Curator’s Note
There was once a man who grew up in Macao. He frequently depicted the beauty of his rapidly developing and beloved homeland in his paintings. With many dreams in his heart, he travelled across mountains and rivers to portray the magnificent landscapes of his motherland with his brush. This man was Lok Cheong (1923-2006), a highly influential figure in Macao’s painting circles. He was, in fact, one of the key advocates of Western painting techniques in the city. This year marks his 100th birthday, and as a result, we present the Centennial Retrospective of Lok Cheong’s Art.
Italian Jesuit priests Michele Ruggieri (1543-1607) and Matteo Ricci (1552-1610) arrived in Macao in 1579 and 1582 respectively. Both men brought portraits of religious figures with them when they travelled across the Chinese mainland, marking the first known introduction of oil paintings to China. In addition, the Diocese of Macao has an extensive collection of oil paintings from the late 16th century onwards.
Starting from the 18th century, many Western painters visited Macao. By the first half of the 19th century, English artist George Chinnery (1774-1852), who lived in Macao for 27 years, and his disciples emerged as the most influential Western-style painters in South China. These important events in art history bear witness to Macao’s vital role in introducing Western painting techniques to the East. In the 20th century, many young Chinese talents studied Western oil paintings in the UK, France, the USA and Japan, while an increasing number of Chinese and Western painters chose to settle in Macao. This marked the beginning of Chinese oil painting history.
The notion of ‘embracing the eclectic mix of Chinese and Western painting styles, blending ancient techniques with modern ones’ began to grow. The fusion of traditional Chinese painting and Western painting techniques opened a new chapter in the history of modern Western painting in Macao. Later, during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, painters from the Lingnan region sought refuge in the city.
Lok Cheong was also engaged in the anti-Japanese movement to safeguard the country. He worked in set design and created many anti-Japanese propaganda posters, aiming to arouse the patriotic sentiments among the Chinese people with his realistic paintings. From the period of the War of Resistance to the founding of the People’s Republic of China, many Guangdong painters gathered in Macao to exchange ideas, leading to a thriving local art scene. As a result, in 1956 the ‘Macao Art Research Association’ was established, with Lok as one of its founding members. In the same year, it presented the inaugural Macao Fine Arts Exhibition, which was warmly supported and inaugurated by Ho Yin, the prominent local businessman and politician. In 1967, the association was renamed the ‘Macau Artist Society’, and Lok served as its director before becoming its president. His works were exhibited at the sixth, seventh and eighth editions of the National Exhibition of Fine Arts.
For a long period of time, a rich sense of realism and a strong sense of patriotism permeated Lok’s work. At the same time as he was perfecting his techniques, however, he also worked to unite local patriotic artists and to expand the pool of these talents. He played a leading role in organising exhibitions across the country and in arranging trips for Macao artists to travel to the motherland to create sketches there. His efforts promoted artistic exchange between Macao and the Chinese mainland, while also forging closer ties between the art circles in the city and the mainland, especially in Guangdong. He also helped nurture the talents of many local artists who practised realism in their works.
This retrospective exhibition which celebrates Lok Cheong’s 100th birthday features 100 paintings by the artist, along with some of his sketches and remarkable works by his friends, which are now being exhibited for the first time. Altogether, the show features 150 works including oil paintings, watercolours, drawings, manuscripts and documents. These works span various stages of Lok’s career and encompass a wide range of subject matters. In fact, this exhibition comprehensively showcases his artistic career, achievements and legacy. It is divided into five sections: (1) Love for the Motherland, (2) Capturing the Character of Macao, (3) Portraits, (4) Sketching from the Heart, and (5) Works by Fellow Artists.
The first section, ‘Love for the Motherland’, reveals Lok’s consistent expression of love for his country through his art, which ignited the public’s love for the motherland. Like those of his counterparts on the Chinese mainland, his subject matters were consistently taken from his life experiences. In fact, realistic paintings tend to accurately depict nature or life, and Lok’s works frequently and faithfully reflected naturalistic approaches. He depicted, using keen observation and outstanding artistic techniques, the living conditions he saw around him, especially in his oil paintings ‘Living by Rag Picking’, ‘Open-Pit Oil Mines in Jintang’ and ‘Rice Aid from the Motherland’. These works vividly and movingly portray the persistence of people who have met some of life’s toughest challenges. In addition, his works are not only realistic depictions, but they also express his reflections on the life situations that he represents, showing the painter’s deeply sympathetic nature. Some of his works chart historical events and portray magnificent landscapes, such as ‘Technicians Departing to Serve the Motherland’, ‘Building a Sea Wall to Protect Zhanjiang’ and Reaching Home’. They are strongly expressive and show Lok’s pursuit of an ideal world. The hues also show Impressionist influences.
The second section, ‘Capturing the Character of Macao’, showcases Lok Cheong’s landscape paintings of the city where he was born and raised. He was fascinated by Macao’s East-meets- West culture and he studied how to blend Chinese and Western painting techniques in the city. He depicted local sites, such as the A-Ma Temple, the Octagonal Pavilion Library, the waterfront along Sai Van, and the Guia Lighthouse on Guia Hill, in his expressive works. He applied vibrant colours, lines and curves, innovatively blending ancient and contemporary techniques to allow the viewers to experience the city’s unique character. In each piece of work, he expressed his love for his homeland and his country.
The section ‘Portraits’ displays Lok’s many portrait pieces that possess well-rounded forms and distinctive spirit. The artist was well-versed in capturing appearances and characters in his portraits. He often drew sketches of his friends, skilfully applying ink and colours and creating vivid visual effects by playing with light and shadow. His portrayals of his subjects are almost always evocative and lifelike.
Lok created a seemingly endless stream of sketches and drawings during his lifetime. He loved to record the landscape, character and people of the motherland with his brush. The ‘Sketching from the Heart’ section covers many of these pieces. Lok’s sketches showcase his sophisticated approach to composition and demonstrate his creativity in depicting a scene imaginatively, mastering the combination of light and shadow, and blending his focal point with techniques such as‘cavalier perspective’ drawing.
The final section, ‘Works by Fellow Artists’, encompasses pieces by Lok’s artistic friends and peers. He befriended with many painters from the Chinese mainland, who admired and respected him, and he reciprocated their friendship. Through the exchange of paintings and artistic gifts, their bond of friendship was forged in the process. Each of these superb pieces shows the innovative styles and perspectives of Lok’s many artist friends.
Lok had witnessed and experienced many significant social changes in his aspiring life, particularly in Macao and the motherland. His artworks are the powerful testament. In short, Lok profoundly impacted the development of Macao’s art scene. We celebrate and remember this master in our exhibition.
We would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to Lok Cheong’s family for their invaluable support and generous donations of his works. This include Lok Cheong’s substantial works as well as the 100 remarkable pieces by his friends. Thanks to his family, organising this exhibition has been a smooth and rewarding process.
Ng Fong Chao
Curator