Jointly curated by two Chinese and French curators and gathering nearly 600 paintings by 18 Chinese and foreign cartoonists and 4 collectors, the art exhibition "Painting Shanghai - Shanghai Style in Comics" is currently meeting with the majority of art lovers in Shanghai Cultural Square. The exhibition overlooks the changes of the times in the new and old Shanghai from the perspective of comic art, and tells the inseparable relationship between Chinese and foreign comics and the city of Shanghai.
Look at the comic strip Shanghai New Year's Taste
"Paint Shanghai" comic exhibition is on the occasion of the New Year, a series of vivid cartoons, with the audience to reminisce about the daily and festive atmosphere of the city in Shikumen, the dojo in the screw shell, the pavilion under the kitchen, the crowded and lively scene is filled with a strong sense of humanity, reflecting people's love for life and the surging vitality of the city life, but also reflects the vivid picture of watching over each other everywhere and living happily.
It is like the festival picture depicted by Luo Xixian in "Preparing for the Most Noisy New Year" - "In the middle of winter, the kitchen that has been silent for a long time is hot, killing chickens and ducks, grinding glutinous rice flour, omelting dumplings, making smoked fish, plus cleaning inside and outside, changing bed sheets and duvet covers, and everyone in shikumen is busy in and out, full of joy." The atmosphere of the old Shanghainese "busy New Year" comes alive on paper.
Overlooking the new and old Shanghai style
The combination of East and West, Hai Na Bai Chuan is the charm of Haipai culture. Artists from all over the world gather in Shanghai to find the source of spiritual belonging and creation. Whether it is "Kiss" painted by Feng Zikai, "Sanmao" by zhang Leping and Dai Dunbang, "I came from the folk" by He Youzhi, Ding Cong's literati portrait comic, humorous small painting by contemporary cartoonists Tango and La Ptite Lu (France), or "Ball Lightning" drawn by Thierry Robin (France) based on Liu Cixin's science fiction novel, they are all using their own works to depict and thank the city of Shanghai, bringing comfort to the hearts and fun imagination of the majority of readers.
This year marks the 70th anniversary of the founding of the Shanghai People's Fine Arts Publishing House, known as the "cradle of Chinese comic strips", and the 100th anniversary of the birth of Mr. He Youzhilao, who served as an editor in the company. The series of "Walking through the Streets and Reminiscing about the Past" and the four original works provided by the Shanghai Municipal History Museum, "He YouZhi Painting Three Hundred and Sixty Lines", were all painted by Elder He at the age of 80 or 90, completely based on his own memory. With this special talent and the way he painted old Shanghai, he left a precious fragment of history.
A cultural new year gift to Shanghai
Shanghai is the birthplace of modern Chinese comics, and generations of cartoonists such as Feng Zikai, Zhang Leping, He Youzhi, Dai Dunbang, and Ding Cong have used their brushes to record the city's changing times and unique charm.
In the 1930s, the golden age of Chinese comic masters emerged, and there were more Western comic works from afar, such as the well-known Disney "Mickey Mouse" and the Belgian comic national treasure "Tintin". Rooted in the spirit of the city, Shanghai cartoonists have become a unique scenery in the history of comics through the classic depiction of Shanghai culture, city life, customs and human feelings, and with the unique charm of Shanghai culture.
Cartoonists stroke by stroke, in the intersection of red culture, Shanghai culture, Jiangnan culture to stimulate creative vitality, depicting not only the streets and alleys of Shanghai, but also the history of the city's development and struggle. This exhibition is also a cultural annual gift for the city and citizens of Shanghai, from which to find the taste and charm of Shanghai.
This exhibition has two parts: public welfare exhibition and paid exhibition. The public welfare exhibition is free of charge, consisting of a prologue hall and a derivative shop, and the Shanghai People's Fine Arts Publishing House has carefully selected the covers and 400 inner pages of 100 comic strip masterpieces, opening a magnificent long volume of the history of Chinese comics in the past century. In the paid exhibition section, more than 500 works show the style of Shanghai city through chapters such as old Shanghai, Shanghai style, Shanghai daily life and humor, and Shanghai in the eyes of foreigners.
Exhibition schedule
Exhibition time: February 3 - March 26 (Closed from March 21 to 22)
Venue: Shanghai Culture Square
Reporter / Liu Yi
Editor / Sun Chaohui
Image / Courtesy of the interviewee
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