As someone for whom the education of our youth is paramount, I was thrilled to featuring Grade 12 students. The exhibition, curated by Zhang Liyuan (Vivian), features the work by students of Maple Leaf International School. I was also so pleased to learn that this exhibition is part of a growing emphasis that is being placed on the Arts at the school.
As she did with her debut curatorship, Vivian could not have chosen a better venue for this exhibition. The fact that it afforded students have the opportunity to have their work shown in the same halls as more seasoned artists must be such an amazing feeling for an 18 year old. I wrote about the venue last time it hosted work by Madeline Churchill , also curated by Vivian.
To quote from the Exhibition notes: "As an art and cultural venue hosted by the Gediao in TEDA district, the Artist Residency of TEDA and Tianjin TEDA Maple Leaf International School, jointly organised this Maple Leaf Art Exhibition."
I thoroughly enjoyed seeing how students took some of their favourite artists and interpreted the work in new and fresh ways. Life has an interesting way of making connections. Just last week I told my daughter I was preparing some Andy Warhol prints for her and then what happens - he is a strong figure in this exhibition. Walking around the gallery and looking at students' work reminded me of TS Eliot, 20th Century Modern poet, who talked about the poet in his seminal non-fictional essay, Tradition and the Individual Talent. He says that any poet, and I will extend this to any artist, will draw on the past and may even be accused of imitation, but he adds his individual talent to the creation. This is what I felt as I walked around - students paying homage to an artist but also extending themselves to come up with something unique. I felt this especially in the Warhol and Degas pieces.
On a no lesser note, the floral display is a bold expression of Spring and Summer and happiness. I use the word bold because we are moving into Winter, but knowing how dreary the Winters are here, I cannot think of a better way to keep the season of joy alive. I recall Shelley's Ode to the West Wind where he writes, 'O wind, if Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?'
There is something very special about students who allow themselves to be scrutinised like this. My message to them is simple - listen not to the naysayers. Take your skills and passion to the next level by constantly putting yourselves out there. The traditional artist is now, more than ever, under threat, as the digital age becomes more and more influential. Social media and devices are fighting for your souls, but much like the teenager who still buys books and records, you keep fighting the good fight. Some things are worth pursuing.
These are bleak and uncertain times, so I encourage everyone to see what our youth are doing - such positive energy can be seen and felt in their works here. Vivian has done an amazing job in doing her part to put this together. I am particularly happy that she is doing so much through this to develop young artists.
The exhibition runs until 10 November.
I am a restaurant, champagne and hotel blogger living in Tianjin.
I: bmstoltenkamp WeChat: champagneloving
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