Books celebrate prominent Chinese artist

"I've been living with his works since I was a child," says Xu Qingping, 75, referring to his father, Xu Beihong (1895-1953), one of the most prominent figures of 20th-century Chinese art.

"I was a primary school student when the Xu Beihong Memorial Hall (in Beijing) was established and opened to the public in 1954. I spent almost all the holidays and weekends at the hall to help oversee the displays," Xu Qingping says.

He says those childhood experiences helped him to gain a familiarity with his father's oeuvre.

"My understanding of my father and his works grew, and so did my feelings for them－maybe much stronger than many others," Xu Qingping says.

One can share that attachment to his family legacy when flipping through The Complete Works of Xu Beihong, a new six-volume collection compiled by Xu Qingping. He also authenticates the works featured in the books.

The collection, which rolled off the presses at China Youth Publishing Group in May, catalogs Xu Beihong's oil paintings, classical Chinese paintings, sketches and drawings, as well as his calligraphic works, his art collection and theoretical accomplishments. It was listed among the works to be sponsored by the National Publication Foundation in 2017.

Xu Beihong received art training in China and then France. He was immersed in the traditions of Chinese ink art. Years of living and studying in Europe provided him full exposure to the teachings of classical Western art and contemporary trends.

He pioneered a movement to transform the look of Chinese ink paintings with the figurative techniques of Western art. He also devoted himself to establishing a system of fine-art education at home. He headed the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing for years until death.

Xu Beihong is also known as a discerning collector of art. He spent a great deal of money collecting ancient paintings and calligraphy, with the hope of building an art museum for the people.

Fan Di'an, dean of the Central Academy of Fine Arts and co-compiler, says the collection gives an overall review of Xu Beihong's efforts to push forward the creation, research and education of art in modern China; he was rooted in the soil of Chinese culture but, at the same time, he embraced world cultural trends hoping to find things that would benefit the art scene at home.

"He was an artist truly pursuing brightness and progress. He was a great man, a people's artist," Fan says.

Works being cataloged are from the collections of the Xu Beihong Memorial Hall, museums and art galleries at home and abroad, universities and other cultural institutions, as well as some from private collections.

Many are familiar to people and have been shown from time to time, such as the Galloping Horse series of paintings.

Xu Qingping says his father's calligraphic works, letters and poems, and collection of rubbings of ancient calligraphy are also published in the books to provide a rare glimpse of Xu Beihong's attainment of calligraphy.

"Six decades after he died, he is still loved by people," Xu Qingping says. "His works and collections are being carefully categorized and promoted, which shows the utmost reverence for him."