嚴培明（Yan Peiming，1960年- ），出生於上海。是最具國際知名度、最早進入西方藝術界和藝術市場的中國當代藝術家之一，以黑、白、紅單色巨幅肖像享譽藝術界。第一屆藝術與設計大獎賽獲選人。他以犀利有力、細膩且悲劇性的筆觸刻畫不同個體的生存狀態和精神世界，進而探討人類發展進程中的戰爭、貧困、不公、生命、死亡等社會命題的深意。1991年其作品進入巴黎蓬皮杜藝術中心，後多次在歐洲著名機構舉辦個展，並參加過威尼斯雙年展、里昂雙年展等眾多國際大展。2009年，他成為第一個在羅浮宮舉辦個展的在世當代藝術家，作品由羅浮宮永久收藏。同年獲得法國騎士榮譽勳章。2010年上海世博會期間，新作《上海的孩子》代表法國在國家館外展出。

What is the influence of your works?
A major influence on my work, which comes from my childhood, are propaganda paintings. In China, in the 1960s, every event served as an opportunity to produce new propaganda paintings. Chinese political policies were the source, subject and object of these works. Among all these events, the death of Mao Zedong, when I was 16, was the most profound moment in my young life.

Who’s your artistic hero ?
I’ve always been fascinated by Goya’s Third of May 1808. Working on Exécution, Après Goya allowed me to better understand the time period in which it was made. It’s a remarkable painting in that it allows the viewer to connect with both sides of the story it depicts. One understands the motivations of the executioners, who believe that they are acting on behalf of freedom. But we also connect with the victims who sacrifice themselves for their cause. My interest in the painting also allows me to reflect on our current political and historical time.

How you choose your Subject matters?
For the most part, I choose my subjects according to their relationship with their historical moment. The media, both print and televised, provides me with topics and images. Using oil paint on canvas, I transform news into contemporary history paintings. I’ve always been obsessed with executions, the spectacle of the killing of a man by other men, and by the idea that history is a cycle that repeats itself forever in new ways. Goya’s paintings remain topical to this day.

Yan Pei-Ming is a contemporary Chinese painter, best known for his monochromatic large-scale paintings of famous public figures such as Bruce Lee, Mao Zedong and, more recently, Barack Obama. Often executed in expressions of mourning or sorrow, the portraits encompass a combination of Eastern and Western influences.