Selected Coverage

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

May 14th, 2011
Unveiling of Bishop Catherine Roskam's portrait at St. John's Cathedral, NY

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

June 22nd, 2011
The artist with Gerald Lipkin Chairman, President & CEO of Valley National Bank at the unveiling party

 

 

 

 

 

 

November 12th, 2010
The artist with retired President Shirley Strum Kenny and President Samuel L. Stanley Jr. M.D. of Stony Brook University, NY at the Unveiling of the Official Shirley Strum Kenny Portrait.

 

 

 

 

 

 

March 18th, 2010
Unveiling of President Nancy Vickers' Portrait
Bryn Mawr College, PA

 

 

 

 

February 20th, 2009
This portrait of Marysa Navarro, a member of Dartmouth College's history faculty since 1968, was unveiled in February and will hang in Dartmouth College Baker Library. From left: President James Wright, Susan DeBevoise Wright, Navarro, and portrait artist Ying-He Liu. Of her subject, Liu says: "She is beautiful, strong, and intelligent. My duty was to reflect that." (Photo by Joseph Mehling '69)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Decemeber 11th , 2007
Dr. Damionos Portrait Unveiling
Damianos Realty Group, NY

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

October 25th, 2006
Dedication of Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum
Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Arts
Washington University in St. Louis

 

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November 13th, 2008
President’s Portrait Unveiled
by Suzanne Ramsey, Sweet Briar College staff writer

A portrait of Sweet Briar’s ninth president, Elisabeth Showalter Muhlenfeld, was unveiled Friday, Nov. 7 at Mary Helen Cochran Library, continuing a tradition that has been in place since the College’s founding in 1901.

President Muhlenfeld (right) poses with artist Ying-he Liu (left) and the presidential portrait. Although Muhlenfeld will not retire until July 2009, her portrait – painted by New York artist Ying-he Liu – already hangs in the library’s main hall alongside renderings of the College’s previous eight presidents.

Liu grew up in China amid that country’s tumultuous Cultural Revolution and immigrated to the United States in 1981. In her remarks, Liu said she was grateful for the opportunity to paint Muhlenfeld’s portrait – not only because it was a “rare and huge honor” and a “big break” in her career, but also because of what it meant to her as a mother.

“A woman artist painting a woman president of a women’s college – such an affirmation of what women can achieve in this country and in today’s world,” she said. “As a mother of a teenage daughter, this commission has special significance to me on a personal level. It sets a great example to my daughter.

“She knows my story. … For her to see one accomplished woman creating the likeness of another even more accomplished woman couldn’t be more affirming – that in this country, one can go as far as one’s God-given talent and hard work takes, regardless of age, gender, race or background.”

In the portrait, Muhlenfeld wears her formal academic regalia and presidential medal, and Cochran Library serves as a backdrop. Liu said she and Muhlenfeld felt using the library as one of the painting’s prominent features was “most appropriate.”

“I understand that major renovation work of this iconic building took place under Betsy’s leadership. … What I tried to convey in this painting is a sense of Betsy’s pride and love of this magnificent academic institution,” Liu said.

“Another thing that Betsy and I felt was that an academic portrait does not have to be stodgy and boring. It can be beautiful and artistic. I hope this portrait serves as a great visual testament of her leadership and accomplishments and an inspiration to generations of women students in their aspiration to achieve greatness in life.”

Liu has a fine arts degree from the State University of New York at Stony Brook and also studied at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. Her portraits can be found in the collections of many universities, colleges, corporations, hospitals and private residences.

Muhlenfeld’s portrait was underwritten by generous donations from the following people: Catherine Barnett Brown ’49 and her husband, Walter, who is an honorary member of the Class of 1949; Sara Finnegan Lycett ’61; Margaret Sheffield Martin ’48; Norma Patteson Mills ’60 and her husband, Olan; and Allison Stemmons Simon ’63.

 

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April 2008
Speech at 10th conference of Portrait Society of America
by Ying-He Liu

When I first approached the topic “Developing Critical Eyes-Problem Solving”, I recalled what the renowned Chinese artist Chen Chi once told me: “Avoid eye-pollution,” by which he meant to study only the best art that human race has ever produced. It also occurred to me that if we develop critical eyes, to be able to tell good from bad, half of the problems are solved.

The late owner and President of Portraits, Inc. Marian Mackinney used to say that portraiture was about documentation. We document human features, human spirit and human conditions; we immortalize its beauty and memory; we commemorate its achievements. Portraits are windows into human souls. I’d venture to say that capturing likeness is still portrait artists’ #1 job. Spare no efforts to achieve it, to sculpt human forms with painters’ brushes.

In traditional portraiture, there are still certain conventions that we need to adhere to. Certain degree of realism is a must. Given that confines, how to reflect an elevated reality, how to inject a sense of wonder or drama is the real challenge. There seem to be two general approaches in portrait works between which I find myself wavering and trying to reconcile the two: one is to emphasize the more functional side of the portrait in which sheer force of the subjects’ personality coupled with great technique are sufficient to produce effective and appealing portraits: the other is more geared towards aesthetic portraits, in which the subjects are almost pretext for display of artists’ formal concerns. I often wonder if portrait painting could really be taught. How much of an artist’s good sense is in born and how much is cultivated. I do believe that some less abstract aspects of portraiture can be taught in an analytical way as we probably already learned about values, color relations, anatomy, perspectives, proportions, etc. There are other aspects of portraiture that are more difficult to be conveyed by words. Successful artists are often autodidacts. We all know that to a large degree , artists’ intuition play a big part in determining deployment of techniques and methods. Often we make decisions out of empirical need and sometimes it’s a matter of conscious choices. People often remark , “Ying-He, you are a magician.” Yes, we artists can create something extraordinary out of nothing. There are many pictorial devices that are at our disposal. Let’s use them to achieve desired visual effects. Since we have limited time, I condense all I want to say to a few key guidelines:

Lighting treatment: I used to work in theatre. In theatre, we say: ”Lighting is the soul of stage.” That’s how important lighting is. In painting, given the same subject, different way to light can create very different effects ranging from moody to splendid. Look at Rembrandt’s works, there is this stage-like effect with spot light shining onto focal areas of the paintings. Very dramatic. Look at Vermeer’s works, only directional window light, very serene and almost somber. Sargent is a great master at employing ambience light. There is no formula of lighting in his works and it’s ever fascinating to discern the beauty of light and color in his works. I don’t suppose the old masters use any photo lighting equipments as we modern artists often do. In that sense, I’d say to use those aids very sparingly and discriminatingly. Lighting can be vastly varied and there are infinite possibilities. Experiment, improvise and manipulate.

Pose: Pose selection has everything to do with what attitude and personality that we want to project in a portrait. Always try to find something unusual and interesting within conventions. Pose selection is more challenging in group portraits. Pay special attention to maintain coherence, rhythm and interplay among sitters.

Composition: Composing a painting is like composing a symphony. Always try to grasp the overall structure. Always think in terms of abstraction. No matter how detailed and complex the contents are, they can always be simplified to a few basic shapes. For example: pyramid shape suggests solidity and balance. S shape suggests grace and movement. Keep in mind golden ratio and apply it!

Color schemes: When I come up with color scheme for a painting, I always think in terms of harmony vs. contrast. I either push for harmony or contrast. Always maintain harmony within contrast and contrast within harmony. Push for color tendencies. Do you know that color schemes can be arbitrarily determined to certain degree?

Brushwork: Rhythmical play can be achieved through good brushwork. Freedom of execution comes from great facility, understanding and confidence. There are generally two schools: one favors bravura, the other seeks refinement. One is like drinking great wine and the other is like sipping tea. Both require great skills. Again, practice, loose but not sloppy, refined but not rigid. Use discretion as to where to tighten and where to loosen. Avoid “fleshy, keep the “bones”, if you can understand what that means….

Textural play: I always marvel at the beauty, substance, richness, expressiveness and versatility of oil medium, lost mostly in reproductions. Please do not reduce an oil to a watercolor. Use all techniques, materials, tools available to achieve desired effects: sanding, scumbling, glazing, thin wash, palette knife wax medium, impasto, alla prima, you name it. Coarse and fine canvas produce very different effects. Know where to emphasize and where to downplay. Generally, cake up where light hits and treat the shadowy area and distance background in a summary fashion.

In summary, my advice is to keep searching, study great masters’ works in person, treat each canvas with great care, always sing a song from the heart and above all, keep painting. Thank you!

(The speech is followed by a power point presentation of 11 pieces of the artist’s works that illustrate points in speech.)

 

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American Artist Cover Competition 2007 Finalist
American Artist March 2007 Issue

Ying-He Liu
Having spent more than 20 years as a professional portrait painter, Ying-He Liu was happy to apply her skills to create this portrait of her daughter, Ming Min. “We experimented with different ballet costumes, lighting situations, and locations before I found the composition that best captured her personality,” the artist explains. “Furthermore, I liked the casualness and lack of strain that often typify commissioned portraits. I developed the oil painting by building up layers of paint, going from thick, scumbled layers of color to thin, transparent glazes.”

Ying-He Liu was born in Shanghai, China, majored in fine arts at Stony Brook University, in Stony Brook, New York, and pursued graduate study in illustration at the School of Visual Arts, in New York City. She became an American citizen in 1986. Her portraits are included in the collections of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, in New York City; the Children’s Hospital Boston; the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, in Kansas City, Missouri; Washington University, in St. Louis; and the Groton School, in Groton, Massachusetts.

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Selected Comments from Clients

“It's wonderful. Being modest, I didn't initially relish the idea of having a portrait done. That said, I feel you've captured in this some things about myself that I do value highly. My wife loves it too.“
- Trevor Bond, President and CEO of WP Carey, NY

“Ying-He, everyone is raving about your work. You need to know that. And I am so very pleased... thank you for sharing this milestone in my life.“
- Bishop Catherine Roskam

“It was a real pleasure working with Ying-He on commission of this portrait. She’s a terrific artist, capable of many stylistic variations. More importantly, I found her very interested in trying to understand what I was looking for in the qualities of the portrait and then working to acheive this in her art. My wife and I, as well as everyone at the Joslin Diabetes Center, have been truly impressed by the result.“
- C. Ronald Kahn, M.D., Mary K. Iacocca Professor of Medicine and President of Joslin Diabetes Center, Harvard Medical School

“I saw it and it is wonderful. I adored it and I am not the only one. I went to see your portrait with three colleagues and they all loved it. I really saw myself and I liked me. I look beautiful and I never thought of myself as beautiful. The clothes are perfect, I recognized my hands, my gorgeous chinese pink pearls are a joy to look at and the tower room is exactly as it should be. Thank you so much forthe beauty of your work. I am honored to have been painted by you. Despite my qualms, it was an unforgetable pleasure to sit for you.“
- Marysa Navarro, Charles Collis Professor of History, Dartmouth College

“Thanks again for all your time, effort, and certainly talent expended on my portrait.  I am honored to be portrayed by such an outstanding artist.“
- ShirleyStrum Kenney, President, State University of New York at Stony Brook

“…. there is not a day that goes by that I don’t pause and treasure it. It is one of the most exquisite portraits I’ve seen..…”
- Melanie Soles on her son Roger’s portrait

“Thanks for a fine portrait. There is nothing ‘wrong with the mouth’. My wife has commented that it is more than a portrait, and has the quality of a ‘painting’. We are most grateful. Everyone likes it, many comments.”
- Charles F. Barlow, M.D., Neurologist-in-Chief, Emeritus, Childrens’ Hospital, Harvard Medical School

“It hardly seems fair that so many people are getting such delight from your wonderful portrait of Virginia and you’re not here to receive the praise. How I wish you could be the proverbial (as my mother always said) ‘fly on the wall’ to hear all of the compliments and admiration it receives. Virtually all first responses are the same, regardless of whether the viewer knows Virginia very well or has only recently met her (as with a guest Saturday night): “It’s Virginia! It’s just like her.’ What is it? The very little smile? The twinkle of the eyes? It is so Virginia that I love her even more if such a thing is possible for the new ways it makes me recognize her own special magic. I hardly know how to thank you—you are extraordinary gifted at your art and your craft, but moreover you have a special sensitivity which allowed you to connect up with Virginia, to know her, to love her, and to allow that love to shine through in your work.”
- Rebecca Frischkorn on her daughter Virginia’s portrait 

“On behalf of everyone at the Dance Theater Foundation, we want to thank you so much for the incredible portrait of Alvin you created for us. It is a gift of immeasurable value which we will treasure always.”
- Judith Jamison and Michael M. Kaiser, Artistic Director and Director, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater

“The portrait is exquisite, brilliant, divine. Everyone loves it including my mother. I can’t thank you enough. It truly captures her and the dog is wonderful, too.”
- Tori Thomas, The Mark Winkler Company, VA

“In my opinion, she captured both an air of dignity and a sense of "approachability" that is claimed by others to represent the essence of my leadership tenure. I found her to be most professional and a good listener--letting me and others offer suggestions, but always retaining her integrity as the artist in deciding what to incorporate in her work.  She took considerable time to understand and visit the site where it would be displayed. She communicated well and often during the project, and she allowed me and others to comment on any changes that might be desired as the portrait moved to completion... Portraits are a very personal matter of taste, style, and purpose.  The personality and skill of the artist, I believe, must align with that of the subject for good things to happen.  In my case, Ying-He fit the bill very well and I would recommend her without reservation.”
- Dr. Carl Kohrt, President and CEO of Battelle Memorial Institute

“Ying-He was fabulous – her attention to detail, professional manner and artistic talent created a wonderful experience for our family.”
- Susan Casey on her daughter Catlin Casey's portrait

“We unveiled the Portrait yesterday... every body was impressed with the painting..you have captured the beauty and personality of Berta. We could not have done any better... thank you. This morning when I walked into living room, the room looked alived and dynamic with The Portrait.”
- Mr. Alberto Chamorro on his wife Bertita's portrait