In October 2024, the Department of Arts and Design successfully organized a series of three lectures, culminating in a Teacher-Student Seminar on 15 October. The seminar was led by the Head of the Department, Prof. LI Jun, alongside Prof. MA Lu, Prof. LIU Qinghe, and Prof. CHEN Shuxia. These events attracted a large number of enthusiastic teachers and students.

The series kicked off on 7 October with a lecture by Prof. YANG Yang from the Academy of Arts & Design at Tsinghua University, who was invited as a UM short-term visiting scholar. Her lecture, titled “The Modern Application of Paper Cutting,” delved into the traditional Chinese art form of paper-cutting. Prof. YANG explored its history, various types, functions, and artistic characteristics. She highlighted paper-cutting styles from different regions and demonstrated their modern applications, emphasizing the art form’s significant role in contemporary society.

Prof. YANG also shared her personal experiences in field research and practical creation, which she considers crucial for promoting paper-cutting art. She has successfully integrated paper-cutting with social practice and aims to foster the development of the art and cultural economy through initiatives such as paper-cutting workshops and cultural parks.

Prof. Yang Yang

On 14 October, Prof. CHEN Shuxia from the Central Academy of Fine Arts was invited as a UM short-term visiting scholar to deliver a lecture on the theme of ‘Suspended Western Paintings’. Firstly, Prof.CHEN commented on the connection between Western painting and Chinese painting. In her opinion, Western painting is not an art form completely separated from Chinese painting. While maintaining its own characteristics, it can also be combined with elements of Chinese painting to form a new artistic expression. Western painting is not completely ‘non-Western’, but to a certain extent open and inclusive, able to absorb and integrate different cultural elements, including elements and styles of Chinese painting. Later, in order to explain the concept of ‘Western painting is not Western’, Prof. CHEN divided her own creative process into six parts, namely ‘Primary Colours, Space of Confidence, Virtual and Real, Within a Landscape, Forget the Form, and Margin’. The lecture will show the different stages of her art works to explain the changes in her artistic concepts.

Prof. CHEN Shuxia

On 21 October, Prof. LIU Qinghe from the Central Academy of Fine Arts was invited to give a lecture on “Changes in Ink – LIU Qinghe’s Artistic Exploration and Contemporary Dialogue,” exploring his artistic creation over the past decades. Before the lecture, Prof. LI Jun, Head of the Department of Arts and Design, presented Prof. LIU with the certificate of “UM Distinguished Visiting Scholar”. As a leading figure in contemporary Chinese ink art, Prof. LIU is known for his unique “New Generation” and “ink” style. This lecture centered on Prof. LIU’s artistic exploration since 1979. Using representative works such as “Lin Chi” and “Wind and Water” as typical examples, the lecture focused on how he has extensively developed artistic experiments in terms of syntax, themes, narratives, symbols, and metaphors over the past 40 years. These experiments have contributed to the evolution of his own artistic style and maintained a resonance with contemporary art.

Prof. LI Jun, Head of the Department of Arts and Design, presented Prof. LIU Qinghe with the certificate of “UM Distinguished Visiting Scholar”.

Prof. LIU Qinghe

At the Teacher-Student Seminar on 15 October, Prof. LI Jun, Prof. MA Lu, Prof. LIU Qinghe, and Prof. CHEN Shuxia discussed their ideas, inspirations, and techniques of art creation, providing valuable insights to the teachers and students.