Masterpieces open a dialogue across cultures

From a raging dragon soaring through clouds, rendered in the energetic strokes of Song Dynasty (960-1279) artist Chen Rong, to geese enjoying themselves on Taihu Lake in Jiangsu province, painted by modern artist Wu Guanzhong, the National Art Museum of China in Beijing is turning its fifth- and sixth-floor galleries into a long-term display of selected works from its collection.

The display brings together classical Chinese paintings and calligraphy, oil paintings and sculptures by Chinese and international artists, inviting audiences into a dialogue between the past and present, and between the East and the West.

Among the works on view is a hand scroll depicting bamboo and rocks, attributed to Song scholar Su Shi. It will remain on display until Sept 6.

The exhibition opened at a special ceremony on Aug 29, when the museum also announced the upcoming Homage to the Virtuosos: Exhibition of Masterpieces by Nicolai Fechin (1881-1955), which will run from Sept 29 to Feb 14.

The Russian artist, known as one of the best students of Ilya Repin, will be the focus of the exhibition, co-organized by Chinese and Russian cultural institutions. It will bring together 75 works tracing Fechin's artistic career and showing the richness of his style and the breadth of his creativity.