Scenes from Tang Dynasty poetry come alive
"Willow Wave"
"Poetry and Mountains and Rivers – The Rim River Collection by Zhu An" was recently unveiled at BOOK Mao Xiang, a bookshop-cum-art space in Suzhou, neighboring Jiangsu Province.
Curated by Shanghai Pearl Art Museum, the solo exhibition of the artist features nearly 40 artworks in which Zhu uses contemporary ink and colors to interpret the 40 poems written by Wang Wei and Pei Di of the Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907).
Wang, a renowned poet, traveled with his friend Pei through the 20 scenes of Wangchuan in Shanxi Province.
Enchanted by beautiful landscapes, the two together created this collection of 40 poems. A fan of Wang, Zhu obtains his inspiration and tries to visualize the poems under his brushstrokes.
Born in Chongqing in 1976, Zhu graduated from the Sichuan Academy of Fine Arts. He first worked as an editor. In 2012, he quit his job and moved to Dali, southwestern Yunnan Province. He settled in an ancient village between the Cangshan Mountain and the Erhai Sea, watching the clouds rise and flowers blossom. Zhu then felt the same way about the landscape as described in the poems.
He created a colorful ink landscape for these 40 poems that echo across time and space, transforming today's Dali landscape into Wangchuan of the poet's past.
"I paint mountains, water flow, cloud, grass and flowers there," he recalled. "It seems like self-murmuring on rice paper. Since then, I have begun to explore my own art language."
Zhu's painting style is calm, ethereal and lightly joyful.
"The works in this exhibition are based on the poetry of the Tang Dynasty poets Wang Wei and Pei Di, but are not confined to mere archaic imitation, but are a contemporary imagination and reproduction of Wangchuan in the artist's mind," said Li Dandan, curator and director of Shanghai Pearl Art Museum.
"Bamboo Ridge"
Exhibition info:
Date: Through May 7, 9:30am-9pm
Address: Bldg 22, 8 Lijiang Rd, Suzhou Hi-tech Zone
苏州高新区科技城漓江路8号22幢
