Henan Daily client reporter Wen Xiaojuan
Portrait of the times, establish a biography for the times.
At the historic moment when the Communist Party of China ushered in the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, Henan oil painter Ma Gang was full of love for the party, closely following the main line of the centenary of party history, and created 100 outstanding artistic portraits of communists in two years. On May 22, "A Hundred Years of Glory" - the first national exhibition of portrait art of 100 outstanding communists painted by Ma Gang , Beijing Station opened at the Shenzhou Calligraphy and Painting Institute of the People's Daily. 100 outstanding communists who were deeply trusted and loved by the people "met" with the audience in the capital in the form of portraits, which aroused strong resonance from the audience.
The exhibition contains five parts: leadership style, revolutionary pioneer, founding general, scientific and technological giant, and model of the times. The objects of his creation include Chen Duxiu, Li Dazhao, Qu Qiubai, and other revolutionary pioneers who made immortal meritorious contributions to the founding of the Communist Party of China; there were founding generals such as Zhu De, Peng Dehuai, Liu Bocheng, and other founding generals who were deeply loved by the people; there were also models of the times such as Jiao Yulu, Lei Feng, and Wang Jinxi, who were infinitely remembered and remembered; and there were also scientific and technological giants such as Yu Min, Sun Jiadong, Qian Xuesen, and Deng Jiaxian, who made tremendous contributions to China's social development.
Each character has a history and story worth writing, and each work has a unique way of expressing itself. In order to vividly display the spiritual outlook of these outstanding characters, Ma Gang comprehensively uses a variety of materials such as sketches, pastels, oil paintings, etc., which are real in small places and freehand in large places, vivid, artistic, and conveying the spirit, and never show the unique spiritual outlook of the characters, which is refreshing and unforgettable for a long time.
Creating portraits of communists is no easy task. Ma Gang spent two years deeply studying the party's century-old history, and with the help of the relevant departments of the Central Party School, identified a hundred creative objects, and used his own works to paint portraits and biographies of these communists, so that the Chinese people can remember their deeds and spirit. He hopes that the audience will learn and relive the history of the Party in the past century by appreciating these artistic portraits that embody Ma Gang's artistic thinking and pursuit, understanding the outstanding deeds of the Communist Party of China that have condensed the course of the Cpc over the past century.
It is worth mentioning that this exhibition is Ma Gang's third "big move" in his personal artistic creation after he held the "Bauhinia Bloom - Hong Kong Figures Under Ma Gang's Brush" in 2017 to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland, and the "Backbone - Portrait Art Exhibition of Outstanding Scientists under Ma Gang's Brush" held in 2019 to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland, and it is also the second time that Ma Gang's solo exhibition has entered the Shenzhou Calligraphy and Painting Institute of the People's Daily.
Zhao Derun, a researcher at the Central Research Museum of Culture and History, said that he hopes that through the exhibition, people will be further encouraged not to forget their original intentions, keep their mission in mind, strive to start a new journey of comprehensively building a socialist modern country with a more lofty attitude, and make unremitting efforts to build our country into a prosperous, strong, democratic, civilized, harmonious and beautiful socialist modern power.
Wang Xuebin, director of the Chinese History Teaching and Research Office of the Central Party School (National School of Administration), believes that at the time of the centennial ceremony, it is necessary to use the form of painting to present the great image of the communists in front of hundreds of millions of Chinese sons and daughters, so that the Chinese people can appreciate their images and understand their souls, and form a spiritual great force that encourages everyone to forge ahead courageously. These hundred paintings created by Ma Gang are both physical and divine, with extraordinary significance, and are a work of tribute at the right time, and it is also a positive practice of the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping's speech that "the heroes of the Chinese nation should be revered, record heroes with great color, shape heroes, let heroes be disseminated in literary and artistic works, and guide the people to establish a correct view of history, nationality, country and culture".
The exhibition is jointly sponsored by the People's Daily Shenzhou Calligraphy and Painting Institute, the Propaganda Department of the Henan Provincial Party Committee, the Department of Culture and Tourism of Henan Province, the Henan Daily Newspaper Group, the Zhengzhou Daily Newspaper Group, and the Times (Sorrowful Hong) Culture and Art Center, and the exhibition will last until June 20.
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The most affectionate praise - watching "A Hundred Years of Glory - The First National Exhibition of portrait art of 100 outstanding communists under Ma Gang's brush"
"A Hundred Years of Glory - The First National Exhibition of portrait art of 100 outstanding communists under Ma Gang's brush" is the second time that Mr. Ma Gang has held a painting exhibition at the Shenzhou Calligraphy and Painting Institute of the People's Daily, and the last time was the "Backbone of China - Ma Gang's Portrait Art Exhibition of Outstanding Scientists" on October 12, 2019. It was held to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the founding of New China, and it achieved very good results, and many viewers gave it a high evaluation. I once asked some Fang family, how about Ma Gang's paintings? What about the technique? What's the theme? The answer obtained is quite consistent, that is: the painting is very good, although it is a sketch, the scale is not large, the pen and ink are not much, but it is very expressive, simple and not simple; the theme and intention are also very good, focusing on the overall situation, in line with reality, full of feelings, full of positive energy, let people see very touched and educated. We are very happy about this and feel that it is the right place to hold his exhibition.
This spring, Ma Gang said that he was painting some portraits of people again, painted to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, and initially wanted to paint 100 people and 100 paintings, and also wanted to hold an exhibition, and also wanted to exhibit the newspaper's Shenzhou Calligraphy and Painting Institute. On March 13, he sent me the general contents of the painting and some of it in its manuscript; on April 15, he went to Beijing to deliver a printed album and asked me to pick up a copy. I then looked at it and felt that the painting was very good, better than in the past, and the level had improved.
To say that Ma Gang's works in this exhibition are better than in the past and that the level has improved is a conclusion obtained through comparison. Many friends know that Ma Gang has used a lot of thought and energy in his portraits in recent years, pouring a lot of feelings and enthusiasm. In addition to the above-mentioned "Backbone of China – Portrait Art Exhibition of Outstanding Scientists in Ma Gang's Writing" held here on October 12, 2019, there are also "Bauhinia Bloom – Ma Gang's Hong Kong Heroes" held in Beijing and Hong Kong in August 2017, and the portrait exhibition of Ma Gang's anti-epidemic heroes held at the Central Party School last year, that is, on November 6, 2020, and so on. So, what's better about this exhibition? I think that not only are there more figures and paintings, but also that the time span is greater and the historical process is more magnificent, but also because the emotions invested are more abundant, the spiritual realm embodied is higher, and the use of techniques is more skillful, and the overall presentation is becoming more and more refined. It can be said that several of his such exhibitions are affectionate tributes to the country, the people, and the nation, and this exhibition is the most affectionate tribute!
In this exhibition, why did Ma Gang present his most affectionate praise? I secretly speculate because this exhibition is made to celebrate the centenary of our party, and because we are all full of feelings for our party. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that the 100 years of our party is a hundred years of dedication to practicing the original mission, a hundred years of laying the foundation of the yanlu blue wisp, and a hundred years of creating brilliant and opening up the future. All the way forward, we must not forget the road we have traveled, no matter how far we go, no matter how glorious the future is, we must not forget the past we have traveled, and we must not forget why we started. Indeed, those who know the history of the Communist Party of China, those who understand China's modern history, all those who care about China, and anyone without prejudice will recognize and admire the extraordinary course, immortal merits, and great contributions made by the Communist Party of China, and should offer their deep affection and even shed tears. The Communist Party of China is a party that serves the people wholeheartedly, and its original intention and mission is to seek happiness for the Chinese people, to seek rejuvenation for the Chinese nation, and at the same time to promote human progress; the past hundred years of the Communist Party of China have profoundly changed China and profoundly affected the world, making great contributions to the Chinese people and the Chinese nation, and also to the world and mankind. This is a historical fact, a fact that cannot be denied and erased. It is precisely because of this that this most affectionate praise of the party has the deepest foundation, that is, the feeling of attachment to the country, the people, and the nation.
In fact, Ma Gang's painting style has not always been like this, but has changed and undergone transmutation. Knowing that Ma Gang came from the Central Plains and was a descendant of a peasant family, he liked to paint from an early age, and later embarked on the road of a professional painter. I remember that in the 1990s, the things he painted were mainly winter scenes, wilderness, and still lifes, which were immature in simplicity and childishness, and showed restraint in forced servants. See some comments, saying that Ma Gang's paintings have traces of Impressionism, modest and calm, indifferent and lonely, may be the mainstream of oil painting, and inevitably belong to the category of "niche". There is no doubt that in recent years, his paintings have changed, not only the theme, content, and focus have changed, but also the style, technique, and intention have changed, and these groups of portrait paintings are proof and representation. Where has it gone? It has changed to praise heroes, praise the sages, praise the motherland and the people, praise the times and life, the pattern is bigger, the style is higher, and the content and form are therefore better. You see, although the leading figures, revolutionary pioneers, founding generals, scientific and technological giants, and models of the times he painted this time have few strokes and rough sketches, they are all both physical and vivid, and their true feelings are infused into them, and their spiritual temperament jumps out of the paper.
I feel that some inspiration can be drawn from this change and transmutation of Ma Gang:
Art can only be dynamic if it keeps up with the times. The ancients cloud "pen and ink when the times" is for the letter. The era is not only a concept of time, but the reality in front of you, the earth under your feet, a rich practice, a fiery life. Keep up with the times, keep pace with the times, grasp the pulse of the times, and reflect the rhythm of the times, art can obtain an inexhaustible source of power, and it is fresh rather than stale, vibrant rather than lifeless. Socialist art is the art of the people, and it should be especially so, it should keep up with the times, reflect the times, conform to the trend of the times, and promote the progress of the times.
Art can only show value if it wins over its audience. The people need art, and art needs the people even more. Art is created by people, and even more so by people. No matter how exquisite art is, if no one appreciates or cannot appreciate it, there is no audience or there is very few audiences, and its value will be lost or greatly reduced. This is true of works preserved in history, and it is even more true of things created in the contemporary. Let more people see, appreciate, and win the love of more audiences and audiences, and the value of art will be realized and highlighted. Therefore, we must not only make the cultural relics collected in the Forbidden Palace, the heritage displayed on the vast land, and the words written in ancient books come alive, but also advocate more realistic creations to face the people, win the audience, and provide people with better and more spiritual food.
Only by constantly innovating can art improve its quality. In a sense, art is a high-level spiritual activity and its product, and the high is high in that it is not a simple repetition, but requires continuous innovation. "Follow the people to make plans for the end of the future, and become a family from the beginning of life." As far as the art of painting is concerned, simple smearing and smearing can only be said to be painting, and general imitation is nothing more than a florist, and only those who are constantly innovating and can produce new ones can be regarded as painters and artists. Artists of any kind must rely on works to speak and stand on their own, and they need to delve into and continuously improve, and strive to create works with profound thinking, exquisite art, excellent production, thoughtful, quality and temperature. Only in this way can we be worthy of the times and the people. (Zheng Jian)
Editor: Chen Hao