From Jiangnan, which is full of ancient charm, to the origin of the red spirit, to the rapid development of the city. In the black and white woodcuts, the colorful urban context of Shanghai shines a different picture.
Recently, the exhibition of printmaking works with the theme of "Shanghai Territory" with the theme of "Architecture Can Be Read" was exhibited at the Putuo District Cultural Center. Following the movement of the exhibition, it is as if you have experienced a journey through the architectural landscape of Shanghai, and also touched the pulse of life and historical memory of the city.
The exhibition is jointly organized by Shanghai Putuo District Culture and Tourism Bureau and Shanghai Xinhua Distribution Group, jointly organized by Putuo District Cultural Center, Shanghai City Animation Publishing and Media Co., Ltd., Shanghai Haipai Comic Strip Center, and co-organized by Shanghai Jiexun Culture and Media Co., Ltd.
"Small" to "big", using black and white woodcuts to express colorful urban landscapes
This year marks the 90th anniversary of Lu Xun's emerging woodcut movement. In the 1930s, Lu Xun unveiled the history of emerging printmaking in Shanghai. He once said: "Printmaking is authentic in black and white." ”
This exhibition exhibits 60 black and white woodcut works created by five printmaking artists, Shen Xuejiang, Jin Xianglong, Su Yansheng, Xu Zengying and Shen Wenting, with the theme of Shanghai architecture and landscape. Through the traditional black and white woodcut, it not only expresses the artist's observation and perception of the urban landscape of Shanghai, but also commemorates and pays tribute to Mr. Lu Xun.
"Throughout the history of world art, especially the history of the development of art in the modern and contemporary world, many outstanding painters have presented masterpieces they have seen, thought and felt in the cities of their choice." Zhang Lixing, academic host of the exhibition and vice chairman of the Shanghai Literary and Art Critics Association, said, "Whether it is Paris, London, Vienna, Berlin, Madrid, Barcelona, Moscow, or New York, Chicago, Tokyo... We can all find these beautiful figures in the paintings of artists of different eras and different countries. The art form of black and white woodcut comprehensively reflects the landscape, style and history of a city, which is indeed rare in the painting world. ”
All the works in this exhibition are small in scale, adopt a unified black and white woodcut expression, and use the artist's unique style language and artistic portrayal to open up the rich and diverse spatial territory of Shanghai for the audience.
Participating artist Xu Zengying said that the Black and White Woodcut of the Chinese Creative Type began with the emerging woodcut movement advocated by Mr. Lu Xun, drawing on and learning from Western art forms, and emerging from Western modeling consciousness, such as big black and white, block surface and space. "The vivid spiritual realm is what I pursue and strive for in the creation of my works."
The style is distinct, expressing the artist's diverse perspectives and thinking
From the Wukang Building in Hudak to the Yu Garden in the classical gardens of Jiangnan, from the babbling water of the ancient town to the drifting clouds outside the center of Shanghai... In the exhibition, the black and white woodcut works with the theme of Shanghai's urban landscape connect the city's present and past from different aspects, comb through Shanghai's rich historical context, and express the new era of artists' cognition and love for the city of Shanghai.
"We deserve to dedicate our audiences to a different perspective, to re-read the urban environment in which we find themselves with a more sensual, vivid, equally unusual, aesthetically distant, and physical rather than purely visual vision." Participating artist Su Yansheng said.
Artist Jin Xianglong's works are mainly based on Pudong themes, such as Shanghai Pudong International Airport, Lingang New City, Zhang Wentian's Former Residence, etc. He said: "As a native of Pudong, I have witnessed the development and changes in Pudong. The take-off of my hometown touched me, inspired me, and made me feel my blood boiling. ”
Shen Wenting, as a young artist among the participating artists, also expressed her feelings for the city from her perspective. "Shanghai is a city with deep inclusiveness, and Haina Baichuan is his business card. Being in such a city that has a long history and is very modern, and at the same time the rapid development of society, I often feel that I do not know the true face of Lushan. Shen Wenting said, "The collision of tradition and modernity, the integration of simplicity and simplicity, the interweaving of grandeur and elegance, There are too many places in Shanghai that are worth savoring." ”
Follow the vein of the exhibition and take a colorful trip to Shanghai
The content of this exhibition takes "Travelogue" as the clue, "architecture" as the core, "printmaking" as the carrier, and combines the development context of historical memory, changes of the times and urban processes.
The exhibition is divided into six sections: ancient charm and heritage - the silence and openness of a thousand-year-old civilization, the intersection of the sea - the encounter and integration of Chinese and Western cultures, the convergence of wind and clouds - the ideas and beliefs of a century of turbulence, the portrayal of time - the memory and reshaping of urban life, the exploration and bloom of urban art and culture - spatial energy, and the rhythm of the city - the speed and passion of the development of the new city.
"These landscapes are well-known and proud architectural landmarks living in Shanghai and scenes that are closely related to the lives of citizens." Curator Feng Yun introduced, "The site of the First Congress of the Communist Party of China, the Oriental Pearl Tower, the Nanpu Bridge, the Shanghai Museum, the International Hotel, the Wukang Building, the Qibao Ancient Town, the Bank of the Suzhou River... They all tell the memory, culture and spirit of Shanghai. With his unique style language and artistic portrayal, the artist has opened up a rich and diverse spatial map of Shanghai for us. ”
It is reported that the exhibition will last until January 6, 2022, during the exhibition, there will be an online tour of the participating artists, taking everyone to feel the charm of Shanghai through the art carrier of printmaking.