Guo Jian was born in Guizhou China in 1962 and grew up during the cultural Revolution. At age seventeen, he enlisted in China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) where he worked as a propaganda poster artist, a member of a squad of 'Entertainment Soldiers'. He resigned from the army in 1982 and in 1985 was accepted into the Minzu University of China art department as a student and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Chinese painting and literature in 1989. During university he participated in a number of student protests. As a result of pressure from the authorities, Guo Jian decided to leave China and in 1992 he immigrated to Australia. He returned to China in 2005 to explore opportunities for his sculpture, in 2014 he was arrested having upset the authorities with one of his works depicting Tiananmen Square. He was detained for two weeks, after which he returned to Australia. He has held solo exhibitions in Sydney and Melbourne since 1994.
In our database, 19 works by Guo Jian are listed as being offered for sale, the earliest in 2010, of which 11 (58%) were sold. The highest price recorded for the artist is $25,200 for Military Party sold by Shapiro Auctioneers in May 2021. No works have been offered for sale this year, and the last sale we have recorded for the artist was in 2022. Works by Guo Jian are held by the National Gallery of Australia and Art Gallery of NSW.
Guo Jian is listed in the following standard biographical references:
Could the second and subsequent works by this artist sold after June 9, 2010 for over $1,000 be liable for the Artists' Resale Royalty? More info…
Yes, eligible, subject to the artist satisfying the residency test. The artist is alive or has been deceased for less than 70 years. Contact the Copyright Agency for information on the residency test.
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