ChinaDaily[971027-8]

[Chinese News]

China Daily

97 / 10 / 27 /

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1. Colours converse with painter
2. Art auction sells East and West
3. Briefs ( Page 9, Date: 10/27/97 )
4. Tour guide's enthusiasm beats age
5. [INLINE]
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Colours converse with painter
IN the eyes of oil painter Sun Weiming, not a single colour in the
sunlight does not speak.
Some speak loudly such as red, some softly such as mellow yellow,
some shyly such as light blue.
"They all assert themselves in their own ways and display their
characters, some of which are somehow stifled indoors. Yet, they
complement each other and combine to make up a harmony like that
in music," says Sun, a professor at the Central Academy of Fine
Arts and also its vice- president.
It is no wonder Sun very much admires European Impressionist
masters and has developed a kind of Impressionism-oriented
language of his own after concluding an eight-month tour of 23
European cities in eight countries, including Paris, Rome, Milan,
Florence, Venice, Brussels, the Hague, Madrid and Barcelona in
1990.
His short and flickering brush work captures the fleeting quality
of light, rendering his canvases shimmering, glowing and vibrant
with colours captured in the bright sunlight. In his peaceful and
sunny world, mothers and daughters are reading books on benches in
parks, naked boys are sunbathing, flowers burst into full blossom.
"In recent years, Sun is trying to achieve the effects of 'general
harmony' in his work as a whole, made up of delicate, complex and
interwoven colour details in different localities. He is doubtless
tapping the role of oil painting language to the full," says Shao
Dazhen, one of the leading critics in the country.
On the one hand, he realizes that the importance of the artistic
language can never be exaggerated. On the other hand, he knows
that exclusive obsession with form and language could weaken the
substance and content of the work, according to the critic.
"As a result, the light effects in his work are closely integrated
with his understanding and feel for real life. The beauty created
by Impressionist brush strokes is ingenuously fused with the
images in the picture. The experience and feel of life, which have
become deposited in the depth of his mind, now flow from under his
brush, casually and easily," says critic Shao.
Sun has his own words: "A painting is not to tell people stories
or describe what they are very familiar with in everyday life.
Instead, the painting, in my opinion, is to express what the
painter himself feels about the life and reality and about his own
emotions, moods and feelings. In other words, art creation is a
process of recognizing the emotional experience of the painter
himself. The painting is not so much a reproduction of the images
in life as an expression of the built-in images in the artist's
mind."
Sun was born in northeastern Heilongjiang Province in 1946. He
entered the Preparatory School under the Central Academy of Fine
Arts in 1963 and became a teacher of the school upon his
graduation in 1967. He went to Yuxian County of Hebei Province in
1969, like millions of educated youths of his generation, and
settled down there for three years to be re-educated by the
peasants. The experience in this period stamped a deep impression,
which was to tell in his artistic creation later.
In 1972, he was transferred to the Chinese Peking Opera Troupe as
a stage-set designer. In 1979, he came back to his alma mater to
teach art again.
He entered the graduate class of the Central Academy of Fine Arts
in 1984 for further study and improvement of his art. He became a
teacher in the academy in 1987 and has been there since. He is now
director of the oil painting department of the academy and its
vice-president. Also, he is a member of the Chinese Artists
Association.
"I got very strict training in realistically depicting the objects
and images during my stay in the Preparatory School under the
Central Academy of Fine Arts. And two thirds of my career as an
artist or art teacher has been spent in the school and the
academy. So I can be referred to as 'very academic.'
"However, almost all my paintings done in the 10 years between
1980 and 1990 were about earthy peasant life. Why? It has a great
deal to do with my three-year stay in the countryside," he says.
This is because rural life, more than urban life, preserves the
state of being of millions upon millions of Chinese mortal beings.
This kind of state of being retains much more simplicity and has
not yet been polluted and twisted by sophisticated modern society,
according to him.
"Only when you yourself are a peasant in every way and plough the
fields, sow the seeds and harvest the crops, can you feel really
keenly you are part of the peasantry and part of nature. I still
relish the experience, which became an inexhaustible source of
inspiration for me to draw upon in the 1980s," Sun says.
The experience in that period, like a fine brew, mellowed with the
passage of time and with the maturing of the painter himself. It
eventually found expression in his oil paintings almost 10 years
later.
"Sun did not have to base his oils on any sketches or models. In
the face of the blank canvas, inspirations and images
automatically welled up. What he needed was just to apply his
brush on the canvas.
"Images kept coming out easily and steadily from his brush. This
was not a process of painting but a process of pouring out his
bosom, or in his own words 'silent communication with nature,'"
says Fan Di'an, an established critic from the Central Academy of
Fine Arts.
Unlike his later years after 1990, his oils in the 1980s are like
peasants' life itself, simple and plain and reek of earthiness.
The works convey a sense of gravity, with vivid description of the
rugged textures of the weather-beaten clay walls, the home-spun
clothes and the seasoned skin of the peasants.
As Director of the Oil Painting Department of the Central Academy
of Fine Arts, Sun has his own points of view on Chinese oil
painting today. In artistic practice, Chinese oil painters, over
the last decade or so, have experienced almost all types of oil
painting of various Western oil painting schools since the
Renaissance, according to him.
"It is safe to state that we are virtually in keeping with the
latest development of oil painting in the rest of the world. But
there are some problems," he says.
First, traditional Chinese painting is a two-dimensional art and
is "flat," according to him. And the Chinese oil painter, no
matter how good he is at creating images, is more or less
influenced by this in the depth of his subconsciousness since he
has come from a tradition of two-dimensional painting in spite of
how remote it is from him now, in Sun's view.
Thus the Chinese oil painter should really further his
understanding of images in a three-dimensional space, according to
him.
Second, the colours in traditional painting are
decoration-oriented and are "flat" too, though they are really
beautiful, in his view. Colours in nature, however, are a kind of
"conditioned colours." In different conditions of light or
atmosphere, they have different hues and tones, form different
contrasts and create different visual effects, according to him.
"In this regard, what we have done is far from enough and we need
to largely better our understanding of colours in oil painting,"
he says.
Finally, beyond technical terms, the spirit and soul of the
Chinese oil painter should be rooted in the millennia-old source
of Chinese culture if he wants to be a successful Chinese painter,
not anybody else, Sun says.
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_Date: 10/27/97_
_Author: Hua Jia_
_Copyright© by China Daily_

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Art auction sells East and West
THE Sungari '97 Chinese Contemporary Art and Western Modern
Masters' Works Auctions are to be held at the Yanhuang Art Museum,
Beijing, on November 2.
Works by Su Xinping, Fang Lijun, Sun Liang and Sui Jianguo will go
under the gavel.
Their oils, prints and sculptures reflect the status of Chinese
arts in the 1990s. Their works have appeared in international
exhibitions, according to the organizers. Their pieces have also
entered the collections of art museums, galleries and private art
collectors both in China and abroad, the organizers say.
In addition, a number of the works, prints and sketches in
particular, by contemporary European masters have been made
available at the auction by the Sungari International Co. This is
the first time Western masterpieces are to be auctioned in China,
according to the organizers.
Among the masters are Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Pablo Picasso,
Georges Rouault, Aristid Maillol and Mark Chagall.
"Their names sound very familiar to the Chinese. They are
representative figures of Impressionism and early Expressionism
and they have played a very important role in promoting the
development of modern art.
"The works that are going to be auctioned in Beijing are all
authenticated as genuine by Ambrois Vollard, who is a famous
researcher on the modern arts in this period," says Leng Lin,
general curator of the auction.
A preview exhibition will be held at the Yanghuang Art Museum
between October 31 and November 2. (CD news)
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_Date: 10/27/97_
_Author: _
_Copyright© by China Daily_

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Briefs ( Page 9, Date: 10/27/97 )
A song cycle
A SONG cycle, entitled "Shepherd Su Wu," has been recently
released by the Shanghai Recording Company. Inspired by the
national hero Su Wu from the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 24),
the song cycle, which consists of seven songs, sings the praise of
heroism and patriotism in a narrative way. The music is
reminiscent of ancient folk melodies popular in Northwest China.
The lead singer is Li Na, a folk singer known for her rich,
sonorous sound range.
Three Gorges on TV
THE eight-installment televised film "Ode to the Three Gorges" is
to be aired from October 28 on by BTV. The date is set for just
before the damming of the Yangtze River and construction of the
Three Gorges Dam in November.
The film shows the audience the history and future of the gorges.
Revolving around the construction of the dam, it dwells on the
issues of emigration, environment and the political and economic
impact of the construction of the dam.
Photo and art show
"Panzhihua Marching to the 21st Century" opened at the China
National Art Museum in Beijing on October 21. Hundreds of
photographs and paintings by local photographers and painters
display the vitality of the young city, a steel-production base of
the country on the upper reaches of the Yangtze River in Sichuan
Province. Among the artists of the pieces on show are
professionals and amateurs who are workers in the steel plant
there.
Italian opera
The China National Opera & Ballet will stage Puccini's "Turandot"
November 14-16 at the International Theatre of Poly Plaza in
Beijing.
"Turandot" is Puccini's last opera which was premiered in 1926 in
Milan. It tells of a beautiful, but cold Princess of China,
Turandot, who finally falls in love with an intelligent and brave
Tartar Prince, Calaf, who gives the answers to three riddles set
by the princess.
European-based Chinese conductor Tang Muhai will lead the
orchestra. Guest tenor Warren Mok, acclaimed to be one of the
eminent tenors of Chinese origin, will sing the role of Calaf.
Turandot, Liu and other soloists will be sung by singers from the
theatre. (CD news)
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_Date: 10/27/97_
_Author: _
_Copyright© by China Daily_

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Tour guide's enthusiasm beats age
FIFTY-FIVE is supposed to be the retirement age for women in
China.
But Chen Yantao, 56, still has a full schedule as deputy general
manager of the Yangtze International Travel Service (YITS) in
Wuhan, capital of Central China's Hubei Province.
At the office, Chen is preoccupied with administrative work.
Outside it, she still works as a tour guide.
To be a top guide for foreign tourists requires a good command of
a foreign language, professional knowledge and a warm service
attitude.
"As Chen performs well in all three respects, the Hubei Tourism
Administration is unwilling to let her retire," said travel
service general manager Li Weiping.
Under the Hubei Tourism Administration, YITS is one of Hubei
Province's seven travel agencies which arranges package tours in
China.
One of China's first generation of guides after the founding of
the People's Republic in 1949, Chen is considered Hubei's best
guide for Japanese tourists.
Born in 1941 in Japan, Chen did not come to her own country,
China, until she was 12.
Graduating from Wuhan Sports College as a martial arts major, Chen
worked as a teacher in Harbin, in Northeast China's Heilongjiang
Province.
After the First Sino-Japanese Youth Friendship Promotion Festival
was held in Beijing in 1964, an increasing number of Japanese
tourists arrived in China.
"As China was short of people excelling in Japanese, I started
working in the Beijing-based China International Travel Service
(CITS) in 1965, after passing an examination," said Chen.
Chen had forgotten much of her Japanese. To familiarize herself
with the language again, Chen read every Japanese publication she
could find and practised Japanese on the job. Gradually, she
became familiar with Japanese again.
"At the time, only people friendly to China could visit China. And
they tended to enjoy very good treatment. For example, State
leaders would meet them and invite them to banquets," said Chen.
Chen worked many times for leading government officials as an
interpreter when they met Japanese guests. And her proficiency was
appreciated by both officials and guests.
One of the leading officials was Liao Chengzhi.
"Liao had lived in Japan and spoke Japanese quite fluently.
Whenever he found an interpreter making an error, he would
interrupt and speak Japanese with the visitor directly. But this
never happened when I interpreted for him," said Chen.
After working 10 years for CITS, Chen left Beijing in 1975 to go
to Wuhan where she would work for the next 20 years in the CITS
Wuhan Branch.
"I left Beijing because my husband Li Yushi worked in Wuhan. We
got married in 1968, but lived in different cities for seven
years," said Chen.
At first, CITS did not want to let Chen leave Beijing, as she was
an outstanding interpreter. Finally, they let her go on the
condition she would come to their aid when she was needed.
Chen started as an ordinary guide in the CITS Wuhan Branch and
eventually rose to be assistant to the general manager.
When the Hubei Tourism Administration decided to set up the YITS
in 1995, Chen became deputy general manager and has worked in that
capacity ever since.
Neither an assistant to the general manager nor a deputy general
manager is normally expected to work as a guide.
But because of Chen's comprehensive professional knowledge as a
guide and her very positive attitude, many Japanese tourists
insist on her being their guide during their tour of China.
Whenever Chen accepts the invitation to become their guide, she
does her utmost to offer the best service.
In March this year, Chen served as a guide for a delegation of
Japanese tourists travelling in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region
and Guangdong province.
An 80-year-old tourist in the delegation had something wrong with
his bowels and dirtied his trousers.
Chen cleaned his body and washed his trousers. The delegation's
members were very moved by this. They said even the old man's own
daughter would not have done it for him.
This kind of warm and selfless service has won her many Japanese
friends. They often revisit China with Chen's help or introduce
other tourists wanting to visit China to Chen.
After working in the tourism sector for 32 years, Chen feels that
women are especially suited for the job.
"Women are gentle and soft. They speak more clearly and are more
careful than men. A male tourist might lose his temper in front of
a male guide. But he would seldom do so in front of a woman," said
Chen.
But she thinks women working in the tourism sector make more
sacrifices.
"For example, women guides seldom stay at home and cannot attend
to their families and children," said Chen.
Chen gave birth to a child at 35 by Caesarean section.
"I like children. People of my age often have two or three
children. But my busy schedule as a guide made it impossible for
me to have more children," said Chen.
Chen's only son is now studying in a Japanese university. Whenever
she works as a guide away from home, her husband Li Yushi, a
university physical education instructor, is left alone.
"Many men complain their guide wives seldom stay at home. But my
husband has always supported my work. Without his support, I
couldn't have worked in the tourism sector for such a long time,"
said Chen.
Chen said she owes much to her husband. So whenever she is free,
she does as much housework as possible, "as a kind of
'compensation,'" she smiled.
_____________________________________________________________

_Date: 10/27/97_
_Author: Huang Zhiling_
_Copyright© by China Daily_

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[INLINE]
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Updated on September 24, 1997

[INLINE]

[INLINE]

_[1]The 15th Party Congress_

_[2]Sep. 12 - Sep.18, 1997_

[INLINE]

[3][LINK] _[4]General Secretary Jiang Zemin's
Report to the 15th Party Congress_
[5][LINK] _[6]New Party Leadership elected,
Top Leaders' Profiles_
[7][LINK] _[8]Communique of 15th CPC Central
Committee's First Plenum_

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References

1. http://www.chinadaily.net/cndy/history/15/engtg124.html
2. http://www.chinadaily.net/cndy/history/15/engtg124.html
3. http://www.chinadaily.net/cndy/history/15/report.html
4. http://www.chinadaily.net/cndy/history/15/report.html
5. http://www.chinadaily.net/cndy/history/15/engtgb46.html
6. http://www.chinadaily.net/cndy/history/15/engtgb46.html
7. http://www.chinadaily.net/cndy/history/15/engtgb09.html
8. http://www.chinadaily.net/cndy/history/15/engtgb09.html
9. mailto:cd...@chinadaily.net

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