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5-man exhibition features Shanghai art since 1949

2013-10-23 14:20 Shanghai Daily Web Editor: Wang YuXia
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A joint art exhibition by five local painters demonstrates the importance of the work of Shanghai artists since the founding of the People's Republic of China.

Joint art exhibitions can come off as watered down by mixed messages, especially if there is no strong, unifying theme. But the exhibition on display at Original Gallery of the works of Liao Jiongmo, Zhang Zishen, Wang Jieyin, Ling Qining and Qiu Ruimin is unmuddled and eloquent in its semi-realistic vision.

"These exhibitions focus on a critical period of Chinese contemporary art history, the development of art in Shanghai since 1949," said Xu Lei, the curator of the exhibition.

"Today when people mention art in Shanghai, most are talking about art before 1949, yet the contributions and achievements of those artists born in the 1930s and 1940s are somewhat ignored."

Wang Jieyin, born in 1941 in Shanghai, is nicknamed "the nobleman on the canvas." Wang has kept a low profile for years in his studio on Taikang Road. He uses the feel of print and graffiti, and fuses it with a strong atmosphere inherited from ancient Chinese literati painters, who used expressive brushstrokes and an impressionistic approach.

"Whether or not his character or his paintings show a good manifestation of the spirit of Chinese literati and intellectuals, the spontaneity and wildness of today could not be controlled by a Chinese artist if he is not equipped with a pure and noble soul," Xu said.

Qiu Ruimin, the former president of the Shanghai Oil Painting & Sculpture Institute, is another example. Born in 1944 in Shanghai, Qiu prefers to use "the light among the dark hues" in his canal town paintings. He has established his own signature after several decades of pursuing realistic and impressionistic oil paintings.

The joint exhibition is one of a series on the gallery's list, and will be followed by "Five Overseas Returned Shanghai Artists," "Five Shanghai Realistic Artists" and "Five Shanghai Abstract Artists."

Date: Through November 30, 10am-6pm

Address: 4/F East, Bldg 3, 731 Hongxu Rd, Shanghai

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