The 4th “Exploration | Discovery - Exhibition of Newcomers to Oil Painting” was open at the Art Gallery of the Chinese Academy of Oil Painting at 3:00 pm on December 20, 2014, together with the award ceremony for the newcomers. The exhibition will select more than 160 works from more than 1000 contributors from across the country.

The Chinese Academy of Oil Painting holds the exhibition for newcomers in order to discover new talent, develop their potential, select excellent talented young artists to build a platform for them to showcase their talent and creativity, positively promoting and guiding them. Aimed at promoting the pure academic spirit of oil painting ,stressing the foundation it relies on and the forward direction, in pursuit of honest and healthy art tastes, so as to fully improve the sustainable development of Chinese oil painting, directing contemporary oil painting towards a healthy development. The Chinese Academy of Oil Painting thinks highly of capability, and values emotion even more; thinks highly of personality, and values the moral character even more; thinks highly of skill, and values the comprehension and spirituality even more; thinks highly of innovation, and values the level of achievement even more; thinks highly of personal style, and values the pure humanistic love element even more. We both respect the principle of aesthetics, and the freedom of creative spirit; both emphasize the quality of the oil painting language, and encourage the Oriental aesthetic interest; both adhere to the heritage of pure and original excellent traditional art, and appreciate the development of contemporary oil painting; not only focusing on real life experiences, but also pays attention to the in-depth exploration of the human soul.

The exhibition features more diversified works, and a variety of styles such as realism, expression, classical, modern, symbolism and fantasy which all coexist at the same time, the artists use their unique talents to show the innocence of the mind, paying close attention to reality, expressing the true feelings in a familiar form, rather than catering to a selection from the exhibition. They are genuinely drawn to the charm of painting and overcome disadvantages too. On the whole, the artists reduce the honing of the production, and also reduce the styling and symbolism with the mode of using images, they are actively in virtue of images rather than passively copying them. In a word, young artists have started moving towards a natural expression of inner experience instead of the outer form.

A variety of genres, forms and styles fill the current oil painting circles, the exhibition has no intention to increase a new genre and style, and also does not want to be obsessed with limiting the self in a small circle. In the face of the new period of the all-round development of Chinese civilization, we must be open-minded, to surpass ourselves and to actively expand a healthy and correct new path.

The Chinese Academy of Oil Painting through the selection of a platform for the exhibition in finding newcomers, not only commends their talent, but also attaches great importance to subsequent training, promotion and guiding of the newcomers, previous award-winning young artists are constantly invited to participate in the academic and art exchange activities, held by the Chinese Academy of Oil Painting, to form a lively youth art force, to continue to develop their creativity on the academic stage of the Chinese Academy of Oil Painting. It hopes more talented young artists can thus show a pure heart towards art and the infinite talents and temperament. In the future we will continue to promote it, looking forward to the participation of more new young artists, to strengthen the health and vitality of the Chinese Academy of Oil Painting.

About the exhibition

Title: The 4th “Exploration | Discovery - Exhibition of Newcomers of Oil Painting”

Duration: December 20, 2014 - January 5, 2015

Opening and Award Ceremony: at 15:00 on December 20, 2014

Host: The Chinese Academy of Oil Painting affiliated to the China National Academy of Arts

Organizer: Art Museum of Chinese Academy of Oil Painting

Co-organizers: China Literature and Art Foundation Chinese Fund of Oil Painting Art Beijing Academy of Realism Oil Painting

Academic Support: Oil Painting Art Committee of the China Artists Association

Venue: Art Museum of the Chinese Academy of Oil Painting

Courtesy of the Art Museum of the Chinese Academy of Oil Painting, translated by Chen Peihua and edited by Sue/CAFA ART INFO.