UNFOLDING AN AESTHETIC DIALOGUE ON THE CANVAS
The works of the renowned painter Liang Yu are once again on display at the National Art Museum of China
The exhibition titled "Harmonious and Beautiful Borderlands: All Ethnic Groups Sing Together - Art Exhibition of Xinjiang and Tibet" hosted by the National Art Museum of China is underway. The exhibition takes the nature and culture of the borderlands as its theme and presents the latest works of famous painters across the country. Among them, the large freehand oil painting "The Autumn Forest in Karamay" (120×240cm, linen oil paint, 2024) by the famous oil painter Liang Yu has attracted the attention of many viewers with its unique artistic language and poetic expression.
"The series of activities on harmonious and beautiful Xinjiang has become one of the art creation brands in China with a long duration and great social influence." Fan Di'an, the president of the Chinese Artists Association, commented on the eve of the exhibition's opening.
It is reported that most of the works on display in this exhibition are by painters who participated in the "Sketching and Creation Activity of Harmonious and Beautiful Xinjiang". This activity has been held for six consecutive sessions. In the past five years, it has attracted more than 60 well - known oil painters in China to participate, creating more than 800 works in total, and has been exhibited in China and other countries more than ten times.
Liang Yu's works have appeared in the National Art Museum of China many times. In the autumn of 2024, he was invited to conduct sketching in Karamay, Xinjiang. In front of the magnificent landform of Danxia Grand Canyon, he did not simply copy nature. Instead, with the keen perception of an artist, he carried out a "visual reconstruction" of the form, color, and space of the scenery. He called this creative process "spontaneous kiln transformation". Through the integration of color, brushstrokes, and composition on his canvas, he finally presented an artistic crystallization that transcends reality.
"The Autumn Forest in Karamay" is not a traditional landscape sketch, but a "dialogue between Eastern and Western aesthetics". His painting is not only visually impactful but also contains an internal harmonious rhythm. In the painting, the cobalt - blue sky, the golden poplar forest, and the ochre - colored earth form a three - color symphony.
The uniqueness of Liang Yu's works lies in that he does not stop at the technical level of Western modernism. Instead, he injects the "freehand" spirit of traditional Chinese painting into oil painting creation. His brushstrokes are as unrestrained as calligraphy, and the color blocks are as hearty as splashed ink, making the autumn forest in Karamay not only a geographical landscape but also a symbol of vitality.
Liang Yu's works draw on the West in form, but their spiritual core is deeply rooted in Eastern aesthetics. "The Autumn Forest in Karamay" is exactly like this - it is both a portrayal of the borderland scenery and a tribute to harvest, vitality, and the spirit of perseverance. As he himself said, "The essence of art does not lie in imitating nature, but in giving natural scenery a brand - new life on the canvas. And in this golden autumn forest, we are seeing such a bloom of life."
This exhibition opened at the National Art Museum of China in Beijing on June 22nd and will last until July 14th.
