The paintings capture the city’s great changes over the years

Hundreds of paintings depicting China’s rapid development over the past decade are on display at the Fengxian District Museum as one of the main local attractions during the weeklong National Day holiday, which begins on Saturday.

The exhibition, which features 200 paintings created by independent Chinese artists, is free to the public until Nov. 29. An online showroom has also been launched to offer a virtual tour.

The paintings are categorized into four sections: the landscape of China, the urban-rural landscape, the life of Chinese people, and portraits from all walks of life. They showcase the patriotism of independent artists and their intention to record social development in their artistic creations, according to organizers.

Freelance artists include freelance painters, cartoonists, and television and film producers. They are part, with other freelancers and members of the new economy and social organizations, of the “new social class” of the country.

The new class, which emerged mainly after the reform and opening up of the nation, contributed a lot to the development of the country. There are approximately 150 million members of this new class, which represents 11.5% of the total population of the country.

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More than 1,800 works by domestic independent artists have been collected after the organizer began soliciting exhibits for the event, of which only 200 were selected and are on display at the museum.

Renowned cartoonist Gan Feng, better known by his pseudonym Murong Yindao, created serial cartoons titled “Our 70 Years” for the exhibition with fellow local artist Zhu Xiaohu.

Gan is famous for the cartoon dog Daodao, considered a healing cartoon character for people going through difficult times, while his partner Zhu established the Tiger Cafe in Shanghai several years ago.

The serial paintings depict the slice of life of a typical Shanghainese family and show the city’s great changes over the past seven decades.

Visitors can also view other exhibits at the museum during the holidays.

The museum, designed by Japanese architect Sou Fujimoto, covers 20,000 square meters next to Jinhai Lake. It features permanent exhibits on the town planning and history of Fengxian, which gained its name during the Spring and Autumn period (770-476 BC) when the area’s first inhabitants offered their help to an apprentice of Confucius.

Another exhibition traces the history of its dyke, a listed historic site that the city built in 1713 by order of the Emperor. The flood barrier has contributed to the social and economic development of the city and part of it has been well preserved.

Exhibition information:

Dates: until November 29

Tickets: Free

Venue: Fengxian District Museum

Address: 333 Hupan Road

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