 Yangtze River Gorges |
Artist Long Rui, a typically warm and effusive Sichuan native, has a tremendous command of traditional landscape techniques.
Long was born in 1946 in Chengdu, provincial capital of Sichuan. At the outset of the "cultural revolution" (1966-76), he was plucked from Sichuan to attend the Central Academy of Fine Arts, the most prestigious art school in China.
Although his formal studio was interrupted for years, Long remained undaunted in his creative aspirations, learning on an ad hoc basis from academy faculty also exiled to the countryside.
After his graduation, Long turned away from traditional landscape subjects, experimenting with more abstract compositions.
Never fully abandoning figurative painting, Long eventually developed his own oeuvre of landscape painting, with expressive brushwork and fresh color washes.
His most recent paintings pay homage to the mid-20th century master, explains Huang Binhong, who also is known as one of the most important art theorists in post-1949 China.
Long has also published numerous essays expanding on his painting theory.
Long explains that he extracts elements of past traditions to mingle with his own creative impulses.
He said he believed that artistic creation is not a static tradition but a combination of individual personalities and environmental influences.
A masterpiece, according to Long, reflects the artist's internal control and self discipline within the framework of historical influences but goes one step further to break out of the status quo.
Even among the august fellowship of Central Art Academy faculty and graduates, Long stands out as one of the most influential of his generation.
 The Benevolent and the Harmonious |
Now famous in China because of his "civic service" (his monumental works now hanging in some of the most important public buildings in China), Long eschews this notoriety.
Long would rather concentrate on what he loves best, that is, painting highly personal yet scholarly renditions of landscapes.
Unlike many contemporary Chinese painters, Long wears the mantle of tradition comfortably, yet can transcend the past to infuse paintings with his own creative vision. As Long himself tells it, "I use the ancient as I see fit."
Long graduated from the Discipline of Commercial Art of the Beijing School of Arts and Crafts.
In 1981, Long completed his graduate studies in the Landscape Department of Traditional Chinese Painting in the Central Academy of Fine Arts.
He researched China's traditional water-and-ink landscapes under the supervision of famous painters such as Lian Shunian, Tao Yiqing, and Zhang Ting.
Long is a council member of the Society for Exchange in the Fine Arts of the Orient, vice-president of the Beijing Association of Young Painters, and a member of the Chinese Artists' Association.
Between 1985-88, Long participated in numerous exhibitions and toured Paris, Hong Kong, Beijing, London, Toronto and Kyoto.
He is now president of the Traditional Chinese Painting Research Institute.
The China National Academy of Painting was established in the end of 2006, with the aim of becoming "the largest and most influential entity for the research and education on traditional arts" in the country.
Previously known as the Research Institute of Traditional Chinese Painting, the academy will be refurbished and expanded for ink painting, calligraphy and seals.
Since its establishment, it has been acting as a major center for traditional arts exhibitions and international cultural exchanges.
Established in 1981 with master Chinese ink painter Li Keran as the first president, the research institute brought together some of the best artists of traditional Chinese art, including Liu Haisu, Wu Zuoren, Ye Qianyu, Li Kuchan, Huang Zhou, Jiang Zhaohe and Guan Shanyue.
It served as "the cradle of the younger Chinese ink painters" at a time when the Chinese society was gradually recovering from the nightmarish "cultural revolution", Long said.
It is widely acknowledged that Chinese ink painting is one of the major forms of expression of Chinese philosophy, aesthetics and values, he added.
 Fan Surface, 2 |
 Artist Long Rui |
 Taihang Mountains |
 Dreamy Peaks |
 Mountain Riverside |
