GU GAN 古干- DARTING HAPPILY IN WATER 涛中乐

Gu Gan (1942-2020)
Darting Happily in water - 涛中乐
Ink and colour on paper
Unmounted
Titled, inscribed and signed, with three red seals of the artist
Measures approx. 86cm x 86cm

Gu Gan was born in 1942, into a prosperous family in Hunan province in central China. His aptitude for painting led to his admission at the age of twenty to China's Central Academy of Fine Arts and he was assigned to work in the cultural bureau of the Beijing Municipal Government. In the late 1960s he turned to calligraphy as a means of achieving a measure of comfort and scape through the repeated and disciplined practice of this art. In 1975 he was transferred to a position as art editor of the People's Literature Publishing House, where he was able to resume his study of painting. At the same time he was gaining recognition as a traditional Chinese painter,

Gu Gan was becoming increasingly excited by Western art, specially Kandinsky, Klee and Miró. Through studying Western art Gu Gan came to believe that there were a number of ways in which Chinese calligraphy could be revitalized, and by the late 1970s he began to adopt a more radical approach to calligraphy, which led to his becoming the prime mover in the Modernist school of Chinese calligraphy. He started experimenting with changes in the outer shape of individual characters by elongating or widening them into new forms. He then took the characters apart, spreading their constituent elements across his compositions. In addition, he would write each of these elements in a different script. Another innovation was his use of coloured ink. In recognition of his achievement in mounting the Modernist Calligraphy Exhibition of 1985,

Gu Gan was elected chairman of the newly established Society of Modern Calligraphy. In 1987 Gu Gan travelled to Europe and met Professor K.P.Brehmer in Hamburg, with whom he has worked on occasional collaborative pieces ever since. Greatly encouraged by him, Gu Gan wrote his highly influential book "The Three Steps of Modern Calligraphy", first published in English in 1990. Gu Gan produced works on Buddhist themes throughout the 1990s. The highly innovative use of seals bearing images of Buddha and other Buddhist symbols further strengthens the visual message. Many of these seals were inspired by his research into the ancient monastery of Dunhuang, whose caves contain lively images that entered China via the Silk Route.

After his return from Germany in 1993, nostalgia featured more prominently in Gu Gan's work. Increasingly he recalled his happy childhood, growing up in a country village. Gu Gan gained international recognition in 1998 when he was honoured with an invitation to provide the painting for the label of Château Mouton Rothschild's grand cru of 1996. He was the first Chinese artist ever to receive this distinction, joining a exclusive group of artists including Picasso, Bracque, Matisse, Kandinsky, Miró and Hockney. Five of this works are being displayed in the British Museum, London.

古干 涛中乐
1996年作
設色紙本
款識：唐校笙先生闲玩 05年夏 古干画
鈐印：「古干」

古干（1942年-2020年）湖南长沙人。擅长绘画、书法、书籍装帧。1962年毕业于中央美术学院中专，大学因病肄业。1975年到人民文学出版社工作。1987年至1993年多次应波恩大学、汉堡美术学院之邀，讲授中国现代书法。现供职于人民文学出版社美术编辑室。中国美术家协会会员、中国茶掸学会理事、中国现代书画学会首任会长、世界书法家协会荣誉顾问。书画作品七次获奖，曾在国内外举办个人书画展览。《西游记》插图为中国美术馆收藏。作品曾出展维也纳博物馆、科隆博物馆、美国、英国、日本、加拿大、香港等地。被中国美术馆、大英博物馆、科隆博物馆等收藏。出版有《舞姿拾零》、《古干书法作品选集》、《古干书画》等。著有《现代书法构成》、《现代派书法三步》、《现代书法三步》(英文版)。主编《硬笔新华书法字典》、《佛教画藏》。