------Program code: DO-080725-00908 (what's this?)
Source: CCTV.com
07-25-2008 09:02
Ye Jiaying is an expert on classical Chinese poetry. In 1979, she returned from Canada for a visit and travelled to Biyun Temple, in Beijing’s Fragrant Hills. There, in an exhibition of traditional Chinese paintings, she was so moved by a portrait of Qu Yuan that she wrote a poem as tribute. It went in part: “For half a lifetime I have imagined Qu Yuan’s appearance.
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In 1980, the famous American antiquarian An Siyuan visited the Rongbaozhai Art Gallery in Beijing’s Liulichang Antiques Street. There he bought every single work by one particular artist. The artist was Fan Zeng.
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During the 1970s and 1980s, with the Reform and Opening recently launched, China was welcoming western influences. However, the artist Fan Zeng was a determined adherent to traditional Chinese culture. His paintings, in terms of both their form and their spirit, revealed a kind of eastern charm. This was a time when the eastern spirit of peace and tranquility was touching the whole world. Fan Zeng’s works, which were popular especially in Hong Kong and Japan, became a legend of that time.
More than 20 years later, Fan Zeng still adheres to his ideals and his pursuit of eastern culture. He is living in Baochun Yuan in suburban Beijing. He combines poetry, calligraphy and painting in an exploration of the artistic world. Fan Zeng is famous for his portrait paintings, which are characterized by free strokes and elegance, and are superb in both form and spirit.
Fan Zeng’s studio is called Baochun Zhai. It’s here that he produced his vivid portrayals of Lao Tzu, Qu Yuan, Li Bai, Du Fu and many other famous historical figures. The studio houses a thread-bound volume, 450 years old. The manuscript is the fruit of the labour of an entire literary family. It’s also the starting point from which to understand Fan Zeng’s art and life.
Fan Zeng was born in 1938, in an alley in Nantong, Jiangsu Province. In the course of 450 years, 13 generations of scholars had been born in the ancient courtyard house. It was said locally that the Tang Dynasty tower outside the courtyard and the Ming Dynasty well inside the courtyard formed a symbolic “ink slab”. As Fan Zeng's father used to say to him as a child: “With such a huge ink slab, you can surely write great works.”
Fan Zeng exhibited his literary talent even as a child. The local literati were amazed by his gift.
One of Fan Zeng’s favourite books when he was a boy was Feng Zikai’s cartoon album about protecting life. The cartoons, which are simple and gentle, appealed to the young Fan Zeng, who was a kind-hearted and sensitive boy.
