
Ma Dan was born in 1985 in Yunnan, China. In 2008, she graduated from the Art and Design Department of Yunnan University with a Bachelor Degree. In 2011, she earned her Master of Arts from Art and Design Department of Yunnan University. Currently she works and lives in Yunnan.

Transcending reality by sheer dreaming, Ma Dan depicts the country landscape in a simple and primitive style. “Nature” and “Space” are the primary subject matters in Ma Dan’s works in which she builds up an atmosphere of dream-like tranquility. This manner of treating landscapes is reminiscent of the works by Henri Rousseau whose style of work is known as “primitivism”. One hundred years later, Ma Dan immerses herself in a dreamlike space, reminding us of a distant era. The back view of a lonely innocent little girl is not only a self-portrait, but also a key to the entrance of a passage into the artist’s dream, which leads the viewer to Ma Dan’s subconscious realm.
Resume
1985 Born in Yunnan Province, China
2008 Bachelor of Art and Design, Art and Design Institute of Yunnan University
2011 Master of Arts, Art and Design Institute of Yunnan University
Currently works and lives in Yunnan, China