From December 8 to 22, 2017, the graduation art of a postgraduate student Miao Zhen was exhibited in the Art Gallery of the Wang Xuezhong Art Research Institute of Tianjin University on the Weijin Road Campus. Miao Zhen’s exhibition is about Chinese calligraphy and paintings, taking Tianjin University as a subject.

Sun Lie, his supervisor wrote a note on the occasion of Miao’s exhibition: “In my mind, to be a supervisor, firstly, one must be knowledgeable and possess much expertise in a certain field, so that he could help find a cornerstone for his students. A supervisor could guide his students onto the road to future self-study. A supervisor should have a goal without blind faith and practice without bigotry.

Secondly, supervisors must be a model for others. They should break down the wall between the knowledge in the books and the wisdom of life, combine them together and teach students by their own example.”

Sun Lie also gave his impression of his postgraduate student: “Miao Zhen is the first postgraduate admitted to Min Yuan. My first impression of him was that he was modest and strong-minded. In class, he was cautious, but devoted to learning. Moreover, he was able to draw inferences from other cases and was diligent in practice.”

In Miao’s opinion, portrait painting not only combines the quintessence of eastern and western paintings as well as ancient and modern paintings, but also is preeminent in getting close to life and reflecting the times. It is one of Miao Zhen’s favorite themes. It has been three years since Miao entered Tianjin University. The exhibited paintings are sketches which take TJU students as subjects. The exhibition works represent his deepest thoughts and their true expression. He said that it was his schoolmates at Tianjin University who inspired to paint. He said he would like to extend his sincere gratitude to them.

Miao prefers to express his feelings about mountains and rivers in thick and simple ink.

Towering landscapes are considered by ancient literati as the joy of wise men. During his study, Miao followed his supervisor to visit the Temple of Confucius, Mount Tai, Chang'an, and Mount Hua. These experiences made Miao revere nature and the ancestors’ wisdom and develop a strong emotional attachment for mountains and rivers. His painting seeks to learn from nature and ultimately express his feelings through painting landscapes.

Chinese calligraphy and painting focus on the expression of feelings. In these paintings, Miao mostly pursued this interest in pen and ink. The various themes and styles are all that he sees, feels, and thinks. He thought, “Calligraphy and painting share the same root. The explicit purpose of my learning calligraphy is to inscribe the painting and the implicit purpose is to pursue the written rendering of the painting. The process of learning is painful, but the dull practice not only improves my calligraphy level but also stretches my endurance. I will benefit from it for a lifetime.”

Editors: Sun Xiaofang and Ross Colquhoun