UKIAH, Calif. — The Mendocino College Art Gallery is honored to present “Urban Introversions: Master Works by Yu Ji,” an exhibition of large-scale drawings, paintings, and prints by internationally recognized academic realist Yu Ji. 

The exhibition runs through Oct. 26, with an opening reception on Thursday, Sept. 4, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. The public is warmly invited to attend.

Yu Ji’s meticulous multi-figure compositions emerge from decades of drawing from life. Working in charcoal and oil, his works translate spontaneous urban sketchbook studies into introspective, layered studio paintings. 

Each piece presents an inner world of solitary figures, often set in shared public spaces yet emotionally distant — meditations on individuality, cultural identity, and urban experience.

Born in China, Yu Ji earned his BFA from the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing before immigrating to the United States during the Open Door Policy era. He went on to complete dual MFA degrees in Painting (1986) and Printmaking (1989) at SUNY New Paltz. 

His early practice in New York was shaped by constant observational drawing in public spaces such as Washington Square Park, where he captured the human landscape of American life through fresh eyes. 

In 1999, he relocated to Los Angeles, where the color and character of Southern California’s urban life reshaped his palette and compositional language.

“Many of Yu Ji’s paintings have a pensive interiority, with languid figures who, though placed together, often appear absorbed in their own thoughts … These invented compositions utilize complex spatial overlapping, including exquisitely subtle scale shifts,” said Jonathan Puls, professor of art and chair, Department of Art, Biola University.

The exhibition is curated by Jazzminh Moore, gallery director at Mendocino College, who first met Yu Ji as a student in 2001 during a workshop at the Academy of Realist Art (now Gage Academy) in Seattle. Her personal journey — from student to mentee to colleague — adds a deeply resonant context to the show.

“Yu Ji is a true master. That week working with him in Seattle changed my life. I uprooted and moved to Long Beach just to study with him. His teaching clarified everything for me—from the structure of shadow edges to the precision of color mixing. I’m beyond honored to now be presenting his work to our students and community,” said Moore.

Also featured in the exhibition is “Lost in Transection,” a collaborative video installation by Joe Ren, assistant professor of Digital Media at California State University, Bakersfield. 

Ren’s work merges Yu Ji’s figurative imagery with contemporary symbols of American urban culture, creating a hybrid visual dialogue between drawing, print, and video.

Urban Introversions offers a rare opportunity to experience the work of a modern master whose commitment to observation, formal discipline and quiet intensity sets him apart in the contemporary art landscape.

The Mendocino College Art Gallery is located at 1000 Hensley Creek Road, Ukiah. Gallery hours are 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. Tuesdays, 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Wednesdays, and by appointment.

Admission is free and open to the public.