English Version
For Yuan Yunsheng, "line" is an "autonomous language system full of Chinese plastic characteristics." The state of the line in the hands of different artists also reflects back to the artist himself. As he once mentioned, "The essence of the line is abstract," and his ink works such as "Confrontation," "Line·Form," and "Pervade" revisit the tradition of ink wash, integrating the Eastern writing system, seeking a solid combination with appropriate figurative images amidst pure abstraction, thereby achieving an aesthetic independent of imagery. In addition to the lines found in line drawing and calligraphy, there are also the lines of sketching. The paperboard sketches he created in the 1980s, such as "Life," are not only a testament to his mastery of language but also a pursuit of life, existence, and death. It was an era of rapid acceleration in information and economic globalization, perhaps when humanity had never before so deeply felt the interconnectedness of a community. As an artist, Yuan Yunsheng's artistic language and the era's demands called out to each other across the distance. He responded to the era, and in turn, the era shaped him.
In examining his artistic exploration to this day, Yuan Yunsheng has focused on expanding the inclusiveness of thought in painting, "seeking broad, profound, and luminous things." His later large-scale landscapes are a culmination of the sediment of years, expanding the capacity within painting. Having lived through an era full of cultural evolution and time lag, he chose a return of the subject with the brush after the waves have calmed. These artistic explorations and personal emotions, soaked in the concepts of restraint and release, questioning and abandonment, the wisdom of five thousand years and the birth of new life, solidity and fluidity, converge into a single circuit within these large-scale oil paintings. We may follow this thread to probe the sincere choices of an artist who provides a side portrait of his era in the realm of painting.
关于艺术家
About Artist
袁运生，1937年生于江苏南通，1962年毕业于中央美术学院油画系董希文工作室。1979年创建中央美术学院壁画系，同年以云南西双版纳的线描和首都机场《泼水节——生命的赞歌》大型壁画引起美术界与思想界的轰动。1982年应邀访美，任教于塔夫茨大学、哈佛大学等高校，期间创作大量以水墨为媒介的作品，激活了水墨固有的流动性和渗透性，以强劲的能量进行着绘画的书写。1996年应邀回国，任教于中央美术学院。晚年回到了大风景的油画创作中，至今保持着旺盛的创作状态。
袁运生的艺术探索伴随着中国社会的时代变迁，与当下面临的文化语境相互回应，由此构成了其各时期尤为丰富多元的图景。他以传统为根基，几十年中持续进行着现代性的个人化实践，在与时代的强烈对撞中呈现出纯粹的强度和力量。袁运生的创作持续不变地在讨论生命，对他来说，生命不是同外在之物对抗的力量，相反，生命是自身内在的力与力冲突的舞台剧场。
重要个展：
2023 《纵浪大化——袁运生与壁画梦》，中央美术学院美术馆，北京
2023 《回到南通》，南通美术馆，江苏
2022《眺望远方》 ，站台中国当代艺术机构，北京
2022《袁运生的历程》，龙美术馆（西岸馆），上海
2021《魂兮归来——袁运生》，站台中国当代艺术机构，北京
2021 一段修复的记忆——袁运生《水乡的记忆》作品史研究，中央美术学院美术馆，北京
2019《袁运生——生命的赞歌》，站台中国当代艺术机构，北京
2017《走向文明的自觉——袁运生艺术展》，中国美术馆，北京
2014《第三条路——袁运甫、袁运生绘画作品展》，中间美术馆，北京
2014《南通籍名家系列展——袁运生作品展》，南通市中心美术馆，南通
2010《熟饭乎？——袁运生个展》，Galerie99，德国
1997 作品《搏》参加意大利“第47届威尼斯国际艺术双年展”
1993《袁运生画展》，国际艺苑美术馆，北京
1992 在美国洛杉矶东方艺术中心举办个展
1992 在中国台北市玄门艺术中心举办个展
1991《袁运生近作展》，西百老汇街456画廊，纽约
1987 在纽约Soho区Art Wave画廊举办个展
1985 在旧金山威列画廊举办个展
1984 在哈佛大学做访问艺术学者并举办个人画展
1983 在纽约市东汉普顿70A公园韦雷德国际艺术画廊举办个展“袁运生”
1983 在美国波士顿市政府大厦画廊、美国塔夫斯大学、美国恩普斯特学院博物馆、美国斯密斯学院艺术系、美国麻省大学、美国北爱荷华大学美术馆举办展览
1980 南通市文联
1979 北京中央工艺美术学院展览馆
1978 云南省博物馆和云南省艺术学院举办个展
Selected Solo Exhibitions：
2023 Revel in the Universe's Infinite Flux--Yuan Yunsheng and His Dream of Murals Painting’, CAFA Art Museum, Beijing
2023 Back to Nantong, Yuan Yunsheng Art Exhibition, Nantong Art Museum, Jiangsu
2022 Look into the distance, Platform China Contemporary Art Institute, Beijing 2022 Journey of Yuan Yunsheng, Long Museum, Shanghai
2021 REGENERATION, Platform China Contemporary Art Institute, Beijing
2021 The Restoration of the Memory –A Study of the history of Yuan Yunsheng’s work ‘Memories of the Water Town’, CAFA Art Museum, Beijing
2019 EXTOL LIFE, Platform China Contemporary Art Institute, Beijing
2017 Self-Conscious to the Civilization Renowned Chinese Artists of Fine Arts in the 20th Century, National Art Museum, Beijing
2014 The Third Path—Yuan Yunfu Yuan Yunsheng paintings exhibition，Inside-Out Art Museum, Beijing
2014 Nantong Famous Artists Exhibition series-Exhibition of Works by Yuan Yunsheng, Nantong Central Museum
2010 Cooked Rice? – Yuan Yunsheng’s solo exhibition，Galerie99，Germany
1997 His work Struggle was displayed in the 47th International Art Exhibition Venice Biennale, Italy
1993 The Exhibition of Painting by Yuan Yunsheng，International Art Gallery，Beijing
1992 He held a solo exhibition at the Oriental Art Center in Los Angeles
1992 He held a solo exhibition at the Xuanmen Art Center in Taipei
1991 Yuan Yunsheng’s Recent Works，456 Gallery West Broadway，New York
1987 He held a solo exhibition at the Art Wave Gallery in soho, New York
1985 He held a solo exhibition at the Wheeler Gallery in San Francisco
1984 He stayed as a visiting art scholar at the Harvard University and held a solo exhibition there
1983 He held solo exhibition at the Vered International Art Gallery 70A Park Place East Hampton, New York
1983 Boston City Hall Gallery,Tufts University, Amherst College Museum, North Iowa University, Smith College
1980 Nantong Cultural Palace
1979 Central Institute of Design, Beijing
1978 Museum of Yun-nan and Fine Arts College of Yun-nan
