American art historian and critic Bernard Berenson once famously
declared that one of the essential elements in painting was what he
called \”tactile values.\”

By contrast with the Renaissance arts, which he so much admired,
Berenson felt that Oriental painting lacked that quality and as a
result, as he put it, \”the arts of the Orient soon weary.\”

But what would he have thought of the work of Chinese artist Qu
Leilei?

Qu\’s solo show \”Brush, Ink, Light, Shadow\” is running at Leda
Fletcher Gallery on Moganshan Road, featuring his latest ink
paintings with lots of innovation.

It seems, generally, that painters are seen, not heard. However,
Qu gave an excellent bilingual conference, in English and Chinese,
to explain the meaning of his works and share with viewers his
experience of art.

His paintings – human faces, figures and hands – are executed
with purely Chinese materials, such as bamboo brushes, Chinese ink
and rice paper. But the light and shadow are very different from
those in traditional works.

What would Berenson say if he saw Qu\’s work? Most probably he
would say they are not Chinese, merely an attempt to imitate
Western art.

But were he alive today – Berenson passed away in 1959 – he
might see things differently. Chinese art has undergone profound
changes in recent decades, as Chinese artists have taken from
Western art what they needed for their own purposes.

\”I just feel traditional skills are not enough,\” says Qu. \”It\’s
not enough for me to express the spirit of the people in my
pictures. When I saw the sparkling eyes in the shadow under their
eyebrows, I decided to exploit Western perspective, anatomy and
light and shadow to express their spirit.\”

This process is not new. It began in the early 20th century,
when artists of the Lingnan School heard about Western art in Japan
and attempted to adapt their own tradition to take account of new
forms and technique.

The human hand is one of the most difficult subjects to paint,
but not only does Qu draw hands beautifully, but he also makes them
a powerful image expressing thoughts, feelings, humanity and
love.

While some of the most successful modern Chinese artists keep on
repeating themselves, Qu moves on to explore other areas. From his
first naive works in the 1979 and 1980 Beijing exhibitions \”Stars,\”
in which he was one of the youngest members, he has progressed to
develop one theme after another.

This has culminated (so far) in the splendid paintings in the
\”Hands\” series, and the striking large-scale portraits \”Everyone\’s
Life Is an Epic,\” which combines brilliant brush and ink techniques
with sympathetic insight into the character of the subject.

Qu also paints nudes, a subject that has scarcely a place in the
Chinese traditional repertoire.

In any case, the battle over the nude, which late master Liu
Haisu fought in the early 20th century, has long been won, and even
top state leaders in the 1950s defended drawing the nude as
essential training for the figure painter.

So it is not the subject of Qu\’s nude paintings that is
revolutionary, but that he shows how the Chinese medium of brush
and ink, which is traditionally a linear art, can produce those
\”tactile values\” that Berenson thought to be at the heart of all
good art – or at least of the art that he admired.

Nothing is absolute. Art moves on, and Qu will move on too, but
it is good to pause at this exhibition, to see how far he has
come.

\”Some people suggest that I paint more \’popular\’ subjects,\” says
Qu, \”such as combinations of nude women together with famous places
like Tian\’anmen Square.

\”If I sit down, I can think of tens of that kind of idea in a
second – it\’s so shallow. I won\’t do that, though I\’m always told I
could earn a lot of money by doing this,\” he adds.

Date: through November 20, 10am-6pm

Address: Room 107, Bldg 7, 50 Moganshan Rd

Tel: 6266-7958

(Shanghai Daily November 1, 2007)

For more than a thousand years, Chinese landscape paintings have
been a symbol of nature and a way of expressing emotions.

Ma Hong, a northern Chinese oil painter born in 1959, expresses
the tranquillity of the rugged landscape in his native Hebei Province. The low-contrast, earth-tone
paintings are soft and gentle in feeling.

Ma, who comes from Chengde, is exhibiting more than 30 of his
latest works at the Liu Haisu Arts Museum. They capture the quiet
of rural towns in Taihang Mountain, seen from afar, the sunlight on
trees, rivers and fields, with mountains rising in the
background.

In focusing on ordinary rural landscapes, not emotional,
breathtaking vistas, Ma conveys his deep affection for the scenery.
For him, beautiful scenery is not the most important thing – what
he really cares about is his emotional connection with the
land.

\”I only paint something that I am extremely familiar with, like
my hometown where I spent all my life,\” says the artist.

Carrying his pigments, bushes and canvas, Ma explores some of
the most remote areas of his home province. He travels as the
spirit moves him, and paints what strikes his heart.

Some viewers may say the scenes have a sameness to them, without
prominent features. Ma seldom uses bright color, as he wants to
present the scenery \”the way it is.\”

\”I found my heart was quiet when I was painting landscapes,\”
says Ma, whose latest paintings were all created in the Taihang
Mountain area from 2002 to 2006.

He travels to the same area at different seasons of the year to
capture different aspects of the scenery and different
emotions.

He was inspired one golden autumn afternoon as he was walking.
Rays of sunshine pierced the shade and Ma was suddenly touched by
the scenery, by the place where he has spent his entire life.

\”That was where I got the inspiration for the landscape series.
It was a feeling,\” says Ma. \”What I am doing is expressing the
emotion through my touch on the canvas.\”

(Shanghai Daily November 1, 2007)

\”Chinese 20th Century art\” and \”Asian Contemporary Art\” sales of
Christie\’s Hong Kong autumn auction will be held on Nov. 25 at the
Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center.

An array of works by some of the most celebrated modern Chinese
artists including Zhao Wuji, Chen Chengbo, Chang Yu and Liao
Jichun, will be presented in the \”Chinese 20th Century Art\” sale.
Zhao\’s \”Et la terre etait sans forme\”, estimated at 15 million to
20 million HK dollars (1.9 million to 2.6 million U.S. dollars),
was highlighted in the media preview Wednesday.

Other items of the sale include Chen Chengbo\’s \”Danshui at
Sunset\” (estimated at 45 million to 55 million HK dollars), Liao
Jichun\’s \”Beside the Window\” (estimated at 9 million to 12 million
HK dollars), Chang Yu\’s \”Chrysanthemums with Green Leaves\” (
estimated at 8 million to 12 million HK dollars) and Wu Guanzhong\’
s monumental work \”The Spring at Lijiang\” (estimated at 2.5 million
to 3.5 million HK dollars).

The forthcoming \”Asian Contemporary Art\” sale will offer over
340 art works by some of the most celebrated contemporary Chinese,
Korean, Japanese, Indian artists, ranging from paintings and mixed
media to sculptures and photography.

Items of the sale include Cai Guoqiang\’s gunpowder screens \”Set
of Fourteen Drawings for Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Project
\” (estimated at 28 million to 36 million HK dollars), Zhang
Xiaogang\’s \”Portrait in Yellow\” (estimated at 8 million to 10
million HK dollars) and Yue Minjun\’s \”Life\”, \”Big Ear\” and \”Red
Boat\” (estimated at 7 million to 9 million HK dollars, 5.5 million
to 7 million HK dollars and 4 million to 6 million HK dollars
respectively).

(Xinhua News Agency November 1, 2007)

More than 300 exhibits are on show, including the trademarks of
49 famous city industrial enterprises, all of them donated by 10
Shanghai collectors.

\”Suzhou Creek in Putuo District is the origin of the brilliance
of Shanghai industry. More than 700 factories have been established
here, and especially between the end of the 19th century and 1930s,
many factories were built by Chinese industrialists,\” said Huang
Zhenbing, vice chairman of the Putuo District Collectors\’
Association, which co-organized the exhibition.

Most of the exhibits were contributed by 50-year-old Huang, who
began collecting trademarks more than 30 years ago. All of the
match boxes and match trademarks in the exhibition were provided by
him.

\”I began collecting match boxes when I was a middle school
student,\” Huang said. He spends a good deal of his time traveling
around the city looking for treasures in curio markets.

Huang is especially proud of one of his contributions – a bond
receipt from the Dayouyu Oil Pressing Co Ltd which was established
in 1889 and was the first national vegetable oil company in
Shanghai.

Other items such as coins and paper money from more than 50
years ago are intriguing visitors.

The first set of paper money issued soon after the foundation of
the People\’s Republic of China in 1949 was provided by Xu Henggao,
vice chairman of the Xuhui District Collectors\’ Association.

Xu is proud of his copy of a Washon electric fan. The Washon
Electric Fan Manufacturing Company was founded in 1916 and was the
first manufacturer of electric fans in China.

(Shanghai Daily October 18, 2007)

The exhibition will be hosted by the Chinese Association for
International Understanding (CAFIU). The exhibits are provided by
the Japan Ukiyo-e Museum.

Zhao Lei, vice secretary-general of the CAFIU said, the
exhibition was part of the activities marking the 35th anniversary
of the normalization of China-Japan diplomatic relations and the
2007 China-Japan Year of Culture and Sports Exchange, and would
showcase a total of 100 ukiyo-e paintings, more than 40 of which
are first to be shown beyond Japan.

Zhao said he hoped the exhibition could further promote
understanding and friendship between the Chinese and Japanese
peoples.

Ukiyo-e, literally meaning the pictures of the floating world,
is the main artistic genre of woodblock printing in Japan. It
mainly reflected the lives and pleasures of common Japanese people
in Edo period from 1603 to 1867.

(Xinhua News Agency October 14, 2007)

The exhibition, named \”Road of Revival,\” opened to the public
since Saturday and have attracted lots of visitors.

One of the collection was a gold-plating chime bell, seized by
the British troops from the Temple of Heaven when armies of eight
western powers invaded Beijing in 1900.

The bell, left in India by British, was returned to China as a
symbol of friendship between China and India in 1996.

Other interesting exhibits included the first Chinese version of
Manifesto of the Communist Party, the crystal eagle that former
U.S. President Ronald Reagan presented to late Chinese leader Deng
Xiaoping and the returned capsule of Shenzhou 5, China\’s first
manned spaceship.

\”The exhibition is impressive. I learned a lot and hope more
young people will watch it and know more about the country\’s
history,\” a Beijing resident wrote in the message book of the
exhibition.

With plenty of pictures, historical archives and relics, the
exhibition was divided into five chapters in time sequence,
covering all critical moments the nation had undergone since 1840
when the country was forced to open its door to foreign powers
after the defeat in the Opium War.

The exhibition, sponsored by the Publicity Department of the
Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, will last about
two months.
 
(Xinhua News Agency October 16, 2007)

He made the remarks while addressing the opening ceremony of a
photo exhibition, \”Chinese people\’s life through camera,\” held in
Cairo Opera House.

The photo exhibition is aimed at reflecting the social and
economic development in China and the life, work, leisure and
entertainment of the ordinary people. It also highlights the 5,000-
year Chinese civilization and the harmony among ethnic groups in
China.

Hosni noted that the exhibition shows the Chinese people\’s new
life and a rapidly-changing China, where the social and economic
achievements are attracting worldwide attention.

\”Egypt and China are both with long and brilliant culture and
history,\” Hosni said, adding that Egypt welcomes more Chinese
cultural and economic activities and expects more Egyptian-Chinese
cooperation in the economic and cultural fields.

While touring the photo exhibition, Hosni told Xinhua that the
exhibition is wonderful and he is keen on learning more about China
through the exhibition.

For his part, Chinese ambassador to Egypt Wu Sike said in a
speech that more and more Egyptian friends are observing the great
changes in china and the status of the Chinese people\’s life.

\”The exhibition is another effort to boost the bilateral
exchange and cooperation, which provides a good platform for the
Egyptian public to know more about China and the Chinese people\’s
life,\” the Chinese ambassador noted.

The exhibition, which will last until Oct. 9, comprises about
160 photos taken by Chinese and oversea photographers.

(Xinhua News Agency September 30, 2007)

\”This results from significant dialogues and cooperative efforts
between the Imperial Palace, the late Chinese royal palace, and the
Spanish palace,\” said a spokesman of the Palace Museum, in the
Forbidden City, home of royal families of the Ming and Qing
Dynasties (1368-1912).

A total of 150 items will be on display, depicting the historic
development of chivalric culture and the role it played in the
Spanish history.

The show will also present 22 Chinese works of art collected and
stored by the Spanish royal family, the spokesman said, adding that
Chinese artworks were favored by European aristocrats for
centuries, ever since China and Spain began conducting frequent
exchanges after the 16th Century.

The exhibition, held in the hall of the Meridian Gate of the
Forbidden City, will run through Jan. 6, 2008.

(Xinhua News Agency September 28, 2007)

\”As the western regions of China continue to grow, there will be
parallels with the expansion in the last century of America\’s vast
western spaces and their resources, both physical and human,\” says
Nancy Matthews, vice-president of the Meridian International Center
(MIC).

The MIC, in collaboration with the National Art Museum of China
in Beijing, is hosting an exhibition featuring landscapes and
history, and cowboys\’ and Native Americans\’ way of life in the
western United States.

The Out West: The Great American Landscape exhibition includes
68 paintings by 50 American artists and more than 40 photographic
works from National Geography, depicting unique and dynamic aspects
of the American West. Among the well-known Western artists featured
at the exhibition are Dana Boussard, Russell Chatham, William
Matthews, Dan Namingha, Howard Post, Kevin Red Star and Donna
Howell-Sickles.

\”The landscape of the Western states, including Montana,
Wyoming, Utah, New Mexico, Colorado, Texas, and Arizona, is
interpreted in the broad sense to highlight not only the dramatic
physical scenery of the western regions, but also the people and
animals who inhabit them and the inspirations for cowboy-and-Indian
iconography,\” Matthews says.

In addition to Guangzhou, the exhibition has toured Beijing,
Urumqi, Xi\’an, Shanghai and Qingdao. It will then move to Hong Kong
- the last stop for the one-year cultural exchange exhibition in
China.

Time: 9 am-5 pm, until October 17

Place: Guangzhou Museum, Zhenhailou, Yuexiu Park, Guangzhou

Tel: 020-83545253

(China Daily September 29, 2007)

Cameroonian ministers for culture, women advancement and family,
and youth affairs, Ama Tutu Muna, Bombak Suzanne and Adoum Garoua
respectively, as well as representatives of international
organizations attended the ceremony.

Huang took the opportunity to warmly invite all friends of the
world \”to discover Chinese history and culture, and to feel the
passion of the Chinese people and their commitment\” during the
Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.\”

Consisting of 60 photos in four sections entitled \”a unique
charming welcome,\” \”magnificence welcome,\” \”welcome in vigor and
dynamism\” and \”a welcome by disarming smiles,\” the exhibition shows
the city of Beijing in full preparations for the forthcoming
Olympic Games.

The People\’s Republic of China proclaimed its foundation on Oct.
1, 1949.

(Xinhua News Agency September 25, 2007)