On April 17, 2016, jointly hosted by the Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts, Rightview Art Museum, Tiandayunhua Art Museum, Cangzhou Art Museum, “Concentric and Consensus – Works Exhibition of the Students of Freehand Brushwork Figure Studio at the School of Chinese Painting, Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts” opened at Rightview Art Museum and Tiandayunhua Art Museum. Dean of the School of Chinese Painting, Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts and postgraduate tutor Li Xiaoxuan serves as the Academic Advisor, Director of Rightview Art Museum Sun Zhizhong and Director of Tiandayunhua Art Museum Shi Lei curated the show together, to feature the works by the students of Freehand Brushwork Figure Studio at the School of Chinese Painting, Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts and it is the first exhibition to bring together the students of Li Xiaoxuan as Li serves as the Director of Freehand Brushwork Figure Studio at the School of Chinese Painting.

Party Secretary of Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts Han Chao, Vice President of the China National Academy of Painting Zhang Jiangzhou, Deputy Dean of the Institute of Chinese Painting at China National Academy of Painting Liang Zhanyan, Deputy Dean of the School of Chinese Painting, CAFA Liu Qinghe, Director of the Foundational Department at the School of Chinese Painting at CAFA Qiu Ting, Chinese calligraphy engravers Yin Hailong and Feng Baolin from the Institute of Seal Cutting at China National Academy of Arts, Editor-in-Chief of the Oriental Art magazine, curator Yang Jianguo, art critic and independent curator Yang Weimin, collector Liu Chuansheng, and Director of Cangzhou Art Museum Zhou Aimin, Directors of Tiandayunhua Art Museum Shi Lei and Lin Yuzhu, Director of Rightview Art Museum Sun Zhizhong, as well assome of the participating painters attended the opening ceremony of the exhibition.

Li Xiaoxuan addressed the opening ceremony and said that the exhibition was themed “Concentric and Consensus”, referring to the teacher and students who were of the same mind during the creation, as a united entirety, contemporary ink painting was different from the secular ink painting and it demanded stronger endurance. Li Xiaoxuan remembered that he had placed stress on the syllabus since the studio was established: Within the framework of thinking to solve technical problems, which was the main purpose of the studio; in the contemporary the heterogeneous cultures were refactored, it was necessary to guarantee the active national position, namely seeking a breakthrough within the language of Chinese painting; at the same time, we learned from the light and shade from drawing of western painting, but now we should downplay the drawing, the use of brush and ink to transform drawing, and we paid attention to the concept of Chinese painting. One of the organizers, Director of Rightview Art Museum Sun Zhizhong believed that, observing from the process of fine arts since the’85 New Wave, the breakthrough of Li Xiaoxuan and others in the field of ink painting were the main symbols of this period of history.

Vice President of the China National Academy of Painting Zhang Jiangzhou said that traditional literati paintings reflected the pursuit of the literati, perfectly carrying the spirit of the brush and ink, this started from the exhibition when they were able to consider whether the value system of literati paintings had become the current overall standard of value or not, which seemed to require more thought and to update the understanding of the literati paintings today. Deputy Dean of the Institute of Chinese Painting at China National Academy of Painting Liang Zhanyan also said that although the painters learned from the same? teacher, they all kept their own personality and found their unique style in language, at the same time, he believed that as an educator, one should not only fill a pail of water, but also light a fire, so that each one would give play to their own unique brilliance when they were close to him.

Deputy Dean of the School of Chinese Painting, CAFA Liu Qinghe believed that Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts attached great importance to tradition in both the teaching and practice, while it did not remain a symbolized tradition, observed from the exhibition, the teacher’s practice focused on the tradition which had spread to students, at the same time, it was combined with the current cultural characteristics, which offered positive energy. Director of the Foundational Department at the School of Chinese Painting, CAFA Qiu Ting said that“inbreeding” was a serious problem in the teaching of Chinese painting, which easily forms a type of thing with a similar schema, value and interest, Li Xiaoxuan formulated a programme by contacting the ordinary lives of the civilians for the present teaching of Chinese painting, rather than the bombastic and metaphysical thing, and these programmes were worth our thinking and learning.

The exhibition showcases Li Xiaoxuan’s freehand brushwork figure painting and the succession of teachings from the teacher to disciples has already broken through the limit of the ivory tower, extending from the school to society, extending from the professional instruction to the exhibition display, which is also the appearance of “imitating the tradition” pursued by the Chinese painting in the contemporary creative field. After the inheritance of? contemporary Chinese painting was included in the mechanism of the academy teaching, although it desalted the argument of faction and style, seen from the teaching and creation behind the exhibition, the inheritance is indispensable for contemporary Chinese painting circles. Director of Cangzhou Art Museum Zhou Aimin evaluated the exhibition as an inspection of Li Xiaoxuan’s group in Chinese painting circles.

The exhibition remains on view till May 15, 2016.

Text and photo by Zhang Wenzhi/CAFA ART INFO

Translated by Chen Peihua and edited by Sue/CAFA ART INFO