导语：The most important thing is that the dialogue between the two sides should not be superficial, but in-depth. It is important that both sides gain or benefit from the dialogue.
The Diplomat Magazine(DM): Hello,Mr Xia,Can you introduce your artistic career?
Xia PengCheng( XIA): Influenced by my elder generation, I began to write Spring Festival couplets at the age of six. I remember that I never touched a brush at that time, but with the help of my elders, I completed the first pair of spring couplets written in my life. The adults praised my writing, and I found my confidence increased. Since then, writing spring couplets became a necessary task for me to complete. When I was in junior high school, I was in my sister's house during the summer vacation, and the county cultural Center held a calligraphy training class. Full of curiosity, I participated in the study, but I found the teacher's orthodox style of writing was not what I liked, so I gave up.
Now looking back, I realize my father asked me to copy two pieces of Liu Gongquan's regular script every day was actually my calligraphy enlighten education. I insisted on practicing calligraphy in high school and at university , when the blackboard in the classroom was the best place for me to practice calligraphy, and I got various awards for participating in various competitions. In my twenties, I took the leading position of the municipal calligraphy association, and had close contacts with famous scholars from all over the world and my vision of calligraphy became broader. In particular, I benefited a lot from becoming a student of Mr. Shen Peng, the master of calligraphy. I had a deeper understanding of calligraphy.
DM: Who are the Chinese calligraphers that have influenced you most?
Xia: The ancient Chinese calligraphers that have influenced me most are Wang Xizhi in the Jin Dynasty, Yan Zhenqing in the Tang Dynasty, Mi Fu in the Song Dynasty, Xu Wei in the Ming Dynasty and so on. As for modern calligraphers, they are Kang Youwei, Xie Wowang and Shen Peng.
DM: How do you evaluate your painting works? As for western art genres, which genres do you consider yourself leaning towards?
XIA: My painting concept is to make the past serve the present and to adopt western drawing skills to Chinese painting, so as to combine Chinese and Western drawing styles together.
There are many genres of Western art: the classicists, Impressionism, Cubism, abstract Expressionism, etc.. I can’t say which ones have the greatest influence on me. Contemporary abstract Expressionism is closer to us, which can give the audience a rich imagination and better interaction. So relatively speaking, it has a greater influence on me.
DM: What are some of your satisfying artistic events?
XIA: There are many artistic creation events that impress me most,and here I will talk about two.
In 2019, I created a huge oil painting "Black City" at the Hudson Center for the Arts in New York, USA. At that time, there was no large oil brush. Suddenly, I found that there was a broken loop in the corner of the studio, so I used it to create that large painting. When it was on display, American artists were shocked to know that it was painted with a loop, and they all gave it a thumbs-up.
The second time was the International Great Wall Day on July 7 2023, when I was invited to create a 77-meter large ink scroll "Inside and Outside the Great Wall" on the Great Wall. Back then, the outdoor temperature was 42℃degrees, and it lasted 3 hours for me to create, which was an unprecedented challenge for me both physically and mentally. "Inside and Outside the Great Wall" has been well received by Chinese and foreign friends.
DM: How do you understand the international art dialogue?
XIA: I like the form of international art dialogue. But it's not easy to make this form meaningful. The most important thing is that the dialogue between the two sides should not be superficial, but in-depth. It is important that both sides gain or benefit from the dialogue.
DM: What do you benefit most from “When The Chinese Dragon meets Turkish Blue Eye” activity? What else would you like to meet?
XIA: My biggest gains from this China-Türkiye art exchange exhibition can be concluded in the following three points.
Firstly, the Diplomat Magazine and the Turkish Cultural Center made this exchange very rigorous, from the large pattern to the small details. It was a truly equal exchange.
Secondly, I have felt the cultural differences and complementarity between the two countries. The Chinese dragon and the Turkish blue eye can live in harmony while displaying respective beauty. Here I’d like to thank Ms. Aisha, an excellent artist.
Thirdly, I have also experienced that Turkey is really a country that attaches special importance to art. The ambassador, counselor and director of the Cultural Center all played their roles in this event, which made the event of high standard.
Thank you very much. I would also like to thank China Central Television, Beijing Television Station, China News Service, China Daily, Turkish State Television, Turkish State News Agency, China Today magazine, etc. who participated in the coverage of this event with news and videos. They help spread Chinese calligraphy art to the world.
DM: What do you think of the popular “go global” trend of Chinese painting and calligraphy art this year? What are your suggestions?
XIA: It is necessary to spread Chinese calligraphy and painting to the world, which is the most effective way to promote Chinese culture overseas. To go global, we need to have cultural confidence, but we can not just show or show off. It is necessary for us to have an inclusive attitude toward foreign arts and have a learning attitude to make progress ourselves.
Take this China-Türkiye art exchange exhibition as an example, I chose the calligraphy that best represents Chinese culture, and what I wrote are the 12 zodiac signs that everyone can relate to. This reduces the cultural strangeness between countries, so that most people can engage in it. However, if I wrote some Tang poetry and Song Poems in cursive script, it would be meaningless for foreign friends who do not know Chinese characters.
This time, Ms. Ayse Gümüs from Türkiye created a comprehensive painting with oil color materials in space installations, some of which are cosmic, while others are related to the Belt and Road, which can also be understood by the Chinese audience.
DM: In the Mid-Autumn Festival in August 2023, the Courtyard of Arts and Diplomacy launched a series of activities with you, including your artistic diplomacy action of "Sending Blessings to Embassies and Consulates". Why did you choose the Chinese character "Fu(blessings)"?
XIA:The character "Fu" has a symbolic meaning in traditional Chinese culture.
Both at present and in the past, it embodies people's yearning for a happy life and wishes for a better future, which suits the aspirations of people around the world. Pasting "Fu" character onto the door is a long-standing custom. The main purpose of sending "Fu" to the embassy is to help foreign elites happily accept Chinese traditional culture, so that Chinese culture can be spread abroad. In this way, blessings are spread worldwide.
DM: What have you been up to recently?
XIA: I have been engaged in three things in Yiyang of Hunan province.
The first is to set up an exhibition hall on family tradition offering art immersion experience. The exhibition hall covers an area of 5,000 square meters, which is one of the largest family tradition exhibition halls in China. The General Secretary Xi Jinping once pointed out that "family harmony, good family education and good family traditions enable children to grow up healthily and society to develop healthily." Family is the cell of society, and a good family tradition is an important guarantee to promote national development, national progress and social harmony. Adhering to the concept of "act for love, life is art", the exhibition hall aims to inherit the excellent family culture of the Chinese nation and show the profound connotation and value of the time. The design inspiration of the exhibition hall comes from life with the art of life displaying everywhere. Five theme exhibition halls are on show. It is a place for families to visit. With the company of poetry and calligraphy, families can accept the loving family education. Sitting around with friends, accompanied by fragrant tea and coffee,you can talk about education, while feeling the immersive experience of the exhibition. Act for love and life is art! Let us join hands and jointly hold up a blue sky of love.
The second is to upgrade the Xia Pengcheng Art Museum. The Art Museum is located in the downtown of Yiyang city, adjacent to the municipal party committee and the municipal government, covering an area of nearly 50 acres. Ten scenes have been created by me over the years. All of them are made by the simplest materials in life, and some even are created directly with waste materials and household garbage. The industrial fountain made by industrial waste is particularly spectacular, making people feel as if they were in the sea and the waves are washing the day. The high wall composed of river pebbles and railway tie wires is primitive and unique, and the newly designed wooden promenade brings people closer to nature and makes the whole garden landscape string together.
Finally, some painting and calligraphy creation activities have also been carried out. I have mainly created a number of calligraphy works based on the famous poet Liang Zheng’s poetry. One of my representative works, "Looking for Snow Peak", has been treasured forever by Chongsheng Zen Temple on Xuefeng Mountain in Fuzhou, which is the ancestral court of Yunmen and Fayan Buddhism of the five major Zen schools, so it is of special significance.
By:Zhao Can