Wan Taifeng: “Awakening from dreams in a garden”

A new ‘Summer Art Exhibition’ at Langham Place Beijing Capital Airport unveils contemporary impressions on the 2000-year old Chinese tradition of landscape painting.

The only hotel in the capital with its own 24-hour Art Gallery is showcasing the latest works by six exciting young artists on the outdoor theme representing the origins of Chinese art.

“For over 2,000 years, China’s best artists have been painting their natural landscapes. Our summer show now focuses on a modern take on the traditional Chinese subject of the great outdoors,” says General Manager of Langham Place, Beijing Capital Airport, Mark Francis.

Cheng Yi: “The likeness of water”

Headlining the three-month exhibition is Wan Taifeng, brightening up China’s traditional landscapes and architecture in bold colours of summery baby pinks and blues.

Ancient pavilions and temple roofs recall a quintessentially Chinese cityscape now rare in modern China. Still lakes, willow trees and flying cranes – all loaded with Chinese traditional meaning – resemble poorly-exposed negatives from a time gone by.

Zhou Zhitao examines classical Shanshui (Mountains and Water), the most traditional of all Chinese painting styles.

Zhou Zhitao: “Porcelain quotations”

“He mixes traditional subject matter with a modern twist, using oil paint on canvas rather than the traditional ink on paper, and with a strong bold modern blue tone,” said Mr. Francis. “These vivid images give a respectful nod to tradition but bring it firmly into the 21st century with a very contemporary feel.”

However, Zhou Zhitao insists that, rather than re-visiting tradition, his blue and white works borrow from Shanshui to explore his own language. “I collect blue and white porcelain, and the colours are a symbol of Chinese culture,” he explains. “This porcelain was often sold to the west, so these colours also represent the east and west intertwined.”

 Fan Jia:“Small scenery”

Popular young artist Cheng Yi exhibits his cool, calm ‘Likeness of Water’ series of buildings reflected in water. “A perfect antidote to the summer heat, they illustrate traditional with a modern abstraction,” said Mr. Francis.

For Cheng Yi, the series recalls an old Chinese saying: ‘The greatest benevolence is like water’. He explains: “Every time I sit beside a lotus pond watching the water and fish, I feel inner peace. In a time with so much going on, I wonder if we could possibly transform into a state like water: natural, beautiful and peaceful.”

Wang Wenchao: “Spirit of the nation”

Fan Jia’s impressions of vast open skies with fragile branches and weeds held by human hands, roots and branches growing from a tower are in more contemporary style with a single message: when left alone, earth, nature and the landscape will conquer all.