Jade from Kunlun Mountain – Gao Zhenyu Ceramic Art Exhibition

On April 8th, the China Academy of Art opened a Gao Zhenyu solo exhibition, Jade from Kunlun Mountain at the National Art Museum of China. The opening ceremony was hosted by President of the China Academy of Art Wang Wenzhang and attended by a number of dignitaries, including Vice Minister of Culture Zhou Heping; Honorary Chairman Zhou Wei Zhi; Former Vice Minister of Culture Liu Deyou; Dean of Renmin University National Academy Feng Qiyong; Chinese Ambassador to Japan Zheng Yonghua; Japanese Ambassador to China Jingchu; Korean Ambassador to China Shi Dongyan; Deputy Curator of the China Art Museum Yang Bingyan; Lu Xun and Deputy Dean of the Academy of Fine Arts Li Baoquan. Scholars from the Chinese Academy of Art and the Tsinghua University Academy of Fine Arts were joined by more than 200 guests from Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong.

Feng Qiyong and Mr. Unagami Masaomi (a well-known art critic from Japan) addressed the opening ceremony. They praised Gao Zhenyu’s ceramic works for their creative intent and likened his contribution to a new chapter in China’s ceramic history. A ceramic art symposium on Gao Zhenyu’s ceramic art was held alongside the exhibition. The seminar was hosted by the researcher from the Chinese Academy of Art Gu Sen. Wang Yong, Zhai Mo, Li Yi, Zheng Gong, Jin Shen and Professor Zhang Shouzhi of Tsinghua Academy of Fine Arts were among the guests. More than a dozen scholars, including international art critic Unagami Masaomi and Professor of Ceramics Yu Kuanhao of Hongik University, South Korea, gave speeches. Academic scholars and critics unanimously agreed on Gao Zhenyu’s immense contribution to ceramic art. Gao Zhenyu’s achievements have raised the bar for future generations of ceramicists.

This is Gao Zhenyu’s second solo exhibition at the National Art Museum of China; the first one was held nine years ago. A total of more than 150 pieces were exhibited. The art works were divided into three parts – the new Jade Series, the Water Texture Series, and Purple Clay Series – along with other ceramic works created in recent years. The highlight of the Jade Series is the large-scale cutting of a sculpture-like shape of a flower vessel. Its smooth and powerful shape has more than just a visual impact; it demonstrates the language of earth in all its glory. The recurring theme of the artist’s creation is harmony – a harmony of beauty. As Akira Kosaka notes, ‘The soul of the vessel is alive because of its usefulness. The origin of the creation brings the emotion to earth and thus to the vessel.’

These works of art are modern pottery art, sculpted in a break-away from the traditional ‘use of tools’. They embody Chinese culture and its spiritual connotations – integral parts of spiritual awakening and creative thinking.

– Contributed by Ceramics Research Centre