editor’s note
The grass grows and the warblers fly, and the spring is brilliant. After the dull and bleak winter, the breath of spring calls people to step forward. The wonderful exhibitions in art galleries and museums attract people who have been away for a long time. It is such a rare moment of joy to walk into an exhibition, stare at a piece of work, and fully enjoy the thrill of having a face-to-face dialogue with art. We recommend the recent wonderful exhibitions to readers, from which we can see the development of Chinese art tradition and modernity, and the new look of the era of exchanges between Eastern and Western paintings. We also look forward to more good exhibitions to meet the audience.
52 works present a condensed history of European painting
Author: Zhang Yumei
The exhibition “From Botticelli to Van Gogh – Collections of the British National Gallery” currently on display at the Shanghai Museum has ignited the enthusiasm of the audience. So far, nearly 180,000 people have come to watch the exhibition. The exhibition is divided into eight sections. Through 52 works by 50 artists, it fully presents the development from the Renaissance in the 15th century to the Post-Impressionism in the 19th century. Spanning 400 years, it can be said to be a condensed history of European painting.
“From Botticelli to Van Gogh – National Gallery Collection Exhibition” Poster
This is the first exhibition of the British National Gallery in China, and the audience can appreciate Botticelli, Raphael, Titian, Gosset, Caravaggio, Poussin, Claude, Van Dyck, Rembrandt, Canaletto, Constable, Turner, Cézanne, Gauguin, Manet, Monet, Van Gogh and other master masterpieces in art history, learn about Italian Renaissance, Northern Renaissance, Venice Art School, Mannerism, Baroque, Dutch School, Rococo, Classicism, Romanticism, Impressionism, Post-Impressionism and other shining art schools. During the four hundred years covered by the exhibition, along with the advancement of science and technology and the transformation of society and culture, great changes have taken place in the way people observe things and the way they represent the world. A thousand-turn art story.
Iris (oil painting) Claude Monet Collection of the National Gallery of England
Stepping into the exhibition hall, the audience will feel the fusion of classical and modern, space and paintings. On the one hand, the exhibition upholds the classical temperament of the British National Gallery building itself, integrating European classic arches, plaster lines, light and shadow, etc. into the exhibition hall space to highlight the elegance of Western art; In the box space, the Morandi color system is used to divide the space of the exhibition hall, and the depth and light are alternated in order to adjust the visual balance of the audience.
Apollo and Daphne (oil painting) Piero del Polayuolo National Gallery
In order to make up for the regret of not being able to participate in the exhibition such as Van Gogh’s “Sunflower”, Shanghai Expo launched the “NG Treasures Reproduction Master｜Immersive Light and Shadow Experience” exhibition on the 4th floor at the same time, displaying 3 exhibits and 20 precious paintings that were not exhibited this time, including Van Gogh’s “Sunflowers”, Monet’s “Water Lilies”, Da Vinci’s “Virgin of the Rocks”, etc. Two exhibitions” art experience. The digital exhibition reproduces classic masterpieces through animation special effects and light and shadow technology, creates an immersive and extraordinary art experience, tells the aesthetic world and philosophical thinking in the eyes of artists, dialogues with masters across time and space, and travels through the history of Western art.
“Long Grass and Butterflies” is a work that has attracted much attention in the exhibition. This painting by Van Gogh was made when he was suffering from mental illness and was about to end his recuperation at the Saint-Remy Hospital. The painting is the garden of the hospital. Van Gogh did not draw the horizon, but relied entirely on his iconic brushstrokes and beautiful colors to support the picture. His colors are extremely expressive, warm and straightforward but not simple, and his complex yellow-blue, red-green complementary color system embodies With the achievements of artists since Manet, the audience can appreciate the rich color expression of Van Gogh in front of the original works.
Almost all painters will encounter specific problems, such as how to use brushstrokes to present people or objects, how to unfold narratives in space, how to use light and shadow to manipulate vision… In this exhibition, we will see the works submitted by different artists their respective answers. It is these vastly different answers that both look back to the past and lead to the future, connect the history of “image production” in Europe, and tell the “way of seeing” behind it.
It’s a good time to visit the exhibition when the spring is in full bloom——recommended exhibitions in March
Author: Jiang Jinjun (Professor of Tianjin Normal University)
“The peach blossoms are shining brightly”, this is the expectation for beautiful things in the “Book of Songs”. The place where the peach blossoms are in full bloom is always full of romantic poetry. Tao Yuanming’s “Peach Blossom Spring” in the Eastern Jin Dynasty made the best interpretation for it. Tao Yuanming once served as Jiangzhou Jijiu, Jianwei joined the army, Zhenjun joined the army, Pengze county magistrate and other officials. With the turmoil in the social situation, the “mighty ambition” (“Miscellaneous Poems”) of his youth finally turned to “keep the clumsy”. “Return to Yuantian” (“Return to Yuantian Residence Part 1”), while facing the reality, Tao Yuanming found a spiritual paradise—the Peach Blossom Spring while pouring out his chest with the wine in his cup.
“Where is the Taoyuan——Special Exhibition of Qiu Ying’s “Peachland in Wonderland”” Poster
There are many painting creations based on Tao Yuanming’s “Peach Blossom Spring” in the past dynasties. Chen Juzhong in the Southern Song Dynasty “Peach Blossom Spring”, Zhou Chen in the Ming Dynasty “Peach Blossom Spring”, Wen Zhengming in the Ming Dynasty “Taoyuan Wenjin”, and Qian Gu in the Ming Dynasty “Peach Blossom Spring”. Scroll”, Qiu Ying’s “Taoyuan Fairyland Picture” in the Ming Dynasty, Wang Hui’s “Peach Blossom Fishing Boat” in the Qing Dynasty, and Shi Tao’s “Peach Blossom Picture Volume” in the Qing Dynasty all interpret their spiritual resonance and diverse expressions of the beauty of Taoyuan with different compositions and expressions.
“Where is the Taoyuan – Special Exhibition of Qiu Ying’s “Peachland Wonderland”” opened in Tianjin Museum a few days ago, allowing the audience to appreciate this masterpiece handed down from generation to generation. “Taoyuan Fairyland Picture” (colored on silk, 175 cm in length and 66.7 cm in width) by Qiu Ying, a painter of the Ming Dynasty, depicts a Taoyuan realm “supported by smoke and clouds” with superb skills and rich ideas. Qiu Ying (approximately 1498-approximately 1552), courtesy name Shifu, was born in Taicang, Jiangsu, and lived in Suzhou. He was a painter during the Jiajing period and was known for his exquisite figures, landscapes, animals, and boundary paintings. He made many friends with Shen Zhou, Wen Zhengming and other painters, constantly absorbed the aesthetic taste of literati painters, and created a new model of green landscape.
Taoyuan Fairyland Map (Chinese Painting) Qiu Ying Tianjin Museum Collection
“Taoyuan Fairyland Picture” is a classic masterpiece of Chinese green landscape painting. This work is a heavy-colored large green landscape, with a full and generous composition, smooth and free brushwork, and beautiful and elegant colors. It not only has a strong Tang and Song landscape painting style, but also reflects the aesthetic style of the society and emerging classes at that time. The whole painting adopts the vertical and high-distance composition method, with three layers stacked, and the near, middle, and distant views are clearly layered. No matter a tree, a stone, a grass, or a tree, or the dynamics and expressions of the characters, they are all depicted rigorously and meticulously. In the foreground, the ancient trees are verdant and the peaches and plums are fragrant. A main pine tree lies on the top of the nearby cave from the slope on the right bank. Showing its ancient times, there are deep ravines and clear streams. On one side of the river, there are three high-ranking scholars who are enjoying themselves. One of them is playing the piano, the other is listening quietly, and the third is dancing happily. The bridge and the boy are holding the Ou, and on the other side of the river bank, a boy with a food box is ingeniously placed to serve. The five people form a wonderful and harmonious relationship of movement, stillness, gathering and scattering. The middle scene is the layer upon layer of peaks set off by the steaming clouds and mist above the top of the cave. One person climbs up the mountain road. There is a Guanyun Pavilion on the mountain, which is almost hidden in the sea of clouds. The Yaotai and the pines and cypresses complement each other, and the pine forest is different from the ancient pines in the foreground, presenting a tall and handsome posture, and the forest is also dotted with figures. The distant scenery is still “divided” by the auspicious clouds in the mountains. Although the main peak is not as spectacular as the Zhongjing Mountain, it is quiet and profound. There is a transcendent beauty.
Qiu Ying’s “Taoyuan Fairyland Picture” combined literary texts, artistic ideals and social aesthetics at that time, and carried out a comprehensive and successful aesthetic interpretation. “Taoyuan Fairyland Picture” and “Peach Blossom Spring” not only have the same inherent poetic aesthetics, but also are not the same. In addition to the genre and form, the two also have differences in specific artistic elements. It should be said that the picture has some deviations from the original text, but at the same time, it has also been greatly enriched and processed, which is more in line with the visual aesthetic expression of landscape painting. After entering the pavilions of Yaotai, “traveling and cultivating works” has become a place where you can enjoy the piano while enjoying the stream, and the clouds that pervade it are added. All of these can be said to be the “standard equipment” for Xuanmian talents and sergeants in the caves of the past dynasties. There are not only the free and unrestrained performances of Ji Kang and others when they sing in the bamboo forest, but also the curved water cups of Wang Xizhi and others when they are in the Lanting Gathering. Yu Boya and Zhong Ziqi are rewarded with bosom friends in the style of high mountains and flowing water.
“Guangming Daily” (version 11, March 19, 2023)
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责编：孙宗鹤 ]