San Francisco Bay Area Miniature Painting Exhibition

China Gallery Miniature Painting Research Association Established and San Francisco Miniature Painting Exhibition

Within a square inch, the pen and ink are vertical and horizontal. The China Gallery Miniature Painting Research Association was established and the San Francisco Miniature Painting Exhibition was held on the evening of the 26th at St. Lean's Residence in East Bay. This research association is also the first of its kind in the American Chinese community.

Chai Xuebin, the founder of the China Gallery Miniature Painting Research Association, Pan Yuchuan, the president, Li Yaozhong and Lily Xu, the vice presidents, Peng Xiaoying, the treasurer and secretary-general, as well as many artists and audiences attended the event. 171 works by 45 artists and collectors are on display, including picturesque landscapes and the detailed Golden Gate Bridge. Let the audience present be eye-opening and lingering. Interested citizens can go to the China Gallery to appreciate paintings. The exhibition is open until May 5th. The location is: 14786 Washington Ave., San Leandro CA 94578.

Chai Xuebin said that the research association established this time is the first among Chinese in the United States. Traditionally, the Chinese like to paint longevity peaches, plum blossoms, orchids, bamboos and chrysanthemums, etc. It is difficult to create miniature paintings with rich details. Establish a research association, free membership membership, and hold regular art exhibitions, which can challenge the potential of painters and stimulate creativity. In addition, miniature paintings sell for hundreds of yuan, which is relatively cheap, easy to sell, and can also earn a certain amount of income for the artist. Li Yaozhong said that Chinese painting does not have a tradition of miniature painting. On the one hand, Chinese painting's brush and ink are rough, and even fine brushwork is difficult to express on a small scale. On the other hand, the Chinese are more savvy, and paintings are sold according to size, with larger pieces being more expensive. Miniature paintings, on the other hand, take a lot of time and are only one-tenth of the price of large paintings, so painters are generally not interested. Miniature paintings are imported and have two branches. One is in European countries such as Britain and France. From the 16th to the 17th century, there were delicate portraits, which were all the rage among aristocrats. The other is Persia and India in the Middle East.

This time, Li Yaozhong will exhibit six works of Liu Yezhao collected by him. Liu Yezhao is a painter living in the United States. He is known as one of the "Three Elders of the Bay Area" and is also known as Tao Yuanming in the painting world. He graduated from the National Hangzhou Art College in his early years, was taught by Lin Fengmian and Pan Tianshou, and studied at the Imperial School of Fine Arts and Meiji University in Japan. After moving to Taiwan, he served as director of the Cultural and Educational Division of the Southeast Governor's Office, director of the Ministry of Transportation, and taught at the National Taiwan Academy of Arts. The motto is, use mountains and rivers as teachers, and use heaven and earth as canvas. I don’t seek to be famous in the world, but I wish to have a long wet brush; I don’t seek to have abundant food and clothing, but I wish to be self-sufficient; I wish to have good friends and reciprocate with each other, so there is no need to cover the capital with a crown.

He is the earliest miniature painter in China and has the longest creative time. The themes involved include traditional Chinese paintings, including landscapes, flowers, and figures. "I like his Orchid on Clothes the most. It is a traditional Chinese painting, but it has a Western style. It uses minimalist paper and pen to express complex things. In a square inch, the pen and ink are vertical and horizontal to express the artistic conception."

Xu Ping said that she has been creating miniature paintings for 17 years and likes to pursue the ultimate beauty of art. She likes to create across boundaries, mixing crayons and ink to create exclusive pigments. Surprises in creation sometimes come from a combination of circumstances. Once, after she finished the painting, she sprayed some protective fluid. For some unknown reason, it chemically reacted with the paint in the work, causing small dots of different colors to appear. She found something uniquely beautiful. Later, after some viewers saw it, they were amazed by the ingenuity of these little dots and bought them.

方寸之間，筆墨縱橫。中國畫廊微型畫研究會成立暨舊金山微型畫展覽

方寸之間，筆墨縱橫。中國畫廊微型畫研究會成立暨舊金山微型畫展覽26日晚在東灣聖利安住舉行。該研究會也是美國華人社區首創。

中國畫廊微型畫研究會創始人柴學斌，會長潘育川，副會長李耀忠、徐萍（Lily Xu），財務長兼秘書長彭小英，多個藝術家和觀眾，出席活動。45個藝術家和收藏家的171幅作品，在現場展覽，其中既有如詩如畫的山水，也有細節豐富的金門大橋。讓在場觀眾，大開眼界，流連忘返。有興趣市民，可以到中國畫廊賞畫。展覽時間截止5月5日。地點是：14786 Washington Ave.,San Leandro CA 94578。

柴學斌說，此次創立的研究會，為全美華人首個。傳統上，華人喜歡繪就壽桃、梅蘭竹菊等作品，創作細節豐富的微型畫較困難。成立研究會，會員免費入會，定期舉行畫展，能挑戰畫家潛能，激發創作力。另外，微型畫售價數百元，相對便宜，方便出手，也能為畫家賺取一定收入。

李耀忠說，中國畫並沒有微型畫的傳統，一方面中國畫筆墨粗率，即使是工筆畫，也難以在小尺寸上表達。另一方面，中國人較為精明，畫作按照尺寸出售，越大越貴。而微型畫花費時間不菲，價格卻只有大幅畫的十分之一，畫家一般不感興趣。微型畫為舶來品，有兩個分支，一個是在歐洲的英法等國家，16到17世紀，有細膩的肖像畫，在貴族之間風靡一時。另一個是中東地區的波斯和印度

李耀忠此次將收藏的六幅劉業昭作品參展。劉業昭是旅美畫家，被稱為「灣區三老」之一，也被譽為畫壇陶淵明，早年畢業國立杭州藝專，受教於林風眠、潘天壽，在日本帝國美術學校暨日本明治大學研究。遷台後任東南長官公署政務委員會文化教育處處長，交通部司長等職，並在國立台灣藝專執教。座右銘是，以山水為師，以天地為畫布。不求聞達於世，但求畫筆長濡；不求豐衣足食，但求五鬥自足；但願知交常相還，何須冠蓋滿京華。

他創作微型畫為中國最早，創作時間最長。涉及的題材涵蓋傳統國畫的，山水、花卉、人物。「我最喜歡他的衣服蘭花，是傳統國畫，卻有西洋風骨，以極簡紙筆表達複雜之物，在方寸之間，筆墨縱橫，表達意境。」

徐萍表示，創作微型畫有17年時間，喜歡追求藝術的極致之美。她喜歡跨界創作，將蠟筆和水墨調合，製成獨家顏料。創作中的驚喜，有時來自於陰差陽錯。有一次，她完成畫作後，噴了一些保護液，不知何種原因，和作品顏料產生化學反應，出現不同顏色的小點。她發現有獨特之美。後來，有觀眾看到後，驚歎於這些小點點的巧奪天工，出手買下。