Date:December 29, 2023–March 31, 2024

Venue: Gallery 5

Content:

The CGCM and Beijing Fine Art Academy will jointly hold special exhibition Emotions and Dream: The Vigorous Four Seasons in Qi Baishi’s Paintings from December 29, 2023 to March 31, 2024. As another masterpiece in the “Canal Art Series”, this special exhibition features significant works from the Beijing Fine Art Academy. Using novel expression techniques, it continues the traditional characteristics of the permanent exhibitions, combining “physical experience + virtual experience”. By highlighting Qi Baishi’s precious paintings alongside seven digital exhibits, it creates an immersive world of “Dreams of Nature with Emotions.”

The exhibition features both original works and digital exhibits. It aims to tell the story of a world where everything has a spirit, as described by Qi Baishi, by blending reality and virtuality. In the painting display area, the exhibition focuses on the theme of the vigorous four seasons in Qi Baishi’s paintings by creating a living world that balances between similarity and dissimilarity through ink. The exhibition is organized into six sections: “Introduction,” “Spring,” “Summer,” “Autumn,” “Winter,” and “Idle”, showcasing paintings of flowers, birds, fish, and insects. To complement the festive spirit of the New Year, the exhibition also features several paintings with auspicious meanings, such as the Lychees and Dragonfly and Two Peaches (signifying longevity), while highlighting his contributions to traditional Chinese paintings.

The digital exhibits are presented in two formats: viewing and interactive experiences. In the viewing area, digital exhibits such as the “Five Outings and Five Returns”, “Meeting Baishi”, and “Mountain Dwelling Among a Myriad of Bamboo” are arranged to clearly and directly introduce Qi Baishi’s experiences and the world of flowers, birds, fish and insects depicted in his paintings. Among them, the “Five Outings and Five Returns” is presented as a 6-meter-high scroll, combined with a double-sided screen and scroll projection, offering a three-dimensional depiction of Qi Baishi’s 7-year travel itinerary during his middle age.

Alongside the integration of physical displays and digital exhibits, the exhibition also encourages inter-gallery collaboration to showcase the digital exhibit “One Flower, One World” in Gallery 8, offering the audience a more diverse and immersive experience. In the 720° circular screen space, visitors can view digital versions of exhibited paintings, including those of wisteria, peony, lotus, and amaranth. Additionally, hundreds of representative masterpieces that cannot be physically displayed in the museum are featured, offering the audience an immersive experience that showcases the evolution of Qi Baishi’s painting style before and after his “reform in old age”.