12 o’clock in the afternoon, we arrived at Chinese Pavilion. Ms. Cicile had introduced the two artists the day before, so the students had known a little about them. Although they drew oil painting, in their opuses Chinese element and thought can be found everywhere.
The auction price of Wu Guanzhong’s painting is the highest one in China. Teachers and students entered the showroom of him at about 13:00. The opuses of Wu Guanzhong are in the order of timeline. Audiences can see his painting style changed over time. His early opuses are realistic. His paint of distant view is charming. The brushwork and color is simple, but he caught the characteristic of people and animals very well. Though the people and animals is in the distance, and don’t include many details, the audience can recognize them easily. That the charm of Wu Guanzhong’s painting. The early opus of Wu is usually drawn on the wooden board; so “the oil painting color is thick and rich.” said Kathy. As the time pass by, Wu’s painting became more abstract and use more techniques from Chinese painting and calligraphy. For example, the opus <Yellow River> leaves lots of blank space which shows Chinese artistic conception. Jeff noticed another magnum opus <Fishing Village beside the Ocean>, “The layers of the painting are clear and abundant. It is western painting, but it is about Chinese theme.”
Through this field trip, students saw lots of fantastic opuses, learnt how they paint them and what they want to express. The opuses of these two excellent artists show traditional Chinese artistic conception and try to mix Chinese culture and western painting techniques. Thus the sparks by the collision between two different civilizations in temperaments may be perceived. The experience is unforgettable and the things the students learnt this time may help a lot in their art work.