Jinshan Peasant Painting Academy
Jinshan Peasant Painting Academy
Jinshan Peasant Painting Academy
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CHINA: PAINTER OF LONGEST PICTURE
Mandarin/Nat
A Chinese artist who painted what is said to be the longest painting in the world has found a new niche in the art world.
Lu Yongzhong from Shanghai is focusing his talents on his own cultural background by using local peasant farmers at work as his inspiration.
It's a subject which is proving very popular with art enthusiasts, and rather lucrative for Lu himself.
Artist Lu Yongzhong hard at work in his studio in Shanghai, China.
Today, his subject is his father and his wife labouring in a field.
The three of them are in fact peasant farmers, living in the village of Sanxing in Jinshan County on the outskirts of Shanghai.
For the last few decades Jinshan county has gained a reputation in the world of art - not just domestically but also internationally.
The area has become the inspiration for many beautiful paintings of village and peasant life.
Jinshan peasant painting originated from traditional paper-cutting, embroidery and folk mural painting.
It has a history going back more than three decades.
Today there are about 20 peasant painters like Lu Yongzhong in the county.
Most of the artists have harnessed a natural talent - some have had no formal education.
Lu Yongzhong uses water colours for his work.
He says he has no particular style, but colour is important.
SOUNDBITE: (Mandarin)
I just paint whatever I feel like painting. It is fine as long as the painting looks nice. There is no special style, no tradition or school, no tutors or institution. Peasant here paints whatever they like such as cats or dogs in the way they want. I think it's just a question of making a pretty looking painting.
SUPER CAPTION: Lu Yongzhong, Peasant painter
Some say looking at his paintings for the first time evokes a feeling of joy, coming from the colours used or the subjects.
Lu's paintings include landscapes - celebrations of the countryside such as weddings and harvests.
Lu Yongzhong is 28-years-old and started painting ten years ago when he finished high school.
He is still a peasant but says he rarely works in the fields now because his main income comes from selling his paintings.
SOUNDBITE: (Mandarin)
They (fellow peasants) think it's good for young guys like me to live on painting in the countryside and they admire us very much because we are able to get out of the hard labours on the field.
SUPERCAPTION: Lu Yongzhong, Peasant painter
Lu does an average of 150 to 200 paintings a year.
And while his sales have been mainly in the domestic market up to now, he recently discovered there was also a demand for Jinshan paintings abroad.
Recently invited to Japan, he had the opportunity see this market for himself.
In fact today, Lu's customers are mostly overseas, in Japan, Singapore and Hong Kong.
Foreign expatriates living in China are also buying his artwork.
The average price of Jinshan peasant paintings in a local Chinese store is 300-500 yuan (35-50 U-S dollars).
Some which require more work are sold for over 1-thousand 500 yuan (180 U-S dollars).
But Lu is not selling all his works.
He says he is keeping his best to give to his son.
This painting of a countryside scene is over 20 metres long.
It took Lu more than a year to complete.
It was registered by the Guinness World of Records as the longest peasant painting in the world - an achievement Lu and his family are very proud of.
And judging by the ongoing interest in his work, Lu's success looks set to continue.
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中国农民画从来都是艺术品 来看湟中农民画
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青海湟中民间绘画发展历史悠久,早在明清期间,就有众多民间艺人活跃于河湟谷地,经过漫长的探索和发展,成形于上世纪70年代,形成了以汉藏文化为主,而独具艺术风格的现代民间绘画—“湟中农民画”。
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