When We were Young was created after he came back from the United States. The male and female characters in the painting were respectively the painter himself and Tong Pengpeng who married him later. Yang took her as a model to reproduce a beautiful, dignified and intelligent oriental girl on the canvas. Yang has created hundreds of portraits for Tong, many of which are known as his representative works. This painting is the only one with an artist’s self-portrait. In this painting, Yang’s wife, who has always been the core figure in his works, becomes a “supporting role” to set off the “leading actor”, namely the artist himself. In the picture, Tong’s eyes are misty, while the author is firmly staring at himself in the mirror. The title of the painting “When We were Young” reveals the artist’s inner world. Each generation has their own youth. We shall seize youth as it flies.

(Edited by Li Hanning & Yang Zhige, 2021)