On the morning of November 24th, the commemoration of Yu Rentian’s 110th birthday, hosted by Zhejiang Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism and Zhuji Municipal People’s Government, and undertaken by the Propaganda Department of Zhuji Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China, Zhuji Municipal Bureau of Culture, Radio, Film and Television Press and Publication, Zhuji Federation of Literary and Art Circles and Zhejiang Yu Rentian Art Research Association, was grandly held in Zhuji Museum.
Yu Rentian (1908-1984), born in Lipu Town, Zhuji, Zhejiang Province, is a great artist in the history of modern art in Zhejiang Province, one of the important founders of the New Zhejiang School of Painting, and a representative of the printing style of the modern Mengli School. He has outstanding opinions and writings on the theory of poetry, painting and calligraphy and cultural relics identification, which has far-reaching influence and is known as “four absolute pressures”. The perfect combination of poetry, calligraphy, painting and printing is a unique form formed by the development of Chinese traditional art. With his outstanding personality, spirit of self-improvement, solid foundation of classical literature, profound skill of pen and ink, rich and substantial accomplishment of calligraphy and painting, and exploration and practice in stone carving, Mr. Yu Rentian left a lot of wonderful works for later generations, showing his artistic style, which is a towering peak on the traditional art plateau of China in the 20th century.
On the day of the opening ceremony, as one of the highlights of commemorative activities, “The Best Exhibition of Yu Rentian Poetry, Calligraphy and Painting” was held in Zhuji Museum. “The scenery is the most intimate, and when a teenager paints a bald head.” This exhibition displays 121 masterpieces of Mr. Yu Rentian in different periods, which comprehensively shows Mr. Yu Rentian’s artistic achievements in poetry, calligraphy and printing, and is a wonderful presentation of Yu Rentian’s artistic life. Many of these works with different faces and styles are based on the local customs and cultures of their hometown, including calligraphy and painting works such as Autumn in Five Discharges, Autumn in Fighting Rocks, Autumn in Hometown and Spring Rain, as well as seal cutting works such as Zhuji People, Laolian Tongli People, Wang Mian Tongli People and Huanxi Home. These works fully demonstrate Mr. Yu Rentian’s inheritance, development and innovation of China’s traditional painting and calligraphy art, and fully reflect the context tradition and patriotism of the master artists. The exhibits come from public and private collections of Zhuji Museum, Zhejiang Yu Rentian Art Research Association and some private collections, and many of them are the first time to meet the audience.
On the same day, Zhejiang Yu Rentian Art Research Association presented major publications such as Mr. Yu Rentian’s paintings and calligraphy works to Zhuji Museum, Library, Cultural Center, Archives and Lipu Town Government. In particular, the newly published book “Wind Coming from the Avenue-On Yu Rentian’s Art” was written by Chen Hanbo, a professor at the Party School of Zhejiang Provincial Party Committee, vice president of Zhejiang Yu Rentian Art Research Association and a rural sage in Zhuji. After the opening ceremony, Chen Hanbo gave a lecture on the theme of “Wind Coming from the Avenue-Reading Yu Rentian”. Zheng Zhusan and Ji Weixin, painting and calligraphy experts from Zhejiang Yu Rentian Art Research Association, appreciated Yu Rentian’s paintings and calligraphy works for the public. (Zhuji Museum.)