This SCAG-hosted exhibition commemorates the 5^th anniversary of the opening of the Zhejiang Art Museum in Hangzhou, the capital of the Zhejiang Province, China. The exhibition is a selection of 107 graphic artworks from the museum’s collection, which showcase contemporary Chinese graphic art. Targeted mainly at foreign viewers with limited knowledge of China’s modern history, the selection of exhibits highlights the development of graphic arts in Zhejiang between the mid-20^th century and the present day.

Zhejiang graphic art stands out with its unique historical development and its specific style. Zhejiang, considered to be the cradle of modern Chinese graphic art, has had a sustainable influence on the development of art throughout the whole country. Done in various techniques – from traditional Chinese xylography through to complicated combinations of contemporary means of expression, the graphic artworks present a broad panorama of themes, personal views and public attitudes, thus revealing the specific aesthetics and worldview of art in China.

The exhibition is divided into three parts entitled “Mentality – Impression”, “Humans – Transition” and “Natural Environment – Lifestyle”, which complement each other to build up the figurative ‘Spirit – Individual – Environment’ connection and introduce the viewer to the culture, history and nature of the Zhejiang Province.

Ever since it opened, the Zhejiang Art Museum has singled out the enrichment of its collection of local Chinese graphic artworks as a top priority. The exhibition’s title, “Inspiration From Lakes and Mountains” means to symbolically reveal the benefits of Zhejiang’s geographical location, as well as to make a reference to poetic images deeply ingrained in traditional Chinese culture that provided boundless room for interpretation to generations of artists.

WHAT DO YOU SEE?

12 March 2015 - 19 April 2015

Art is a two-way street. Artists’ works live on through the viewers’ thoughts and feelings. The latter provide a cozy home or an emotional environment for the works’ continuous growth.

Yet, more often than not, artists do not get any feedback. They never become aware of the thoughts their works have provoked, or the way the latter were received and interpreted by the public.

That is why we are inviting you to share your comments, analyses and feelings.

The best responses will be posted on the gallery’s website. Three of you will each get a Sofia City Art Gallery catalogue of your choice.

The visual image has specific features. One of them consists in the endless possibilities it offers. It is this endless space that provides room for a multitude of interpretations. We are curious about your opinions, which will enable us to provide a link between the public and the artists.

We hope that this will be a useful and pleasant experience for you.

The following are some sample questions you could use as reference points:

What is the first thing about the artwork that got your attention?
What is it that keeps you interested in it?
Do you trace any connection between the individual fragments of the artwork, or any connection between the parts within the series of artworks?
Does the artwork remind you of anything – another work, place, person, story, idea or memory?
What element of the artwork brings the memories or the associations?
What feelings does the artwork provoke?

The artworks included in the project belong to the Sofia City Art Gallery collection. They constitute some of the most recent contributions to the departments of Painting, Sculpture, Contemporary Art and Photography. There are works by: Albena Baeva, Andrei Daniel, Atanas Atanasov, Borijana Ventsislavova, Boryana Rossa, Vesa Vassileva, Vladislav Georgiev, Gredy Assa, Zoran Georgiev, Ivo Dimchev, Kamen Starchev, Lazar Lutakov, Nikolay Maistorov, Pavel Koichev, Svetozara Alexandrova, Stanimir Genov, Yana Dimitrova, Yassen Zgurovski.