The development of farmers' prints in Qijiang

Qijiang is located in the south of Chongqing, with beautiful mountains and rivers, numerous landscapes and profound historical and cultural accumulation. There are more than 20 ethnic groups living together in the territory, and folk customs have strong ethnic and regional characteristics. Blue calico, tie-dyeing, batik, wood carving, woodblock New Year pictures, stone carving, paper cutting, flower picking, embroidery, etc. are typical representatives of traditional folk art ... It is this magical land that gave birth to the wonderful work of peasant paintings in Qijiang.

Qijiang peasant painting rose in the early 1980s. He has exhibited in Beijing, Tianjin, Chongqing, Chengdu, Wuhan, Nanjing, Suzhou, Dalian and other cities 10, and has been invited to exhibit in more than 20 countries and regions such as the United States, Japan, Britain, France, Canada, Norway and Hong Kong, and has cooperated with art groups and friendly people in more than 10 countries. Up to now, more than 65,438+0,500 works have been collected by China Art Museum, provincial (city) museums, China's embassies abroad and foreign art galleries. 1985 Sichuan Provincial Department of Culture, Sichuan Artists Association and Chongqing Municipal People's Government awarded Qijiang County the title of "Hometown of Farmers' Printmaking"; 1Feb. 988, Qijiang County was named as "the hometown of modern folk painting in China" by the Ministry of Culture. Since 2003, Qijiang farmers' paintings have been identified as foreign cultural exchange gifts by Chongqing.

On May 18, 2006, Qijiang Farmers Printing Industry Development Co., Ltd. was named as the second batch of national cultural industry demonstration bases by the Ministry of Culture.

On August 28th, 2008, Chongqing Creative Industry Development Leading Group and Creative Office awarded Qijiang Farmer Printing Industry Development Co., Ltd. the title of "Chongqing Creative Industry Base".

20081October 28th 165438 Our county was named "China Folk Culture and Art Town" (painting) by the Ministry of Culture because of farmers' prints.

In special times, printmaking is difficult to do. In 1960s, sichuan fine arts institute teachers and students often went to Qijiang to experience life and engage in artistic activities such as creation. Therefore, Qijiang gathered a large number of artistic creative talents, which laid the foundation for influencing and driving a group of farmers to embark on the road of printmaking art. However, from the early days of liberation to the reform and opening up, it is still difficult to create. Jiang Shengli, who is famous for his landscape prints, likes painting since he was a child. After graduating from junior high school, he sketched everywhere, but because of that special era, painting and sketching hit a wall everywhere. Once, he ran to a mountain to draw the Sanjiang Bridge. He was taken away for questioning before the painting was finished. The other party suspected that he had another intention to draw a bridge. On another occasion, Jiang Shengli went to Dongxi to sketch. The East-West Revolutionary Committee allowed him to paint landscapes, but he was not allowed to paint houses. An old man living by a stream told young people to be optimistic about Jiang Shengli and not to draw his house. The old man said that the dilapidated house damaged the local image.

At the beginning of the rise, the village held a printmaking class. Gui Huanyong was born in Gaishi Village, Qijiang County. /kloc-after graduating from junior high school at the age of 0/4, Gui Huanyong returned to the countryside and picked up a brush. From 65438 to 0983, farmers' printmaking rose in Qijiang, and farmers' printmaking classes were set up in Sanjiang, Shijiao and other towns and villages. At that time, the Cultural Station only allocated one place for each brigade to enter the creative class, and Gui Huanyong, who was 14 years old, did not receive the notice to enter the creative class. Before the creation class started, Gui Huanyong got news from somewhere, and Gai Shi will also hold a creation class. On the day of class, Gui Huanyong got up in the middle of the night, with a flashlight, and drove more than 20 miles of mountain roads. Before dawn, he came to the cultural station early and asked to attend the creative class. The tutor didn't expect the teenagers in front of him to have such a persistent pursuit of art, so he made an exception and agreed to Gui Huanyong's request.

In order to explore the way forward, seven townships set up print creation groups. With the opening of some peasant printmaking classes in towns and villages in Qijiang, peasant printmakers like Gui Huanyong who have great enthusiasm for printmaking have entered the class for training. Some farmers' creators took creative classes at first because they wanted to learn some painting skills in order to make a living and make money in the future. At first, the tutor used New Year pictures as a model for the creative class to teach painting techniques, which had some differences with the students. Some students openly question their tutors. "This is fooling the township and farmers!" Facing the pressure, the creative class slowly explored a set of methods to adapt to the characteristics of farmers' printmaking on how to teach and what to teach. From 1983 to 1985, 3 1 7 artists from 59 townships in Qijiang County participated in the printmaking class and created more than 1000 prints. Among them, seven townships set up printmaking groups.

Seize the opportunity, visit Chinese prints, and make a sensation in Beijing. In the 1980s, although the creative team of farmers' prints in Qijiang County became larger and larger, farmers' prints in Qijiang did not attract much attention from the outside world, but won the recognition of artists.

1983 10 Teacher Gui Huanyong, Li Yili and other farmers' printmakers from Qijiang came to Beijing. Without prior contact, I took a dozen paintings to visit Mr. Hua, vice chairman of China Artists Association. At that time, Hua Lao was working when a stranger came to visit, and Hua Lao looked sad. Li Yili quickly apologized: "Hua Lao, I'm sorry ..." Hua Lao saw the sincerity of the guests and put down his work to see the paintings brought by Li Yili. Gradually, the old man's face changed from sulk to exultation, and he was attracted by more than a dozen paintings in front of him. 1984 65438+1On October 8th, Qijiang farmers' prints caused a sensation in Beijing when they were exhibited in China Art Museum.

Towards glory, Qijiang Edition Painting Academy was launched in France. "In the past, farmers' printmaking conditions were simple and there was no fixed exhibition place. It's different now. Gui Huanyong introduced that in June 2005, the Qijiang Edition Painting Academy, which was included in the eight popular projects of Chongqing Municipal Party Committee and Municipal Government, officially broke ground and was completed and opened on September 28 of the same year. Qijiang Printed Painting Academy covers an area of 4. 17 mu, with a building area of 2,825 square meters, including exhibition halls, workshops and warehouses. In 2004, Qijiang printmaking went to Toulouse, France to participate in the Sino-French Cultural Year. Before the exhibition, Ms. Novina, a local diplomat, was skeptical about the prints of farmers in China. After the exhibition, she praised: "Farmers in China can draw pictures, and their imaginations are so rich and their creations are so bold. These peasant painters are Picasso and Matisse in the East! "