SASC
Traditional Chinese painting encompasses the spiritual pursuits and beautiful dreams of the Chinese nation, permeating deep memories of the country and its people. Over thousands of years of change and development, the genre has shaped an artistic system that integrates the Chinese nation’s unique cultural temperament, ways of thinking, aesthetic awareness and principles as well as philosophical concepts. It plays an integral part in traditional Chinese culture.
The Macao SAR Government has been actively promoting traditional painting and excellent traditional Chinese culture, especially through its cooperation and interaction with cultural organisations in the Chinese mainland. It systematically presents the development of Chinese art, allowing Macao – a place of cultural exchange between China and the West – to better fulfil its role in the new era. Since its establishment, the Macao Museum of Art (MAM) under the Cultural Affairs Bureau has frequently cooperated with significant cultural organisations in the Chinese mainland, particularly the Palace Museum and the Shanghai Museum. Every December, the MAM joins efforts with the Palace Museum to hold a large-scale exhibition of cultural relics, and it has successfully cooperated with the Shanghai Museum on numerous occasions for over two decades.
It is no accident that the MAM joins hands with both of these leading Chinese museums to present their remarkable collections. In the past, the MAM has led on numerous collaborative including Rules by the Masters: Paintings and Calligraphies by Ba Da and Shi Tao – Collections of the Palace Museum and Shanghai Museum; The Light of the Southern School – Special Exhibition on the 450th Anniversary of the Birth of Dong Qi Chang; Landscapes of the WANGS: Paintings by Wang Shimin, Wang Yuanqi and Loudong School from the Palace Museum and Shanghai Museum; and Beyond the Scenery: Exhibition Commemorating the 300th Anniversary of the Passing of Wu Li, which have been sensational art events. This year, the MAM has once again received support from the Palace Museum and the Shanghai Museum to present an exhibition on Yun Shouping, who is hailed as one of the ‘Six Masters of the early Qing period’, alongside the ‘Four Wangs’ (Wang Shiming, Wang Jian, Wang Hui and Wang Yuanqi) and Wu Li – and showcase his paintings and calligraphy works.
Yun Shouping: Paintings and Calligraphy from the Palace Museum and the Shanghai Museum displays an array of works by Yun Shouping, a pioneer of the ‘orthodox school of realism’ and advocate of Chinese painting in history, as well as those by his family members, disciples and fellow artists. The show comprehensively presents the captivating creativity of this revered master and his associates.
On behalf of the Secretariat for Social Affairs and Culture, I express my sincere gratitude for the support of the Palace Museum and the Shanghai Museum! This autumn, Macao residents and tourists can join us to admire these artworks with extraordinary brushwork and gorgeous colours that have stood the test of time, and experience the sophistication and beauty of Chinese art and culture.
I wish the exhibition great success!
Ao Ieong U
Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture of the
Macao SAR Government