painted “Wounded Wukong,” “The Story about the Golden Pistol” and “Solider with Sweater,” a group of paintings that have started the series Monkey King Is a Girl.

想到这些，吴双不禁萌生了一个荒诞的想法,“悟空是不是本来就是一个女孩呢?” 于是,在这个想法的孕育下，“悟空是个女孩”系列面世。

As an artist’s living conditions change, his or her perspective on art may change as well. The once ambitious Wu who pursued novel painting forms now focuses on perfecting his painting techniques.

“Now, I put much of my energy into strengthening my basic painting skills,” he said. “I don’t mean creativity is not critical anymore. I just think a perfect painter should possess firm painting skills first and create new painting styles second.”

He added, “I expect myself to be a perfect artist one day.”

Wu Shuanghttp://artand.cn/wushuang