"Transparent" paintings presented in Moscow Automatic translate

The first festival of Chinese painting in the style of Gunby opened at the Central House of Artists

The cultural season in Moscow opened not only with numerous theatrical premieres, but also with unusual exhibitions. One of them is an exposition of works by contemporary Chinese and Russian artists in the Gunbi style, which opened in the Central House of Artists (CHA).

An exhibition of traditional Chinese painting is being held as part of the First Gunbi-style Painting Festival in Moscow and demonstrates the work of contemporary Chinese and Russian painters. Artists of the two countries presented visitors with magnificent landscapes, colorful images of girls, vivid pictures of flowers, birds, animals and fish. All those present not only come into contact with the art of painting in China, but also have the opportunity to feel how fascinating it is.

Part of the exhibition is the work of the famous Chinese artist Gong Xueqing. He is not only the successor of the Chinese classical painting technique in the Gunbi style, but also an innovator who managed to combine the Western style of painting with Chinese techniques, creating a new style in Chinese painting. Gong Xueqing boldly combines realistic plots and illusion in one work. Working in the style of "watercolor Gunby", Gong Xueqing applies 40-50 layers of mineral paint to his work, and at the same time the paintings look as airy and almost transparent.

The works performed by artists from the Moscow club of fans of Chinese painting Gunbi, leave no less impressive. Experts emphasized the high level of the Russian school of this style. As Russian painters explain, the main difference between Chinese painting is the desire for balance and peace, and not for strong emotions, as in European painting. Creating a harmonious picture harmonizes its author, calms the mind, allows you to immerse yourself in inner silence.

Gunbi (工筆) translates as "thorough brush." The style itself dates back about 2000 years, it is distinguished by special attention to detail, splendor and decorativeness. It was in the Gunbi style that the artists who designed the interiors of the palaces of the Chinese nobility worked. There is a lot of melancholy and thoughtfulness, and almost no expression and improvisation inherent in the styles of sumi-e and sui. Work begins with drawing the contours of the subject (as a rule, these are natural motifs), and mascara and colors follow it. It is said that in the picture the mistress is mascara, and the color is the guest. Gunby style involves a long and leisurely process. Major works are sometimes done within 1-2 months. It is believed that the gunbi style harmonizes the personality, introducing a person into a state of a kind of meditation. And this applies both to the artist and to the viewer.

Gunbi is very decorative: each flower and petal is depicted with all shades and tints of flowers, and each feather is drawn in the birds. It is not surprising that paintings made in this ceremonial style adorned the walls of the imperial palaces. By the way, the emperor had a whole staff of artists who worked only in this technique. And only wealthy families who cherished them like the apple of an eye could afford such scrolls.

“With all due respect to all forms of Chinese calligraphy, our club has focused on our favorite Gunby style,” says Yulia Tolmacheva, organizer of the festival, president of the Moscow club of Chinese painting lovers of Gunbi. - The exhibition presents the work of 24 Russian artists - students of the school of oriental painting “Two Empires”. Some of the students already paint professionally, teach, most combine work on paintings with other activities. Nevertheless, we are all devoted to this style and are ready to develop further. ”

And indeed, all the works, despite a considerable number of layers of paint, look almost intangible and have an indescribable inner radiance, as if the canvases were highlighted. Chinese masters teach: if you touch the paper and don’t feel anything under your fingers, then you did everything right. If something foreign is felt, it means that somewhere the paint is wrong.

The authors of the project are sure: the festival is not just a joint exhibition, but cultural cooperation on a long-term basis. Hope for further prosperity of the project was also expressed by artist Li Ji, who arrived at the opening ceremony.

“Here I feel the atmosphere where the friendship and rapprochement of the spirits of the two great nations breathes,” Lee Ji shared. - Russia and China together are a pillar of the stability of the world and ensuring the wonderful future of our humanity. Here I see artists who began to study the Chinese brush painting. This proves that we are brought together not only by economic interests, but also by the desire for mutual enrichment of spirits. ”

To enhance the impact of painting, all visitors are treated to Chinese tea from the company Moychay.ru. The tea-tasting ceremony lasts in the exhibition hall throughout the day. The festival organizers have prepared a large program of free workshops and demonstrations from Russian artists for visitors to the exhibition. Also, anyone can sign up for an individual tour. Pleasant gifts have also been prepared from the online school of oriental painting - flyers with promo codes and discounts for online education. According to the organizers of the festival, the creation of a recognizable and harmonious Gunbi-style picture is available to everyone, regardless of drawing experience. Of course, with the growth of skill, the expressiveness of the work grows, more and more new subjects become available, but even at the very beginning the result is invariably pleasing.

The exhibition hall of the festival is open until September 24. September 19 will be a change of exposure - two other famous Chinese artists - Li Zhe and Zhou Bin - will present their works. Authors recognized in China as outstanding masters in the style of Gunbi and Moguf will personally present their works in Moscow.

Li Zhe is an artist at the Gunbi Style Institute of the Ministry of Culture of the People’s Republic of China and the author of numerous teaching aids, which are known not only in China but also in Russia. Traditional Chinese painting for Li Zhe is a hobby of his whole life. He is one of the founders of the direction of painting, depicting birds and flowers in a natural environment.

The famous Chinese artist Zhou Bin is the brightest representative of those who work in the Gunbi style, a participant and winner of many exhibitions. The master represents the direction of Moguf, the so-called contourless Gunbi.