郭燕的《飄》系列以紫色作為基調(diào)，呈現(xiàn)當(dāng)代都市生存經(jīng)驗(yàn)中人與人、人與城之間疏離而又依附的難以理清的糾纏聯(lián)系。這些畫面令人感傷。當(dāng)代都市空間與文化研究最重要的思想家亨利·列斐伏爾（Heri Lefevbvre）提出“什么才是社會(huì)關(guān)系的真正存在方式？”這個(gè)必須回答的理論問題。在《空間的生產(chǎn)》一書中，列斐伏爾用“空間本體論”回答了這個(gè)問題。在他看來，社會(huì)關(guān)系存在的根本地基是都市空間的存在與生產(chǎn)，現(xiàn)代都市的人造環(huán)境是“社會(huì)關(guān)系的粗暴濃縮”。在近二十年來中國(guó)城市前所未有的高速發(fā)展過程中，我們看到了這一點(diǎn)。忙忙碌碌的都市人穿梭在鋼筋水泥的叢林中，在對(duì)物欲的瘋狂追逐中越來越物質(zhì)化和機(jī)械化，樓建得越來越高，大地越來越遠(yuǎn)。飄零的身世、思鄉(xiāng)的濃愁逐漸被功名利祿層層遮蓋，田野、家園和世界的詩意只能在夢(mèng)中偶爾靈光一現(xiàn)。在大幅尺寸的畫布上，郭燕揮灑著夢(mèng)幻、奢靡而又神秘的紫色來訴說自己對(duì)幸福人生的夢(mèng)想和淡淡的鄉(xiāng)愁。紫色，這個(gè)最屬于女人的顏色，被她令人心驚的用盡。在每個(gè)畫面上，層層疊疊的紫色勾勒出一個(gè)又一個(gè)都市男女的溫柔夢(mèng)鄉(xiāng)。在這些明顯虛擬的場(chǎng)景中，偎依在床上的青年情侶漂浮在都市的樓群上空，它寓意深長(zhǎng)的張力讓人想起夏加爾那些時(shí)空穿插中溫暖而又憂傷的畫面。如果如列斐伏爾所言，現(xiàn)實(shí)社會(huì)不斷通過對(duì)城市空間的生產(chǎn)來強(qiáng)化自己的物質(zhì)基礎(chǔ)與社會(huì)結(jié)構(gòu)，那么，藝術(shù)家唯一能做的就是通過對(duì)藝術(shù)作品與藝術(shù)空間的生產(chǎn)來安頓流浪的心與無根基的生存。在自己畫面的處理上郭燕頗費(fèi)心思。她把象征城市的大片樓群安排在畫面的遠(yuǎn)處，用紫得近黑的顏色信筆涂抹，隨意地勾勒出一些輪廓，雖不清晰，仍然傳達(dá)著當(dāng)代人對(duì)都市生活的感受：繁雜、混沌、喧囂，但又如一張巨大的網(wǎng)無處不在。在龐大的城市上空，是溫馨的粉紫色來表現(xiàn)床墊、床單和枕頭，再用白色提出如紗般飄逸透明的調(diào)子。年輕的情侶在甜美的夢(mèng)中相擁而臥，相偎相依，他們?cè)陟o謐的夜里飛離現(xiàn)實(shí)，用愛情與家庭的溫馨逃避涼薄煩亂的都市生活。郭燕是否有意無意告訴我們，在城市的冰冷和逝者如斯的惶恐里愛是我們無望人生中唯一的救贖和慰籍？ 以如此豐富的紫色，郭燕構(gòu)建出一個(gè)愛情烏托邦來試圖對(duì)抗我們?cè)较菰缴畹亩际兄W(wǎng)，但這張頗具象征意味的席夢(mèng)思是否會(huì)如神話里的魔墊帶人們回歸夢(mèng)中的家園，我們不得而知。虛幻的“飄”和“夢(mèng)”這兩個(gè)主題顯示出了畫家對(duì)此思考的游移和不確定，也許畫面上深深淺淺的紫色正是她輕輕的嘆息。 ——彭肜 By Rong Peng Yan Guo’s series of artwork ‘Gone with the Wind’ adopts the colour purple as its foundation. This work of art captures the contemporary urban experience of human survival – the entanglement and alienation between humankind and the city. These pictures effect sorrow in their viewers. Henri Lefebvre, a prominent philosopher in the study of contemporary urban space and culture, raised the critical theoretical question: ‘what are the social relationships embedded in space?’. In his book The Production of Space, Lefebvre answered this question by using ‘space’. In his view, social relations are based on the very existence of urban space and production. Space, according to him, is anything but the ‘passive locus of social relations’. We see this point in the unprecedented development of China’s cities in the last 20 years. Daily, China’s urbanites hustle and bustle through concrete jungle. In pace with the growing pursuit of materialistic wealth, the jungle has become increasingly lofty and domineering, creating a distance between its inhabitants. The realities of homelessness and depression have been gradually masked by position, power and wealth. The beauty of the natural environment external to the urban space can only be experienced in the illusions of our dream world. Dramatically, on the vast expanse of her canvas, Yan spreads the most extravagant and mysterious shade of purple – conveying her dreams of a happy life yet endless homesickness. Purple, the color of femininity, is wielded expertly in Yan’s hands. In each of her paintings, shades of purple express the dreams of the urbanites. In these implicit scenes, young lovers lean against a bed whilst floating high above the city buildings. Its allegoric tension reminds us Marc Chagall’s warm pictures of a space-time paradise. If, as Lefebvre said, the real world is trying to strengthen its material base and social structure by creating more urban space, then the only thing artists can do is use their artworks to settle down their wandering hearts. Yan exposes her intimate thoughts and feelings in her paintings. The letter T and arbitrary contours are smeared across the canvas in a deep, dark purple, achieving the likeness of large urban complexes. The image conveys a contemporary urban life – a sense of complexity, chaos, and noise, is cast like a net over the surroundings. Above the city, a warm hue of pink-purple transforms into mattress, bed sheet and pillow – white enhances the elegant yarn of the material. Young lovers hug, in their sweet dreams they fly in the quiet night away from reality. By escaping from the cold world they capture love and warmth. Whether Yan Guo is expressing her notion that ‘love’ is the one true path of salvation from the city’s coldness? Purple, Yan Guo has constructed a Utopian love in which the urbanites can escape the confines and entrapments of urban life. Like the magic carpet of Arabic mythology, can Yan’s mattress transport the lovers to their longed for utopia? These two symbolic themes, ‘Gone with the Wind’ and ‘Dream’, reveal the artist’s hesitation and brooding over the question. The dark and light shades of purple reflect her contemplative mood.