Cartoonist poked fun at the pompous
By Wang Jie |
October 24, 2012, Wednesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
CARTOONS of old Shanghai and caricatures of pompous bureaucrats made Ye Qianyu (1907-1995)famous in the late 1920s and 1930s, but the "Sketch King" was also a skilled painter in ink-wash and other styles.
An exhibition of 170 drawings and 30 traditional ink-wash paintings is underway at the Liu Haisu Art Museum and runs through November 7.
Ye was famous for his "Mr Wang" newspaper cartoon series in Shanghai. Wang is a snobbish landowner who moves to Shanghai with his family. In depicting Wang and his overbearing wife with humor, he gives a glimpse of society at the time. Ye is said to have been the first Chinese comics artist to use speech balloons.
Ye, a native of Zhejiang Province, studied art in San Francisco in the early 1920s. In the mid-1920s he did commercial work, educational illustrations and stage props in Shanghai. He was active with patriotic artists during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (1937-1945). After 1949 he became head of the Chinese painting department of the Zhejiang Academy of Fine Arts.
In addition to his cartoons and caricatures in 1949, Ye is widely known for his drawing of dancing figures on stage. He was influenced by his third wife, Dai Ailian (1916-2006), a pioneer in China's ballet who studied in London and returned to China during the anti-Japanese war. She led China's first ballet troupe. They eventually divorced.
Ye's fourth marriage was to famous actress Wang Renmei (1915-1987), a rival of actress Jiang Qing, wife of Chairman Mao Zedong. The couple were imprisoned separately during the "cultural revolution" (1966-1976). Ye was accused of being a spy but it is said that they were jailed by Jiang out of revenge.
"When talking about Ye, many think of his four marriages," says noted critic Xie Chunyan, who had studied under Ye. "I would say that my teacher was a romantic and put his heart and soul into every relationship. But his art achievements should never be forgotten, they have a big influence on Chinese art today."
Date: Through November 7 (closed Mondays), 9am-5pm
Address: 1665 Hongqiao Rd
An exhibition of 170 drawings and 30 traditional ink-wash paintings is underway at the Liu Haisu Art Museum and runs through November 7.
Ye was famous for his "Mr Wang" newspaper cartoon series in Shanghai. Wang is a snobbish landowner who moves to Shanghai with his family. In depicting Wang and his overbearing wife with humor, he gives a glimpse of society at the time. Ye is said to have been the first Chinese comics artist to use speech balloons.
Ye, a native of Zhejiang Province, studied art in San Francisco in the early 1920s. In the mid-1920s he did commercial work, educational illustrations and stage props in Shanghai. He was active with patriotic artists during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (1937-1945). After 1949 he became head of the Chinese painting department of the Zhejiang Academy of Fine Arts.
In addition to his cartoons and caricatures in 1949, Ye is widely known for his drawing of dancing figures on stage. He was influenced by his third wife, Dai Ailian (1916-2006), a pioneer in China's ballet who studied in London and returned to China during the anti-Japanese war. She led China's first ballet troupe. They eventually divorced.
Ye's fourth marriage was to famous actress Wang Renmei (1915-1987), a rival of actress Jiang Qing, wife of Chairman Mao Zedong. The couple were imprisoned separately during the "cultural revolution" (1966-1976). Ye was accused of being a spy but it is said that they were jailed by Jiang out of revenge.
"When talking about Ye, many think of his four marriages," says noted critic Xie Chunyan, who had studied under Ye. "I would say that my teacher was a romantic and put his heart and soul into every relationship. But his art achievements should never be forgotten, they have a big influence on Chinese art today."
Date: Through November 7 (closed Mondays), 9am-5pm
Address: 1665 Hongqiao Rd
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
