Exhibition explores the essence of oil painting
A joint exhibition featuring a collection of canvas paintings created by Liu Manwen, Yin Xiong, Li Peng, Shi Zhiying and Lu Dan is on display at the museum of Shanghai Oil Painting and Sculpture Institute through September 23.
The exhibit includes not only oil paintings but also drafts, sketches, videos and other related documentation which might provide a more detailed background of how these oil paintings were created.
Although their subjects vary from still-life to portraits and landscapes, they all share a quiet and reserved atmosphere, no matter whether the depicted scene is set in the past or present.
"The exhibition tries to explore concepts, languages and forms of canvas art, and at the same time examines the relationship in painting between time, space, life and individual," said Jiang Mei, vice director of the institute.
Some of them incorporate familiar visual images like rocks, floating clouds, gardens and seas. However, these objects become unfamiliar under their brushstrokes with some distant, mysterious and unconventional outlooks.
"What they are pursuing is the fleeting moments in our lives," commented Shang Hui, a renowned art critic.
For example, Liu Manwen's "MSC" features a back view of a woman sitting on a balcony with a vast sea in front of her. Although viewers cannot see the woman's facial expression, they can still sense her feelings and emotions in that moment.
Another spotlight work is Lu Dan's "One Cloud." Her tableau depicts a marshmallow-like cloud hovering in a black background as if expressing something distant and uncertain from the artist's inner self.
"One Cloud" by Lu Dan
"Shanghai Past I" by Yin Xiong
Exhibition info
Dates: Through September 23, 10am-5pm
Venue: Shanghai Oil Painting and Sculpture Institute
