Looking back on Li Xiongcai's art

A grand retrospective show is being held at National Art Museum of China for Li Xiongcai (1910-2001), one of the most influential artists of the Lingnan Painting School in Guangdong province.

An extension and culmination of the Centennial Exhibition for Li Xiongcai successfully held in cities across Guangdong in 2011, this exhibition has been the most inclusive so far, encompassing more than 400 pieces of artworks Li created from the early 1930s to late 1990s.

"Visitors to the exhibition may not know about Li himself but they may be familiar with Li's signature works," says Guangdong Painting Academy director Xu Qinsong.

"Li is a prolific painter who produced many gigantic ink landscapes for public spaces and government buildings across the country since the 1940s, including huge pieces at the Great Hall of the People, the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, and the Chairman Mao Zedong's Memorial Hall."

To give viewers a clear idea about Li's life and art, the ink paintings, charcoal drawings, ink sketches and calligraphic scrolls are on show along with a documentary video, numerous old photos, posters, publications, Li's manuscripts and even his painting tools.

9 am-5 pm, until Aug 20. National Art Museum of China, 1 Wusi Dajie, Dongcheng district, Beijing. 010-6400-1476

- Zhu Linyong