Inheriting the Tradition—Professional Courses in the Exhibition Hall

On December 30, 2023, the exhibition “Simple Spicy Poetry—A Study of Yan Ming’s Donated Works” officially opened at the Ba Da Shan Ren Memorial Museum. To complement the exhibition, the museum has organized a series of educational activities designed to integrate museum resources with art classroom instruction, thereby expanding the educational reach of the exhibition.

 1 Moon 17 On that day, Fang Yuan, an associate professor at the School of Fine Arts of Nanchang University, led graduate students from the Department of Fine Arts to the exhibition hall of “Simple and Bold Poetry—A Study of Yan Ming’s Donated Works” at the Eight Great Mountains Man Memorial Museum, where she conducted a hands-on demonstration and critique session on the exhibited artworks for the students.

  Yan Ming was born in Nanchang. He was a renowned painter and art educator, and one of the pioneers and founders of art education in Jiangxi Province. Influenced by Western art, he sought to find a balance between the forms and colors of traditional Chinese art and those of Western art. “ The brush and ink should follow the times. ” his aesthetic ideas. His paintings of flowers and birds were influenced by Qi Baishi’s style of red flowers and ink leaves—characterized by bold, thick brushstrokes and stark color contrasts. The brushwork in his still-life paintings of fruits and vegetables carries the stylistic essence of Western watercolor painting, with colors that are both rich and refined. ; Landscape paintings often depict the beautiful rivers and mountains of our motherland, seeking to capture the soul and vitality of the land and its natural features. With bright colors and bold brushwork, they differ from traditional landscape painting.

     Yan Ming often travels to various places to sketch from life, seamlessly blending his intuitive insights into nature’s creations with freehand brushwork to develop his own distinctive style. His paintings are imbued with a myriad of expressive brushstrokes and rich artistic flair; they remain true to nature’s essence yet transcend strict adherence to natural forms—serving as a paradigm for the innovative transformation of landscape painting.

《 Red Plum 》

《 Still life 》

《 Taroko

During this exhibition, the Eight Great Mountains Man Memorial Hall is specially presenting “Professional Courses in the Exhibition Hall” – a social education activity. Using the exhibition hall as a classroom, and combining authentic exhibits from the gallery with expert teaching knowledge, students can not only closely examine Teacher Yan Ming’s sketches up close and intuitively grasp the techniques and artistic charm evident in his works, but also gain insight into the stories behind certain landscape paintings, the integration and innovation of painting techniques, and the creative approaches that blend Chinese and Western art.

This class The launch of the “Moving In” exhibition brings museum resources into the professional classroom. Through teachers’ hands-on demonstrations and on-site feedback and summaries, this initiative embodies the teaching philosophy of artistic heritage and cultural education. Not only does it enable students to better grasp the essence of painting art, but it also opens a window for audiences to gain insight into the development of both art and culture.

For this event, Associate Professor Fang Yuan from the School of Arts at Nanchang University to call :“ Swallow Teacher Ming is an important Chinese painter and art educator of modern and contemporary Jiangxi. During my student days, his works had already influenced generation after generation of art students. Today, I’ve brought the students to the Eight Great Masters Memorial Hall to interpret his freehand ink paintings in front of his original masterpieces, learning about his creative techniques and the unique charm of brush and ink in Chinese painting. This not only enables the students to gain a deeper and more natural understanding but also has a positive and profound impact on the continued传承 of the Jiangxi School of Painting. ”

Xiao Wenjing, a graduate student in the Department of Fine Arts at the School of Arts of Nanchang University, stated at this exhibition event: “ Regarding this time's... Swallow Through the activity of visiting and copying Teacher Ming’s works, I deeply realized my own shortcomings in freehand flower-and-bird painting. I also gained a deeper appreciation for the meticulous refinement that veteran artists devote to their work and their profound understanding of literati painting. At the same time, I came to realize that a painter cannot confine himself solely to the studio and classroom; close, direct engagement with the masterpieces of past masters and hands-on practice in copying these works can lead to a more accurate and entirely fresh understanding of the art. ”