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July)
The Chinese Fine Arts News, a newspaper focusing
on introducing new trends of thoughts, was published
in Beijing.Li Xiaoshan, then a graduate student at
the Nanjing Academy of Fine Arts, published an article
``My Opinion on Chinese Painting'' in the Jiangsu
Art Monthly magazine, pointing out that Chinese painting
has come to a dead end.
August)
The French Modern Art Exhibition (1870-1920) was
held at the China National Art Museum in Beijing.
September)
The Art Trends magazine, for the first time in China,
issued awards on art theory studies. Artists and critics
like Gu Wenda, Li Xiaoshan, Zhu Qingsheng, Yin Shuangxi,
and Wang Lin were rewarded.
The French Impressionist Painting Exhibition was
held in Beijing.
October)
Jiangsu Youth Fine Arts Week Modern Art Exhibition
was held in Nanjing.
October
15-19)
The First Chinese Modern Calligraphy Exhibition
was held in the China National Art Museum in Beijing.
Exhibited were works of artists Zhang Ding, Huang
Miaozi, Wang Xuezhong, Wang Naizhuang, Li Luogong,
Gu Gan, Ma Chengxiang, Zhu Naizheng, Su Yuanzhang,
Xie Yun, Dai Shanqing, Zuo Hanqiao, Deng Yuanchang,
Xu Futong, Yan Binghui, and Lin Xincheng among others.
Simultaneously, the China Society of Modern Calligraphy
and Painting was inaugurated with Gu Gan elected as
its first president. Its vice-presidents included
Ma Chengxiang and Xu Futong. Wang Xuezhong was selected
as the honorary president and Zhang Ding, Huang Miaozi,
Li Luogong, Wang Naizhuang, Xie Yun as consultants.
The exhibition marked the birth of Chinese modern
calligraphy.
November)
Famous American artist Robert Rauschenberg held
his exhibition in the China National Art Museum, which
included paintings, collages, photographs, video,
and installations.
The Japanese modern calligrapher Tejima Ukyou exhibited
his works in Beijing.
1986
April)
The Beijing Sports Institute Press published Modern
Calligraphy -- A Collection of Works in the First
Exhibition of the China Society of Modern Calligraphy
and Painting. The book, which was the first collection
of modern calligraphy published in China, included
72 pieces of works.
The China Society of Modern Calligraphy and Painting
held the Second Modern Calligraphy Exhibition at the
China National Art Museum.
Dancing Ink, a TV series directed by Yu Ling, was
broadcast.
1987
April)
Structure of Modern Calligraphy, a book by Gu Gan,
was published.
August)
Chinese Modern Calligraphy Exhibition, sponsored
by the China Society of Modern Calligraphy and Painting,
was held in East Kyoto Art Museum in Japan, which
was the first exhibit of Chinese modern calligraphy
abroad.
October)
The Symposium on Chinese Calligraphy in the Recent
Decade was held in Zhengzhou, in which many delegates
appealed to allow modern calligraphy to develop.
Gu Gan lectured on modern calligraphy in Bonn University
and Hamburg Academy of Fine Arts in Germany.
1988
May)
The Symposium on Chinese New Calligraphy and the
Evaluation Meeting for the First New Calligraphy Exhibition
was held in Guilin of Guangxi, which was participated
by more than 50 delegates.
July)
The First New Calligraphy Exhibition was held in
Guilin, exhibiting about 300 works.
August)
The Jilin Contemporary Literature and Arts Press
published the book Chinese Modern Calligraphy, which
included the works of 45 artists.
October)
Xu Bing's Analysis of the World (Xishijian) Art
Exhibition was held at the China National Art Museum,
which exhibited his famous installation work ``Magic
Writings (Tianshu).
The Modern Calligraphy and Painting Society of Anhui
Province was established, with Wang Tianmin serving
as its president and Wen Bei as secretary-general.
1989
February
5-19)
The Chinese Modern Art Exhibition, which was curated
by Gao Minglu and others, was held at the China National
Art Museum. On display were 293 works of 186 artists,
including paintings, sculptures, videos, installations
and performances. The exhibition was closed twice
during the period and caused a great sensation across
the country. Works of Xu Bing, Gu Wenda, Yan Binghui
and Liu Zijian were included.
March)
The Modern Calligraphy and Painting Society of Anhui
Province and the Jiangsu Art Monthly magazine among
other sponsores held the Symposium on Chinese Modernistic
Calligraphy in Beijing.
April-June)
A student movement happened in China.
June
4)
The Tian'anmen Square political disturbance resulted
in a crackdown in Beijing.
In a wave of fighting against capitalist liberalism
that followed in China, modern calligraphy was besieged
by some extremely leftists.
July)
The New Fine Arts magazine of the Zhejiang Academy
of Fine Arts published Qiu Zhenzhong's essay ``On
the First Four Series and Else" with some of his modern
calligraphy works.
`` The First Four Series: Exhibition of Qiu Zhenzhong's
Calligraphy. '' was held at the China National Art
Museum in Beijing.
August)
The Nanjing Press published the book ``A collection
of Wen Bei's Modern Calligraphy."
1990
February)
The Exhibition of Luo Qi's Works was held in Hangzhou.
July)
The Xiamen University Press published the book ``Huamei
Modern Calligraphy Collection''with works of more
than 30 artists.
August)
The Huamei Modern Calligraphy Exhibition was held
in Xiamen, exhibiting more than 100 works. The exhibit
was organized by Tai Ran, Chen Tewei, and others.
September)
Wang Xuezhong began to teach Chinese calligraphy
in Japan.
November)
The Modern ? Exhibition was held in the Zhejiang
Institute of Paintings in Hangzhou, with 23 artists
exhibiting more than 80 works.
December)
The Third Chinese Modern Calligraphy Exhibition,
which was sponsored by the China Society of Modern
Calligraphy and Painting, was held in Japan.
Gu Gan continued to teach Chinese modern calligraphy
in Germany.
Zhu Qingsheng began his graduate study in Germany
and continued his experiment and demonstration of
modern calligraphy.
Xu Bing, Gu Wenda and other Chinese modern artists
moved to the United States for further development.
1991
January-February)
The Chinese Contemporary Calligraphy Exhibition
was held in Guangzhou, Beijing and other places.
July)
The Shanxi Peoples Press published a Collection
of Wei Ligangs Calligraphy and Seal-Carving.
October)
The '91 Nanjing Invitation Exhibition of Works by
Chinese Contemporary Calligraphers was held in the
Jiangsu Art Museum in Nanjing. Post-modernistic works
by artists like Zhang Qiang and Wang Nanming emerged
and drew particular attention on the exhibit, which
was organized by Qiu Zhenzhong, Wen Bei and others.
November)
Shanghai Exhibition of Modern Calligraphy was held
in the Shanghai Artists' Gallery.
Wu Hua moved to Paris, France for further develop-ment.
Critics like Li Xianting, Lang Shaojun and Liu Xiaochun
published articles showing their concern on and support
for modern calligraphy.
1992
April)
Deng Xiaoping made an inspection tour to the south
and encouraged speeding up the pace of reform with
bolder efforts.
May)
The Shenzhou Calligraphy and Painting Institute
of the People's Daily held the Chinese Modern Calligraphy
and Painting Exhibition in Guangzhou.
June)
The Exhibition of Shao Yan's Calligraphy was held
at the Central Academy of Fine Arts Gallery in Beijing.
The Chinese Calligraphy magazine carried a full report
on a conference of his works.
September)
The Exhibition of Wang
Nanming and Ni Weihuas Works was held in Beijing in
conjunction with a symposium on contemporary art in
Shanghai. Wang Nanming exhibited a video of his famous
work ``Combination: Balls of Characters.
October)
The Modern Calligraphy magazine was launched by
the Guangxi Fine Arts Press in Nanning, with Jiang
Zhenli as its editor-in-chief. The magazine was the
first to specialize in modern calligraphy officially
and to circulate in China. It indicated that Chinese
modern calligraphy had entered a good development
stage.
December)
The Chinese Peoples University Press published Gu
Gans book Three Steps of Modern Calligraphy.
Zhang Dawo moved to Australia.
1993
August)
An Appreciation of Chinese Modernistic Calligraphy,
a book edited by Bu Lieping, was published by the
Sichuan Fine Arts Press.
The First Exhibition of
Calligraphism was held in Zhengzhou of Henan, exhibiting
the works of artists like Zhang Qiang, Luo Qi, Xing
Shizhen, Shao Yan, Li Qiang. Calligraphism as a new
school became noticed.
In the Fifth National Exhibition of Calligraphy
by Middle-Aged and Young Calligraphers, sponsored
by the Chinese Calligraphers' Association, the works
of Guangxi modern calligraphers Zhang Yuxiang and
Cai Mengxia became a new attraction and was rewarded.
This was known as the Guangxi Phenomenon in China's
calligraphy circle.
Wang Dongling returned to China after lecturing
on Chinese calligraphy in the United States.
Bai Di's solo exhibition Blackism was held at Duo
Yun Xuan Art Gallery in Shanghai.
December)
Calligraphism, Guangxi Phenomenon, and the publishing
of Modern Calligraphy magazine were listed among the
top 10 news of the Chinese calligraphy circle in 1993.
Zhang Qiang's book A Comprehensive Review of Modern
Calligraphy was published by the Shandong Friendship
Press.
1994
June)
Wang Nanming's book Understand Modern Calligraphy
was published by the Jiangsu Education Press. A symposium
on the book was held on the Yellow Mountain in August.
October)
Jiangsu Society of Modern Calligraphy and Painting
was established in Nanjing, with Zhang Xuecheng serving
as the president and Wen Bei as vice-president and
secretary-general.
Wang Dongling and his students held the Explorative
Exhibition of Modern Calligraphy at the China National
Art Museum.
1995
February)
The Modern Calligraphy and Painting Research Institute
of the Southeast University was established in Nanjing,
Jiangsu, with Wen Bei as the director and Ling Jiyao
as honorary director. This was the first research
institute on modern calligraphy established in a major
Chinese university.
July)
The Second Calligraphism Exhibition and Symposium
was held in Weihai, Shandong. The exhibition included
more than 30 works by over 30 artists.
Shao Yan's modern calligraphy won first prize in
the Six National Exhibition of Calligraphy by Middle-Aged
and Young Calligraphers, which aroused heated discussions
in China.
August)
Bu Lieping and Wei LBigang established the Song
Feng Xuan Art Gallery in Beijing, which was the first
gallery specializing in modern calligraphy in China.
The Beijing-based gallery became a major center for
the Chinese modern calligraphy circle while explored
ways for modern calligraphy to enter international
art market.
The '95 Liuzhou Invitation Exhibition of Works by
Famous Artists in Chinese Modern Calligraphy was held
in Liuzhou, Guangxi. Jiang Zhenli and others organized
the exhibit, with more than 20 artists participating.
October)
The Activities to Commemorate the 10th Anniversary
of Chinese Modern Calligraphy was held in Nanjing,
Jiangsu, including the Exhibition of Works by Representative
Artists in Chinese Modern Calligraphy in the Past
10 Years held at the Jiangshu Art Museum and a symposium.
Ling Jiyao, Wen Bei and Zhang Qiang organized the
activities.
November)
The First International Biennial of Modern Calligraphy
was held in Hangzhou, Zhejiang.
1996
March)
Chinese Modern Calligraphy 10 Years, a book edited
by Yang Chaoling, was published by the Guangxi Fine
Arts Press.
Zhang Qiang's book, Broken Cubes in Games -- Postmodernism
and Contemporary Calligraphy, was published by the
China Social Press.
June)
Worms/Itching Characters--An Exhibition of Wei Ligang's
Recent Works was held at Song Feng Xuan Art Gallery
in Beijing.
Wang Nanmings work was exhibited in the exhibition
``From the Central Country Chinese Avant-garde Art
in Barcelona.
November)
The Comprehensive Exhibition of Zhang Qiang's Traceology
Report was held at the art gallery of the Capital
Normal University in Beijing.
The Exhibition of Wei Baorong's Modern Calligraphy
and Wash-ink Art was held at the Shenzhen Art Museum,
together with a symposium on the works. A collection
of Wei Baorong's works was published.
Ni Weimu and other artists organized the Chinese
Red Tomb Figure: The First Exhibition of the Culture
of Chinese Characters, in Guangdong.
1997
January)
Zhu Qingsheng began to published a series of article
under the title ``What Is Modern Art?'' in the Jiangsu
Art Monthly magazine, which appeared in all 12 issues
of the year. The articles were highly influential.
February)
Deng Xiaoping died.
Early
this year)
Xu Futong, Wei Ligang, Wang Nanming, Zhang Dawo
and others tried to organize the Second International
Biennial of Modern Calligraphy in Beijing but failed.
May)
The Ten-Person Exhibition of Chinese Modern Calligraphy
and Painting was held at the Jiangsu Art Museum in
Nanjing. Wen Bei organized the show.
Qiu Zhenzhong returned to China after doing research
on calligraphy in Japan.
July)
Hong Kong returned to the motherland.
Zhang Yiguo, then a Ph.D. candidate in art history
at the Columbia University of the United States, came
back to China to organize a contemporary Chinese calligraphy
exhibition. He met with some artists in modern calligraphy
in Beijing, Shandong, Zhejiang and elsewhere.
August)
A Collection of Wen Bei's Calligraphic Art was published
by the Liaoning Fine Arts Press.
October)
Chinese-American calligrapher and scholar Wang Fangyu
died in New York.
Bu Lieping, Zhang Dawo, Wei Ligang began preparatory
work on establishing a national modern calligraphy
organization in Beijing, Tianjin and Shandong. Yang
Yingshi offered 10 suggestions for the development
of modern calligraphy, which stroke a responsive chord
in the modern calligraphy circle.
October--
November)
Yang Yingshi organized the project ``A Visit of
Modern Calligraphy to Nankai.'' Bu Lieping, Wei Ligang,
Zhang Dawo, and Yu Ling gave a series of lectures
on modern calligraphy at the prestigious Nankai University
in Tianjin.
December 5-8)
The Meeting on the Development of Modern Calligraphy
was held at the Dongyuan Hotel at No. 8 Zhongshan
Mausoleum in Nanjing with nine formal delegates: Bu
Lieping, Wen Bei, Wei Ligang, Zhang Qiang, Zhu Qingsheng,
Fu Jingsheng, Yang Yingshi, Wang Nanming, and Zhuang
Tianming. Five sessions were held during the meeting,
at which delegates decided to establish a national
modern calligraphy organization temporarily named
China Society of Modern Calligraphy. (Later it was
formally named China Society of Modern Calligraphic
Arts.) Zhu Qingsheng, Wen Bei, Bu Lieping, and Yang
Yingshi were chosen as regular coordinators during
the preparatory period of the organization.
Work on establishing archives for modern calligraphy
was started in Beijing University with Zhu Qingsheng
in charge and Liu Chao and Yang Yingshi assisting.
1998
January)
A Collection of Documents on Modern Calligraphy
in the Past 10 Years, which was co-edited by Wen Bei
and Zhang Qiang, was published by the Guangxi Fine
Arts Press.
January-February)
Zhu Qingsheng, Wang Nanming, Liu Zhengcheng, Yang
Yingshi, Bu Lieping, Wei Ligang and others planned
to organize the Exhibition of Explorative Chinese
Calligraphy at the Central Academy of Fine Arts Gallery
in Beijing as part of the 20th Century Calligraphy
Exhibition sponsored by the Chinese Calligraphers'
Association. The plan was aborted at the last minute
due to sabotage.
The Qingdao Haiqing International Artists Studio
was established with Wang Nanming as the curator.
February)
The Academic School of Calligraphy Exhibition, advocated
and organized by Chen Zhenlian, was held in Beijing.
The Modern Calligraphy magazine held a conference
in Beijing to condemn the sabotage and suppression
of modern calligraphy as well as to discuss the future
development of modern calligraphy. The meeting, which
drew more than 20 artists and critics then in Beijing,
played an important role in uniting the modern calligraphy
circle, as well as inspiring morale.
March)
The Century Women Art Exhibition was held at the
China National Art Museum in Beijing. As part of the
grand show, an exhibition of Zhang Qiang's Traceology
Report was held at the neighboring Contemporary Art
Museum.
Gao Le and Dang Yu went separately to Japan for
exhibitions and academic exchanges.
April-June)
Brushed Voices: Calligraphy in Contemporary China,
an exhibition curated by Zhang Yiguo, was held at
the Wallach Art Gallery of Columbia University in
New York, the United States. A catalog of the same
title was published. Among the works of 21 artists
exhibited were modern calligraphy by five artists:
Bai Di, Luo Qi, Shao Yan, Wang Dongling and Zhang
Qiang.
May)
The World of Brush -- A Joint Exhibition of Avant-garde
Calligraphy and Modern Calligraphy was held in Melbourne,
Australia. The exhibit drew artists from China, Japan
and Australia, including works of Zhang Dawo, Wei
Baorong and Xing Shizhen.
August)
The Working Conference on Establishing Modern Calligraphy
Archives was held by Beijing University at the Jiaojiehe
International Artists' Village in Huairou of suburban
Beijing. The meeting was hosted by Zhu Qingsheng and
attended by more than 20 experts from China and abroad.
Yang Yingshi went to study
at the University of Hawaii in the United States.
September)
Inside Out: New Chinese Art, a grand exhibition
curated by Gao Minglu, went on tour in the United
States. An English-language catalog of the same title
was published. The exhibition and the catalog, which
introduced the avant-garde art movements in the Chinese
mainland, Taiwan and Hong Kong, became a worldwide
sensation. Works of Xu Bing, Gu Wenda, Qiu Zhijie,
Wu Shanzhuan and Yan Binghui were included.
October)
At the invitation of the Oriental Art Society of
Hawaii, Yang Yingshi gave an English lecture ``New
Trends in Chinese Calligraphy (1898-1998) at the Honolulu
Academy of Arts, introducing to the West China's Modern
Calligraphy Artistic Movement and its representative
artists.
The New Trunk Line Art Saloon Exhibition of Calligraphy
was held in Taiyuan, Shanxi. Works of six artists
including Wei Ligang and Yang Xiaojian were exhibited.
November)
A Review of Tradition: Chinese Contemporary Art
was held at the German Embassy in Beijing. Modern
calligraphy works of Wang Nanming, Qiu Zhenzhong,
Chen Guangwu, Zhang Dawo, Zhu Qingsheng, Liu Chao
and others were included in the exhibit.
November
28-30)
The Symposium on the Strategic Development of Chinese
Modern Calligraphy was held in Gaoyou of Jiangsu,
during which the establishment of the China Society
of Modern Calligraphic Arts was formally announced.
Ling Jiyao was nominated as the president of the organization,
with Wen Bei, Bu Lieping, Zhang Qiang, Wei Ligang,
and Yan Binghui serving as vice-presidents. Wen Bei
served as secretary-general, and Yang Yingshi as deputy
secretary-general. The society's Board of Directors,
Standing Committee of the Board of Directors, and
specialized sub-commissions were established. The
society also invited some artists and scholars as
its consultants, honorary president, and honorary
board directors. Most of the first 30-plus members
of the organization were prominent artists and scholars
specializing in modern calligraphy. The site of the
society was located at the School of Arts of the Southeast
University in Nanjing.
December)
The Exhibition of Calligraphy in Modern China was
held in Paris. Modern calligraphy works of Qiu Zhenzhong,
Wang Dongling, Shao Yan, and Yang Lin were included
in the exhibit.
1999
January)
Yang Yingshi began to
curate an exhibition of works by representative artists
of modern calligraphy in the United States and to
establish an Internet web site for Chinese modern
calligraphy.
June)
Bashu Parade: '99 Chengdu Retrospective of Chinese
Modern Calligraphy at the End of the 20th Century,
which included an exhibition and a symposium, was
held at the Chengdu International Convention and Exhibition
Center and the suburban Jindi Villa in Chengdu, Sichuan.
The activities were mainly organized by Bu Lieping,
Wei Ligang, Yan Binghui and Chu Sang. Yang Yingshi
and Liu Zijian were invited to be the academic presiders.
More than 400 works by over 50 artists were exhibited
and four sessions were held during the symposium which
sparked heated discussions on the works and theoretical
issues. Meanwhile, the Yufu Village International
Modern Calligraphy Center was established in suburban
Chengdu. A Chinese-English exhibition catalog was
later published with Yang Yingshi as the editor and
translator.
July)
An auction of works winning prizes in the 7th National
Exhibition of Calligraphy by Middle-Aged and Young
Calligraphers were held in Beijing. Modern calligraphy
works of Yang Lin and Shao Yan were auctioned at the
highest prices.
October)
The Calligraphy Exhibition of Yang Lin, Shao Yan
and Liu Yi was held at the China National Art Museum
in Beijing.
Bibliography
Gao Minglu,
A History of Chinese Contemporary Art (1985-1986),
Shanghai People's Press, October 1991
Inside Out: New Chinese Art (In English), University
of California Press, the United States, 1998
Chinese Avant-Garde Art, Jiangsu Fine Arts Press,
July 1997
Liu Chun,
Chinese Avant-Garde Art, Baihua Literature and Arts
Press, April 1999
Wen Bei & Zhang Qiang,
A Collection of Documents on Modern Calligraphy
in the Past 10 Years, Guangxi Fine Arts Press, January
1998
Liu Huiyu,
Entering the World of Wen Bei (Volume 1), China
Overseas Chinese Press, June 1997
Chen Chuanxi,
Zhang Qiang (Volume 1, Background of Traceology),
China Overseas Chinese Press, June 1997
Pi Daojian,
Chinese Experimental Wash-Ink in the 90s, Hong Kong
World Chinese Arts Publication Co. Ltd, July 1998
Yin Jinan,
Door-Knocking Alone: An Up-close View of Chinese
Contemporary Art, Beijing Three-Union Bookstore, October
1993
Yiguo Zhang,
Brushed Voices: Calligraphy in Contemporary China
(In English), Wallach Art Gallery of the Columbia
University in the United States, 1998
Bu Lieping,
An Appreciation of Chinese Modernistic Calligraphy,
Sichuan Fine Arts Press, August 1993
Wang Nanming,
Understand Modern Calligraphy, Jiangsu Education
Press, June 1994
Zhang Qiang,
Broken Cubes in Games -- Postmodernism and Contemporary
Calligraphy, China Social Press, March 1996
Schneider, Eckhard R.,
Im Spiegel Der Eigenen Tradition: Ausstellung Zeitgenossicher
Chinesischer Kunst (A Reiew of Tradition: Chinese
Contemporary Art), The German Embassy in Beijing,
1998
Zhang Qiang,
Images in Disorder -- The Cultural Point of View
of Modern Art in China, Shandong Fine Arts Press,
December 1998
Yang Yingshi
Bashu Parade: '99 Chengdu Retrospective of Chinese
Modern Calligraphy at the End of the 20th Century,
The Sichuan International Culture Exchange Center,
September 1999
Periodicals
Modern
Calligraphy Jiangsu Art Monthly
Chinese Calligraphy Art Observation Chinese Art
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