Cao Zhencaozhen0806@126.com

AFTER receiving rave reviews from art crit-ics and full-house attendance in Beijing

and Guangzhou, the ground-breaking exhibition reviewing fi ne arts in Guangdong over the past century has fi nally come to Shenzhen.

“Reform Mission: Guangdong Art Centennial Exhibition,” fea-turing 350 oil paintings, water-color paintings, illustrations, woodcut prints and sculptures, opened at Guan Shanyue Art Museum on Wednesday, utiliz-ing all three fl oors to map out the evolution and infl uence of fi ne arts in Guangdong from 1916 to 2016.

“It is the fi rst time for Guangdong to have a compre-hensive summary and display of artworks created in the past 100 years,” said Xu Qinsong, vice chairman of China Artists Asso-ciation, chairman of Guangdong Literary Federation and chief curator of the exhibition.

“Guangdong, as a coastal province, has had extensive con-nections with the outside world since ancient times, and in the late 19th century, it witnessed the social transformation and the rise of modern China. In the past century, Guangdong was the forefront of cultural innovation and economic reform. Through examining the classic artworks at the exhibition, we hope to inspire and motivate later generations of artists,” Xu added.

The central hall on the fi rst fl oor, the biggest space in the museum, has a

selection of masterpieces by 21 prominent Cantonese paint-ers, including Li Xiongcai, Gao Jianfu, Guan Shanyue and He Xiangning, to name a few. “These 21 pioneers were selected by the academic board of the exhibi-tion. Some of them were among the earliest Chinese to study art in Japan or Europe and after they returned to China, they became infl uential art reformers with established achievements and pushed forward Chinese art his-tory,” said Xu.

In their landscape ink and watercolor paintings, they recorded the splendor of the rivers and mountains of China. In their bird and fl ower paint-ings, they showed elegant style through skilled brush strokes. In their oil paintings, Western-style composition and layers of pigments deliver vivid effects.

Surrounding the central hall are three exhibition rooms where paintings depicting the construc-tion of China from 1949 to the 1970s and paintings created in recent years with various new techniques are on display.

Leisure Highlights x 11CONTACT US AT: 8351-9329, CAOZHEN0806@126.COM

Fri/Sat/Sun September 15~17, 2017

Free movieU.S. action thriller movie “The Mechanic” will be shown free of charge at the Futian English Movie Salon. Starring Jason Statham and Ben Foster, it is a remake of the 1972 fi lm of the same name. Statham stars as Arthur Bishop, a profes-sional assassin who specializes in making his hits look like accidents, suicides or the acts of petty criminals.Time: 7:30 p.m., Sept. 15Venue: Cinexpress, 710, T-Park, 2001 Binhe Boulevard, Futian District (福田区滨河大道2001号深港影视创意园710迷影荟)Metro: Line 9, Ludan Village Station (鹿丹村站), Exit A1

CantopopHong Kong Cantopop band The Wynners will present a night of their greatest hits.Time: 7:30 p.m., Sept. 16Tickets: 280-1,680 yuanBooking: 400-610-3721Venue: Gymnasium of Shenzhen Bay Sports Center, 3001 Binhai Boulevard, Nan-shan District (南山区滨海大道3001号深圳湾体育中心体育馆)Metro: Line 2, Keyuan Station (科苑站), Exit A

Chen SaChinese pianist Chen Sa will present Beethoven’s popular “Moonlight Sonata” and “Pasto-ral Sonata,” as well as his “Fan-tasia in G Minor, Op. 77” and “32 Variations in C Minor, woO 80,” and Schubert’s “Impromptus, Op. 142.” Time: 8 p.m., Sept. 15Tickets: 100-580 yuanBooking: 400-185-8666Venue: Nanshan Cultural and Sports Center, 2106 Nanshan Boulevard, Nanshan District (南山区南山大道2106号南山文体中心)Metro: Line 1, Taoyuan Station (桃园站), Exit B

BronzewareAncient bronzeware on loan from museums in Baoji, Shaanxi Prov-ince, are on display.Dates: Until Dec. 12Venue: Shenzhen Museum, Block A, Civic Center, Futian District (福田区市民中心A区深圳博物馆新馆)Metro: Line 2 or 4, Civic Center Station (市民中心站), Exit B

Rainbow Chamber SingersRainbow Chamber Singers, a Shanghai-based choir, will present the “Tale of the Two Cities 2” concert, bringing their new songs to the stage. The choir, consisting of amateurs from all walks of life, performs original choral pieces, which mix clas-sical music with comedic lyrics and social commentary.Time: 8 p.m., Sept. 16Tickets: 280-580 yuanVenue: Shenzhen Concert Hall, intersection of Hongli Road and Yitian Road, Futian District (福田区红荔路和益田路交汇处深圳音乐厅)Metro: Line 3 or 4, Children’s Palace Station (少年宫站), Exit D (SD News)

Events

Exhibition reviews 100-year Guangdong fine arts

Painting “Xi Zhongxun in Nanliang,” created by Chen Yan in 2011, features Xi, then chair-man of the fi rst regional Soviet-style government in Northwest China in the early 1930s sur-rounded by soldiers and villag-ers celebrating the success of his pioneering policies.

According to Chen, the paint-ing represents his admiration for the historical achievements of the revolutionary generation. Moreover, creating this large-scale painting was an important artistic step for him, and it was inspired by Western grand-occasion-themed paintings.

On the second fl oor of the museum are three halls of pre-20th century oil

paintings, revolution-themed woodcut prints and Lingnan School paintings. Many Can-tonese artists who went abroad absorbed Western or Japanese techniques while retaining traditional Chinese painting approaches. Among the Chi-nese artists who studied abroad from the late 19th to the early 20th century, Li Tiefu was the

fi rst returning student and was regarded as the “Father of Chi-nese Oil Painting.”

Gao Jianfu, another notable artist of the time and founder of the renowned Lingnan Painting School, innovatively combined Chinese ink or watercolor painting with techniques from impressionism, emphasizing the use of negative space and bright colors, starkly contrast-ing with less colorful ink wash painting.

Also during the wartime, writer Lu Xun saw the potential of the low-cost, easy-to-make woodcut printing as an artistic tool for spreading enlighten-ment ideologies. He advocated the New Chinese Woodcut Movement, changing China by disseminating revolutionary messages to the masses.

Among the 30-plus wood-cut print artists who collabo-rated with Lu, 20 were from Guangdong and created prints in Shanghai and Hangzhou. In 1934, Li Hua established the Modern Prints Society in Guangzhou, which made Guangdong another woodcut

movement center in China.On the third fl oor, contem-

porary paintings created in recent years are exhibited. From landscape paintings to illustrations, the items express modernity and individuality.

The exhibition was fi rst held at the National Art Museum of China in Beijing in July, attracting more than 30,000 visitors, and then it moved to Guangdong Museum of Art in Guangzhou last month, attract-ing 110,000 visitors.

At the Shenzhen exhibition, visitors can scan the QR codes beside each exhibited item to get more information about the work and its artist. Some items have augmented reality (AR) scanning for visitors to interact with art. Entry is free.Dates: Until Sept. 24Open: 9 a.m.-5 p.m., closed MondaysVenue: Guan Shanyue Art Museum, 6026 Hongli Road, Futian District (福田区红荔路6026号关山月美术馆)Metro: Line 3 or 4, Children’s Palace Station (少年宫站), Exit B

“Xi Zhongxun in Nanliang” created by Chen Yan in 2011. Photos by Cao Zhen

A painting created in 1930. A painting created in 1929. A painting created in 1978.