FORMATION OF THE YUNNAN SCHOOL OF PAINTING IN CHINA IN THE FIRST AND SECOND THIRD OF THE 20TH CENTURY: FROM THE “PARISIAN” TO THE “SOCIALIST REALIST” ARTS

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to study the process of formation of the Yunnan school of painting in the context of the evolution of Chinese fine arts during two periods: the “Parisian” 1930–1940s and the “socialist realist” 1950s – mid-1970s.Methodology. The authors use the methods of typological, comparative and historical-chronological analysis.In order to identify and substantiate the main stages of the Yunnan school of painting, the periodization method was used.Scientific novelty. The analysis of sources made it possible to identify, research and substantiate the main stages of the development of the Yunnan school of painting and focus on the analysis of the art of the first two periods: “Parisian” and “socialist realist” art. Internal relationships are studied in the context of the evolution of painting of each individual period. The article identifies and analyzes the thematic features of painting and the dynamics of the style repertoire.Conclusions. The work of artists of the “Parisian” period of the first half of the 20th century. played a key role in the demarcation of traditional and modern art. Acquaintance with Western European trends in painting prompted artists to rethink their own experience, which is noticeable in the work of Liao Xinxue and Li Jiming – the two most influential figures in painting in the region at that time. Both artists made a lot of efforts for the mutual incorporation of Chinese and Western art, trying to form the modernist face of Chinese painting as a self-sufficient phenomenon. The combination of organizational and creative efforts allowed to form the concept of the Yunnan school of painting. This becomes noticeable in the 1940s both in the field of art education and in exhibition projects. The Yunnan School of Painting in the 1950s and 1960s was distinguished by a wide variety of genres and stylistic forms, which was manifested in a characteristic stylistic and species eclecticism. A sign of this was the tendency to use gohua to depict socialist realist motifs (the work of Wang Jinyuan and Mei Xiaoqing). In contrast, the use of oil painting to express informal symbolic meanings (for example, in the paintings of Zhang Ding) showed the connection of oil painting with the traditions of Chinese art. It was in the 1950s that the Yunnan School reached the all-Chinese level: its thematic repertoire was established, artistic trends (primarily painting with ethnic motifs) emerged, and the foundations of the phenomenon of “strong color painting” were formed.Practical significance. The text and visual materials of the publication deepen the understanding of regional painting in the context of Ukrainian oriental studies, which has practical potential for scientific and educational work.