Beauty of Ice and Snow on Canvas

Late September 2006, at the invitation of the Cultural Ministry of Belarus, a four-person delegation from northeast China＇s Heilongjiang Province visited Minsk, capital city of Belarus, to present China Ice and Snow Painting Exhibition at Belarus National Museum of History and Culture as part of China Culture Day co- sponsored by the cultural ministries of the two countries. The exhibition displayed 54 painting masterpieces by Yu Zhixue, founder of ice and snow painting, and his students. All the maior media organizations in Belarus reported the exhibition and Belarus Culture Daily gave an exclusive interview of Yu Zhixue. The Deputy Cultural Minister of Belarus was so impressed by the painting styles of Yu that he shook Yu＇s hands excitingly and highly praised Yu＇s works. A renowned Belarus painter said that ＂Trees with Crystal-White ice＂, donated by Yu to Belarus National Museum of History and Culture, would become an everlasting memory of the city of Minsk.     

A Legendary Painter：In commemoration of ZhangDaqian＇s 110th anniversary

Zhang Daqian is celebrated as a legendary Chinese painter of international renown in the 20th century, With extraordinary skills, he is considered the most outstanding artist in carrying forward the traditions of Chinese ink painting. Zhang began to stand out in the 1920s and obtained a leading status in the then painting arena in the 1930s His replicas of ancient master artists＇ paintings are so superb that they can be hardly distinguished from original works. Mr. Xu Jichuan, a prestigious collector, recalled an interesting experience as evidence to highlight Zhang＇s unparalleled ability to replicate ancient painting masterpieces.     

Paint from the Depth of Heart： Celebrated Painter Zhang Yahui

Zhang Yahui＇s painting works in his studio in Dashilan, a historic quarter in Qianmen in the downtown of Beijing, have attracted manyviewers. His paintings represent a bold blend of freehand and fine bmshwork. Years of hard practice in inking painting have enabled him to obtain virtuosity in overall layout. Created from depth of heart, Zhang＇s works fascinate viewers with well-designed layouts, innovative techniques, vigorous brushworks, artistic profundity and poetic beauty. By mixing characteristics of Chinese ink painting and Western oil painting,     

Marginalization and Combination： Liu Mingxlao＇s Oil Paintings

Efforts to localize oil painting have never stopped since this western art was introduced into China, A Chinese educational system on oil painting had not been developed until the era of master Xu Beihong. But if oil painting can be localized or not still remains a question in China. After New China was founded in 1949, influenced by Chairman Mao＇s theories on cultural development, Chinese oil painters were required to, besides serving ideological needs, pursue Chinese characteristics and cater to ordinary people＇s tastes. Dong Xiwen＇s ＂The Founding Ceremony of the New Republic＂ was the pioneer in this endeavor. Following him, almost all Chinese oil artists rushed into this direction, except some who made breakthroughs in landscape subjects. For instance, Wu Zuoren combined Chinese water and ink painting with western oil painting, creating a simplistic style.     

Classical Guqin Maker Tian Shuangkun

The quiet and melodious music led me to Tian Shuangkun＇s courtyard house in the depth of a hutong （alley） in the downtown of Beijing. Tian is a master maker of the Guqin, a seven-stringed zither known as China＇s oldest stringed instrument.His studio is furnished with traditional Chinese stuffs - old- style furniture, calligraphic and ink painting works, old pictures and the guqin as well. While I appreciated all these, Tian explained to me the long history of the guqin and his lifelong pursuit of perfection in making the guqin.     

CHARM OF SUZHOU EMBROIDERY

On a sunny day in the end of 2007 I was invited for a visit to Suzhou Embroidery. Research Institute. Led by Ms. Zhang, the institute＇s artistic director, I entered through a moon-shaped gate in a traditional style and an elegant classical Suzhou-style garden was unfolded in front of me. Quiet paths, luxuriant plants, winding corridors, all are filled with fascinating charm, like a scene in a traditional Chinese ink painting. The garden is called ＂Huanxiu Resort＂ where the embroidery institute is based. At that moment,     

Heavenly Mountain Portrayed in Chinese Ink Painting

Man pursues elegance while painting highlights charms. An .artist＇s vitality lies in hiscontinuation of traditions and breakthrough in innovative techniques. Chinese ink painting is a result of traditional culture, which is represented by harmonious concepts of Confucianism, simplistic ways of life by Taoism and adherence to nature by the Zhuang school of thinking. All these ancient philosophical concepts comprise aesthetic and artistic principles governing evolution of Chinese ink painting and are visualized in painting creations. Chinese ink painters not only emphasize physical realness but also highlight sensibility and spirit of life.     

The Red Flag Is Flying： Thematic Painting of China in the 20th Century

＂The Red Flag Is Flying： Thematic Painting of China in the 20th Century＇is a research and publication project sponsored by the National Publication Fund and published by People＇s Fine Arts Publishing House. It is the result of several decades of art research and five years of collection and compilation by the author Cheng Lvsheng. The book includes nearly 4,000 thematic painting works by up to 1, 500 Chinese painters.     

YAO DIXIONG： SOUL MATE TO HORSE

Though the outstanding Australian Chinese artist Yao Dixiong won a world fame with his painting work ＂2000 Kangaroo＂ which＇s 63 meters longand the creation, 100 meter-long ＂Human and Nature - Soul of Australia＂, he continued to realize his artistic dream of being a distinguished horse-painter.     

The Grand Painting Masterpiece ＂Chen Xingshen and Yang Zhenning＂

The painting depicts high mountains and flowing water, but they don＇t symbolize that the two scientists are on the top of the peak. The painting describes orchid blossoms, but they are just abstract expressions. In fact, this masterpiece tries to imply that the two scientific giants are bosom friends.     

ORIGINAL PRINT PAINTING RISES WITH POTENTIAL VALUES FOR COLLECTION

Printing painting usually refers to varieties of painting printed on wood, stone, linoleum, copper and zinc blocks carved by knife or etched by chemicals. China is generally recognized as the inventor of printing painting, but for quite a long time, it has had a poor market for print painting trade, with only few collectors dedicated to for this type of painting. In recent years, with print paintings by master artists gaining outstanding performance in the international market, values of original print painting have begun to be recognized in China＇s collection market.     

Rosy Clouds in the Sky

From January 16 to February 10, the National Art Museum of China held a painting exhibition on its collection of ethnic minority motifs. On display included 180 pieces of painting works from the museum＇s collection, most of which are masterpieces by accomplished painters in modern China. These painting exhibits fall into such diverse categories as Chinese tTaditional painting, oil painting, print painting, watercolor painting and serial illustrations of story books. Subjects from various ethnic minorily groups of China have been depicted, which bring viewers with an opportunity to appreciate cultural diversity of China.     

Miao Villages in the Leigong Mountain

Miao people is a trans-boundary ethnic group with long history, mainly distributed in Asian countries including China, Vietnam, Lao,Thailand and Cambodia. Some Miao people dwell in USA, France and Guyana. China is the birthplace of Miao people and the Leigong Mountain in southwest China＇s Guizhou Province is the largest habitat of Miao ethnic group. In ancient times, ancestors of Miao people left their homeland to escape wars and found shelters in the Leigong Mountain.     

KITCHEN RANGE PAINTING OF JIAXING

Every household in Jiaxing＇s villages has a two-stove opening or three-stove opening kitchen range. Dazzling arrays of patterns and designs with text captions are painted on the surface of ldtchen ranges, which are called ＂kitchen range painting＂ by local villagers.     

Farmer Print Painting of Qijiang County

Farmer printing first appeared in Qijiang County, Chongqing Municipality in the 1960s and 70s when the first print works, ＂The Party Branch＇s Secretary＂, was created by artists from Sichuan Artists Association, based on their experience in the county and characterized by the mix of revolutionary realism and romanticism. During the Cultural Revolution （ 1966 - 1976）, while traditional culture and classical Western culture were both labeled as ＂poisoned and collapsed＂, only print painting was encouraged by the communist government as it depicted realistic subjects of the time. Print exhibitions and workshops were launched in Qijiang＇s villages, which helped to give rise to indigenous print in the decades to come. Farmer printing of Qijiang County embraced heydays in the 1980s when the reform and opening policies were exercised nationwide, as a result of the influence by the print style of Jinshan.     

STILL LIFE： The Golden Lion Winner

At the 63rd Venice International ,Film Festival concluded on September 9, 2006, the Chinese film ＂Still Life＂ directed by Jia Zhangke won the Golden Lion Award as the best film.Jia＇s documentary ＂The East＂ also won the Italian Documentaries Association Award and the ＂Open 2006＂ Award.     

A Rich Mosaic of Art： Taiwan＇s Water and Ink Paintings Displayed in Mainland

An exhibition on Taiwan＇s water and ink painting masterpieces were displayed in National Art Museum of China last November. The exhibition featured nearly 120 artworks by twelve artists from Taiwan showcasing update painting accomplishments of Taiwan today The exhibition was also hailed as a big art event In Mainland Talwan culfural interaction, following the exhibition of the same subjects by young Mainland artists held In Taiwan in 2004.     

Li Qing Dedicated to Art of Fire

Ceramics is an art of fire. The tension and flexibility of earth are extended in the artist＇s hands to show the unique textural beauty and subtle feelings of the artist and original materials from the nature are mixed and tempered by fire. This complicated process demonstrates the artist＇s particular ideas, feelings and dispositions. In the eyes of Li Qing, a young artist from Chengdu, Sichuan Province, that is the very nature of ceramics that fascinates him so much.     

Random Stitching and Western Painting

Embroidery is an art re-created on the basis of painting. With the import of Western culture and painting since the 1930s, Chinese people have gradually changed their aesthetic tendencies and as a result the art of embroidery has been remarkably transformed. Chinese embroiders have drawn upon from Western aesthetic concepts and painting techniques and developed a new type of stitching approach which is called ＂random stitching＂.