Lisson Live - Liu Xiaodong in Conversation with Sophie Fiennes

To coincide with the first UK exhibition of Chinese painter Liu Xiaodong at Lisson Gallery, the renowned film director Sophie Fiennes has created a 40-minute documentary, exploring his fluid approach to painting directly from life, which saw him take his canvases out on to the streets of London and into local pubs and restaurants. On the opening day of the show, Liu Xiaodong and Sophie Fiennes will discuss their collaboration and the stories behind the project, entitled Half Street, in conversation with the Lisson Gallery’s Head of Content, Ossian Ward.

About the speakers:

Liu Xiaodong is one of China’s foremost artists and a painter of international stature. Born in 1963 to factory worker parents in Jincheng, a town in northeastern China, he trained at Beijing’s Central Academy of Fine Arts where he now teaches as a professor. Recent solo shows include: Today Art Museum, Beijing (2013); Kunsthaus Graz (2012); Asian Art Museum, San Francisco (2006) and Art Museum of Guangdong, Guangzou (2006).

Sophie Fiennes began making films in 1998. She is widely acclaimed for her unique observational eye and strong sense of cinematic form. Her films act as powerful portraits of some of today's most iconic individuals. Her films include her portrait of Anselm Kiefer, Over Your Cities Grass Will Grow (2010). Most recently Sophie finished a second collaboration with Slavoj Žižek, The Pervert’s Guide to Ideology (2012) which is being released theatrically in the UK by Picturehouse.