BEIJING, March 17 -- For art historians, Xu
Beihong (1895-1953) is a pioneer of modern Chinese art whose style straddles the
East and the West. But for the average Chinese, he is simply a master painter of
galloping horses, roaring lions and lovely birds.
Chinese artist Xu Beihong excelled at capturing
the vivid expressions, free will, endurance and vigor of galloping horses.
The largest retrospective show to honor the master painter
has been drawing throngs of visitors from all walks of life since it opened at
Yanhuang Art Museum in northern Beijing.
On display are over 80 of Xu Beihong's signature sketches,
ink and oil paintings. The highlights are Xu's monumental ink paintings with
historical themes like Yu Gong Moves the Mountain, Jiu Fang Gao and Galloping
Horses, his oil works like Lady with a Flute and Self Portrait, and his early
pencil sketches of horse herders and female nudes.
The exhibition coincides with the 60th anniversary of the
founding of New China and the 90th anniversary of the May Fourth New Culture
Movement.
In fact, Xu's career as an artist and his personal
experiences are closely associated with Chinese history, says Peking University
art professor Zhu Qingsheng.
"Based on his deep understanding and deliberate choice of
Western painting traditions, Xu advocated a Realist approach and style for
Chinese art. He played a pivotal role in transforming modern Chinese art," Zhu
says.
Born in Yixing, Jiangsu province, in 1895, Xu grew up in
an artistic family and showed talent at an early age.
He studied classic Chinese works and calligraphy with his
father Xu Dazhang when he was 6 and Chinese painting, when he was 9.
In 1915, he went to study in Shanghai, a melting pot of
Chinese and Western cultures where he met the scholar and political reformer
Kang Youwei (1858-1927), who became his mentor and greatly influenced his
thinking about the need to integrate Western practices and ideas into Chinese
art.
"Xu felt that traditional Chinese art had become a mere
copying of other paintings and was divorced from nature and social reality,"
says Central Academy of Fine Arts professor Huang Xiaoming.
"Xu was not the first to formulate the idea but he was one
of the first to seek a solution and a direction."
Xu came up with the idea of applying Western scientific
methods, using very precise anatomical proportions and integrating Western
approaches, such as perspective and shading in his works, notes Huang.
In 1917, Xu traveled to Tokyo to study art. On his return
to China, he began to teach at Peking University's art school at the invitation
of principal Cai Yuanpei (1868-1940) in 1918.
Xu became one of the major figures of the artistic
revolution of the May Fourth New Culture Movement in 1919.
(Source: Chinadaily.com.cn/Agencies)
