COMBINING the essence of Chinese tradition and modern painting techniques, Ding Guanjia has created his own unique painting style and ink-wash techniques. He is especially good at representing all kinds of “light,” such as light shining on the water, backlight or poetic twilight, which is difficult in ink-wash painting.
An exhibition featuring Ding’s paintings and calligraphy works is currently being held at the Guangdong Museum of Art.
Ding projects a series of key elements of modern painting techniques into his ink-wash paintings, such as bright colors, light-and-shadow and the pursuit for pure visual effects. On the other hand, he also emphasizes the most essential part of traditional Chinese painting, conveying the spirit of nature in landscapes.
He worships and is faithful to nature, but he never copies nature mechanically. Instead, he enhances nature so that his landscape paintings are more fascinating than the real thing.
In presenting the infinite changes and rich phases of nature, he has depicted a variety of subjects, such as the gentleness of Jiangnan landscapes or the grandness of China’s northern mountains. The harmonious bright colors in “Two Trees,” one of his representative paintings, excellently convey the pleasant atmosphere of the vast grassland. In “The Infinite Years,” twinkling ripples on the lake in the sunlight look both realistic and romantic.
Demonstrating the refreshing vitality and profound inner charm of nature with strong visual impact and modern visual effects, Ding has distinguished himself from many other painters in areas south of the Yangtze River. “Spirit of nature in ink and color,” which is the theme of the exhibition, is a good description of his artistic style and creative ideas.
This exhibition is a major collection of more than 80 pieces of works by the Jiangnan artist made from the 1970s until now, covering his diverse styles created over different periods.
(Wang Haiying )
Venue: Halls 1-4 and 1st-floor corridor, Guangdong Museum of Art,
38 Yanyu Road, Ersha Island, Guangzhou
Date: Now through Oct. 31
Time: 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Tuesday-Sunday
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