Some visitors' letters (1979)
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Dedicated to the Stars‘ Exhibition
Your exhibition of Stars
Is a new star born on the artists’ scene,
Your gleam of glory showed the way for a new star of art,
You have ignited the flame in my mind that will never end gleaming.
You made visible to the people the horror and crime of that endless night,
You brought the first light of the dawn,
You brought the brightness and hope for the future.
Concise strikes of your brush and neat modeling,
Skilled techniques and varied colors.
With works created with natural ease and wood craft,
You are expressing such plentiful feelings:
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They include pain and sorrow,
Mourning and tribute,
Anger and cheers,
Accusation and resistance,
Sympathy and pity,
Happyness and joy,
Love and strength,
Sweetness and delight,
Faith and courage,
Fondness and frenzy.
You conveyed this place of deep thought
Into works of art,
And men will never be able to lift all your treasures from the depth.
You are like a dagger perforating an enemy’s heart,
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Like a shell that blows up a mighty fortress,
You are lashing out at the evil, striving after justice,
You are waking up people showing them the future,
With sensitive brushstrokes you are pulling people’s heartstrings,
With the force of the brush you open people’s eyes,
Your romanticism allows art to be enjoyed.
With the courage of fighters and the boldness of heroes,
You have opened a new page for art.
May this glittering star never fall from heaven?
But signal a new era with its strong light.
A decorator of the Tianjin and Hebei Bangzi Opera Troupe
Gao Shuanguo
Dec. 1
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In the visitors‘ commentaries we often see a remark that “unfortunately workers and peasants are missing” …
Alas, workers and peasant; not that we do not love them, the Chinese people in its history has always been hard-working and indulgent. Unfortunately this is forgotten. The so-called class struggle makes everyone a class warrior, and at the same time, depending on circumstances, an object of this class struggle. He must endure this without saying a word, just repeating what he has mechanically learned to say. Can there really be democracy this way?
That was the time of constant attacks on the “stinking old nine” [nine categories of “enemies of the revolution”], intellectuals and educated people had to be hated. Isn’t it logical that Workers, Peasants and Soldiers became elevated? Aren’t they our masters? Whatever, no matter how hard you were working, there was no political democracy, and people enjoyed no freedom – everyone must die. Only those who let themselves being deceived, could become happy slaves. The only who called themselves real workers and peasants, were a clique of political hooligans and bandits.
Today’s highly developed capitalist countries (Japan, USA, France, Germany, England, …) unlike in the past, are no longer Hitlers, Tōjō Hidekis [Japanese war general] or Eight Nations Allied Troops [who invaded China and put down the Boxer Uprising in 1900]. With the development of technology and productive forces they have become civilized.
We follow a communist world view, and from its theory we are superior to the capitalist societies, but because of our semi-feudal and semi-colonial past, the poison of thousands of years of feudalism has not been completely eradicated, how shall we reach socialism with just one leap? That’s difficult. The negative outburst of the ten years of the Cultural Revolution has proved this.
Even if cooperatives and public ownership are quickly created, will the idea of petty individual ownership also simply disappear?
Marx has said that science is a productive force, so how can – without the development of productive forces – politics, culture, material life, democracy and freedom, or a judiciary unfold, on which material basis?
Page 5: Therefore we must continue developing our productive forces, bring a movement for enlightenment to the people – raise the level of scientific culture of the Chinese. Talking about shortcomings of your exhibition, I can raise two points: First, there is little talking about the hundreds of millions of peasants, of course they matter for your lives. Just think about how easily they get fooled, you should make them aware of this. You must not let the Four Modernizations just become a slogan for some who are already enlightened. Second, the only brand is red, but the red silk was not enough [??]. There is criticism, praise, […] and idealism. Therefore, on the the dark and heinous foundation, you need precious stones and now glitter, to give people faith and the illusion of a bright future.
Good works of art: Inside and outside, making one out of two, evil spirits. Excellent, China’s pride. Thank you. Pay attention to the dialectics, summarize the past correctly. Attention to the enemy causing trouble. (Egg) A reader The best art show of the last thirty years!
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To the 23 comrades of the Stars‘ Exhibition:
You honorable 23 soldiers who really know esthetics, you are like celebrities from a new cosmos who have descended to the real world, like a scant and colorful eye-catching precious stone.
You are China’s pride and hope, your art is of global significance.
Such beautiful and perfectly shaped sculptures, such esthetic melodies, representing such idealistic and free people. Alas, why has the beauty of your images not hovered around people earlier? Man has been created by gods, why must their grace be covered by clothes?! Garments should protect from the cold, decorate, not cover up!
All you sick and uncivilized ignorant ghosts, get out of here, the really civilized who represent culture and morality, are much nobler! And they understand esthetics much better! Those – from the Gang of Four’s ideological system, feudal dumbbells, who have become stinking maggots – rotten to the bones, mentally and physically and through their unworthy deeds!
History has been repeating itself through decades, the Chinese persued liberation, democracy, freedom and happiness, without ever accomplishing them, from 1957 to the smashing of the Gang of Four, they could never attain real freedom and well-being. Thanks to the destruction and interfering from the ideological system of the Gang of Four, of course.
Remarks from the Visitors' Book (November 1979)
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Visitors’ book
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“A single spark can start a prairie fire”
[unfortunatey some of the characters are hardly intelligible and difficult to read …] Humanity has already reached a highly developed material culture and a society of spiritual civilization, people need more and more spiritual enjoyment, and works of art should satisfy this demand. One thing your exhibition does, is going against tradition, it help to see things with new eyes. And even when we do not see any meaning, there is one […] that provokes. […] Frankly speaking, especially the painting and sculptures appeal to everybody. […] Some pieces appear to me as a as an ugly distorted beauty. […] Searching for beauty from the sick and ugly, wanting to be different, creating a new style. But I believe that an artist who knows to play this “game”, will always be better than a common stereotype. Although I stille do not understand some of your paintings, I want to see them and get inspired by them. And I hope you will continue to follow your ideas, and create new art, […]
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Like water flooding the hearts of every genuine Chinese, like the moonlight breaking through the clouds of a dark night. Bygone is the grief in the hearts of people, and we will deeply deplore the time we have lost.
“You” “Stars” will shine from the sky, The heaven of freedom will pay tribute to you As you are crying out the sounds of our era that does not create any of those false works.
As a young person roving in this part of the world I express my respect
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What matters most in this Stars’ exhibition is that you create all sorts of feelings, just like the human soul does. Wang Keping’s sculptures stick particularly out. They show a profound meaning, are impeccably executed, and they matter for today’s reality.
I do hope that the artists of the Stars’ exhibition continue to believe in their art and follow further the path of democracy, show no fear and do not let themselves be led by their noses.
I wish you continuous success!
Mo Yi [most likely a pseudonym expression admiration for this art]
Dec 3, 1979
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Artist and people
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On the frontline I shed my blood
Here I shed my tears
Fighter Hong Hesan
Nov. 23, 1979
Be a fixed star
Not a passing comet!
A visitor
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To the Stars
This is not a dialogue, but a heart-to-heart talk.
Having seen this first Stars’ exhibition, I am understanding better how you analyze the powers of life, seeing how you convey observations and images of your life, with different artistic styles and expressions. I think society should permit explorations like yours.
You all have your own peculiarities, with different leanings, and one cannot judge every artist and every work of art the same way.
Remarks from the Visitors' Book (August/September 1980)
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Please, hand over to a representative of the Stars’ Exhibition as soon as possible. Gao Yan, Artists’ Association
Our commentary book
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Completely exaggerated.
What the hell is this exhibition? Which art in this world does it reflect?
I am deeply convinced that these attention-seeking amateurs, if they continue like this, will just remain third-class manufacturers. And the Artists’ Association will not become friends with them.
Xiao Peng
Worker of the Construction Company No. 3
Sept. 7
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Uncle Huang Rui’s canvasses are very good, and uncle Wang Keping’s sculptures are also impressive, like real men, birds or sheep. The black pictures by uncle Ma Desheng are also painted very well.
I hope you will persist in your efforts to become even more successful, painting and modeling even better.
Two fellow students
Nonsense!!!
Chinese art needs tob e really „Chinese“
Not “Western”
Not acting responsibly!
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I have seen your paintings a third time. I had shown my little slip of paper again and again, asked many people before I found my way here. But I am happy with it, because I find the voices of my heart reflected in your artwork.
I admire that you are not dissuaded from your course, that you courageously continue your way.
Don’t be afraid of other people’s gossip, think back that more than a hundred years ago, artists like you have, despite many difficulties, finally been recognized by humanity.
Your visitors are among those who are really fond of art.
We wish you success.
A student who will soon leave Beijing
Aug. 15
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We appreciate the spirit that comes from these paintings.
Liao Tianqi (West Germany) [Note: The Taiwanese writer Tienchi Martin-Liao, Helmut Martin’s wife, later became president of the independent Chinese PEN Club.]
Prof. Dr. Helmut Martin
You have chosen a path that will hopefully not become a dead end road. Because of depreciation, you need to go your own way on Chinese soil.
A Peking University student Aug. 31, 1980
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Art should be enjoyment, encouragement and edification, and by no means terror, despair, sadness or endless pain. An artist must not explore something just because of a notion, or make a big story of the fact that he goes a new way.
A PLA visitor
Aug. 26, 1980
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The flowers in the open country
smell sweeter than those from the greenhouse
The water from deep in the mountains
tastes better than what comes out from a “faucet”,
your hard work’s sweat
brings plants to bloom
that no man would ever been able to.
Blossoms, everywhere on Chinese soil
Sprouts from the bosom auf the upright people of China
The world of “freedom and democracy”
a paradise of mankind???
The “Stars” shall sparkle,
and one day the genuine song of democracy shall be heard
Sept.1 (?), (??)Young Grass
Excerpts from commentaries left by visitors
The Hong Kong journal "Guanchajia" (The Observer) (issue 36, 20.10.1980) prints three pages of visitors' remarks left in the guest books:
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Questions and Answers
A: Some paintings I do not understand.
B: There is no need to understand them, as they do not have any meaning as such. A flower, a cloud, a mountain, a river, a bird or a girl … their esthetics will attract your looks, for some paintings there is no issue of understanding.
A: What does this carving mean? What should it represent?
B: It just stands for itself. It need not look like something specific to be valued.
A: I do not understand this painting, I just see colors hopping about?
B: You have understood.
A: Some paintings do not carry titles, so I would like to ask the artist to explain them.
B: If there is no title, there is no need for one. People should understand by themselves. Whatever you understand, that is its meaning. In a good painting, the artist will always express what he likes to say. What need not be said, there is also no need to talk about it. Unless you are a child, do not ask the painter for an explanation of his works. The artist is not wiser than you.
W.K. (Wang Keping) Aug. 26, 1980 [One of the participating artists]
The “Stars Exhibition” bestows power and experience on people and enhances progress of the society!
People’s Machinery Factory, Yu Luowen (Yu Luoke’s brother) [Yu Luoke, born in 1942, was publically executed in 1970 at the height of the Cultural revolution for having written a pamphlet criticizing the discrimination of people because their family background.]
Picasso is on the march!
May all the “Stars” of the world shine brighter than the “sun”! [referring to Mao]
T.J.W., Aug 27
Quite unexpectedly, we were led to the limits of our era through your exhibition.
Late impressionists, pointillists, abstract as well as naïve painting, presented themselves to our eyes in a fresh and formidable way, in a single push our classical Western painting has jumped half a century ahead.
The innovative works of our painters and artists let our hearts rejoice. Like the big inventions in other fields, the second Stars Exhibition has successfully opened a new era of Western-style painting in China.
A compatriot from abroad
After all, our society is bright, so do not use dark and pessimistic shades to represent it.
Whether we should praise or attack our current society, I think, we really need not debate any more.
An observer
In real life one constantly has the impression that "democracy” is fake and “hope” is hollow. But visiting the fine arts exhibition of the “Stars”, one seems to feel the glittering of the stars. So I do wish the “Stars Exhibition” a long life!
A spectator from Beijing
