Xu Beihong Memorial

Xu Beihong Memorial was located on East Shoulu Street in front of the Beijing Railway Station until, in 1967, it was demolished to make room for the subway. In 1983 a new one was built and opened to the public as a theme memorial.

Xu Beihong, a renowned modern Chinese painter and outstanding fine arts educationist, was born in Yixing, Jiangsu province in 1895 and died in Beijing in 1953. He was the first chairman of the Chinese Fine Artists Association and the first president of the Central Academy of Fine Arts. Determined to revitalize art in China, he studied hard in Europe for 8 years and mastered the techniques of western painting. After that he returned to China, and began to do two things at once——setting up a scientific fine arts education system and creating a number of works by blending the Chinese and the western. His traditional Chinese paintings, in which Chinese and western techniques coexist, are modern, meaningful, and passionate. His oil paintings mix the shaping of western classicism, the coloring of impressionism, and the charm and taste of traditional Chinese culture. He created such impressive works as Yugong Moving the Mountain, Portrait of Tagore, and Five Hundred Knights of Tianheng. The vigorous, powerful horses in his paintings greatly encouraged and inspired the Chinese in their war against Japanese invaders, war against Kuomingtang, and efforts to build socialism. His life is an epitome of the progress of modern art in China. His artistic achievements are an important part of Chinese culture. He has made great, lasting influence in China and other parts of the world.

The memorial covers a floor space of 2,000 square meters. It keeps a white marble bust of the painter, over 1,100 of his paintings and calligraphic works, over 1,000 ancient and modern paintings and calligraphic works he had collected, and over 10,000 books on fine arts, rubbings from tablets, and pictures from home and abroad. It consists of an introduction hall and seven exhibition halls. The introduction hall displays the painter's self-portrait, while the exhibition halls respectively display his traditional Chinese paintings, oil paintings, sketches, and photos and relics reflecting his life.

Address:No.53 Xinjiekou North Street, Xicheng District, Beijing

Publishes at : 07-09-23 22:15

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