Meet Mark Yee, Large-Scale Abstract Artist in Avondale

Today we’d like to introduce you to Mark Yee.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
As a first generation Chinese-American, I grew up knowing I would go into business because that’s what my parents wanted. The turning point was a Hyde Park Art Center (HPAC) gift certificate. I considered myself terrible at art but wanted to give painting a try. Who knew making art would open the door to a path of creativity, self-expression and finding my own voice?

So, in 2010, I arrived in class with no supplies. Totally unprepared, having worked at the Federal Reserve for over 20 years and earning my MBA along the way, I borrowed leftover supplies and a large canvas and fell in love with painting large.

To get ready for my first exhibit, I worked on several canvases at once, on the floor, because they were so large. I moved from canvas to canvas allowing each paint layer to dry. Every week leading up to the exhibit, I added more paint in the mode of pure experimentation. At first, I could see each explicit layer but as I repeated the process in an obsessive but satisfying cycle the layers beneath became obscured.

As a self-taught artist, I approached art from where I could. I theorized the multi-layered paintings reflected my inner thought process of feeling weighed down by the expectations of parents, the Church, and others. My result though was ostensibly an experiment with paint and canvas.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It wasn’t an overnight success. My MBA work ethic drew me toward things I knew – business and retail. My shows included a 4 person show at West Elm in Lincoln Park after approaching the store manager; selling art at a friend’s boutique in Bucktown and a solo show at my local Chicago Public Library, helping the librarian activate the unused gallery space. A group show at in Pilsen stretched into 24 to 30 months of gallery representation. For many weekends, every month from 2011 to 2013, I was on my feet at the gallery from 5 pm to midnight. I had only just begun my Malcolm Gladwell 10,000 hours of self-education.

On my path, I use obstacles as fuel. My first rejection letter said, “thank you but…” Their reason “not enough negative space” was a comment about the composition of the art. I turned the reason into an art exhibit called, “No Negative Space” focused on squeezing out negativity. Rejections are good. I say the same about skiing, “if you are not falling, then you are not pushing.”

Today, in my sun-filled 1,310 sq. ft. timberloft artist studio with 20’ ceilings and wood floors, I created an event funded by an Illinois Humanities artist grant, hosted yoga for friends, invited artists to exhibit, splashed paint onto a canvas, quietly sketched on paper and created a safe place for friends to consider the life together.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with Mark Yee, Large-Scale Abstract Artist – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
I view my paintings as good luck talismans. Practicing yoga for over 20 years and studying martial arts, I believe there is mystical energy around us. I aim to create something that changes you. Why is art to be shared? It shares energy with others. My paintings are complete when I start feeling its energy – that is what invigorates me and it’s what I believe gets other excited about my work.

My first art exhibit at a museum, the Chinese American Museum of Chicago, was a pivotal moment exploring art and heritage in a panel discussion.

In 2018, I made an unusual choice. Instead of seeking another art gallery for representation, I sought out Doug Van Tress, a friend of 20 years and the owner of the Golden Triangle in Chicago. Van Tress encouraged me to further connect my Chinese heritage and my art and to take it a step further.

The paintings I am creating for Van Tress are slightly “meta.” Meta occurs when you see a movie about making a movie. My newest paintings are about Terracotta Warriors that represented actual people, who hadn’t yet died but would later come back to life. Countless terracotta horse and warrior statues were placed underground by the First Emperor of China and I am excavating them on my canvas one horse and one warrior at a time. I am creating ghostly dream-like images on canvas seemingly an homage or a memory of my Chinese heritage.

But the kicker is that I never really considered myself Chinese until I became a parent. I was raised in a Chicago neighborhood with the largest Polish population outside of Warsaw, Poland and was a full-time active 15-year member of a German Lutheran Church where we sang Silent Night in German every Christmas Eve. So, creating artwork with Chinese Terracotta Warriors and Horses is a monumental step forward in my continuing journey as an artist and as a first generation Chinese-American.

So, what’s next? Any big plans?
With three children, Madeleine, 13, and 10-year-old twins, Sebastian and Vivian, I find life fulfilling and rewarding. Adding to the enjoyment of being a parent, I am very much a kid myself, of course, the main difference now is, I have a credit card.

In Chinese culture, lucky numbers include 5, 8 and 9. At this juncture, I’ve had 5 solo shows, 5 museum-related activities, 5 awards, 5 key exhibitions, 9 recent interviews in the press including a television interview on WGN Channel 9 (another nine!), and 8 artist talks. Seven is lucky too and this summer is exactly 7 years since my first art exhibit.

I am represented by Acquisitions of Fine Art gallery in downtown Hinsdale. My friend Mike Liska brought Thomas Karr, the owner of Acquisitions of Fine Art to my studio in for Chicago Artist Month in October 2014. Chicago Artist Month is designed to bring buyers, patrons, and gallery owners into local artist studios. In 2015, the gallery sold my first piece there in less than 30 days. It has been three years now and I’m glad that Tom took a chance on a local artist with a 15’ x 20’ slot among 12 artists on the third floor of an old warehouse.

Acquisitions of Fine Art Gallery exhibits artists such as Degas, Picasso, Warhol and modern artists who show around the world. Tom explained they have one slot for an emerging local artist. Tom has been extremely involved and encouraging. I enjoy when he comes to my studio and says, “this one, not that one and oh for sure this one. Can you bring these to the gallery next week, I am sure I have a buyer.” Tom recently sold 7 large pieces after my solo show, including a commission piece we installed in Wheaton just before the client’s Christmas party. We are looking forward to another big exhibit in 2019.

Looking forward to 2020, I would like to create a personalized painting for you through a commission process, available now, supporting the Hyde Park Art Center quadrennial exhibit, Not Just Another Pretty Face. Not just Another Pretty Face pairs artists with buyers and results in a 3-month exhibit and an art catalog with essays by both the artist and the patron.

Pricing:

• $1,000 to $15,000 depending upon the size and complexity.
• One of my favorite sizes is 4′ x 4′ that sell for about $7,000.

Contact Info:

• Address: Mark Yee, 3065 N. Rockwell, Chicago, IL 60618 Studio 3A
• Website: https://sites.google.com/view/markyeeartist/home
• Phone: 773-822-1909
• Email: markyee2138@gmail.com

Image Credit:
Douglas Druick, past President of the Art Institute of Chicago, Francesca Connell, Mark Yee, Roxy Gobbel, Mike Liska, Mark Yee, Sheryl Srivastava, Thomas Karr from Acquisitions of Fine Art

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