Summer Blue Series
Watercolour Paintings by Fucai Zhao
Opening October 10th, 2024 7-9pm
Exhibition: Oct 10 – Nov 8, M – F 10-5, Tue 10-8
Lipont Gallery is presenting dozens of Chinese artist Fucai Zhao’s recent watercolour paintings to the audience in the Greater Vancouver area for the first time. Zhao graduated from the China Academy of Art and is an art professor in China. He is also an established watercolour painter. This exhibition features works he created during his midsummer stay in Vancouver this year, based on the city’s characteristics, cultural features, and natural scenery.
【仲夏之蓝】
赵福才水彩画作品展
开幕：2024年10月10日星期四7-9pm
展览：2024年10月10日至11月8日
周一至周五上午 10 :00时至下午 5:00时开放，周二延长开放时间至晚8:00时
温哥华力邦美术馆偕中国艺术家赵福才，向大温哥华地区观众呈现其近两年完成的几十幅水彩画作品。赵福才毕业于中国美术学院，在中国任艺术教授，是一位资深水彩画家。本次展出的大部分作品是他今年在温哥华旅居的仲夏季期间，根据温哥华城市特色，人文风貌，以及自然风光创作的一批别开生面的水彩作品。
Fucai Zhao – Artist Biography
Zhao Fucai, professor, watercolor painter, graduated from China Academy of Art, member of Chinese Artists Association, member of Canadian Watercolor Association.
“I am a watercolour painter from Hainan, China. Although I was born in the Shangdong Province, Linqing City, I have been living in Vancouver, BC since 2022. I have loved painting since I was a child. When I was a teenager, I was admitted to an art school and began to receive orthodox painting training. I have painted sketches, gouache paintings, oil paintings, fine brushwork paintings, and freehand paintings. Although I studied art and design, I am passionate about painting. During this period, I insisted on oil painting landscape sketches every day. The solid basic skills gave me a direction and understanding of painting. I was admitted to the China Academy of Art in the early 1980s. When I was studying at the Academy of Fine Arts, I studied under the famous Chinese watercolour painters: He Zhisheng, Cheng Ziliang, and Wang Zhongyi. The rigorous academic training and superb techniques of my predecessors have enabled me to practice art. It has benefited me in terms of training, painting skills, and creation, and has influenced my perception and creation of watercolour painting. After joining the work, along with the professional course teaching in college, I have persisted in watercolour painting for more than 30 years and held many personal exhibitions. The heavy teaching tasks did not make me put down my brush, but made me cherish time more, and continue to create and think. During my work, I published two textbooks on architectural painting techniques and Zhao Fucai’s Watercolour Collection. At the same time, my works have been selected for national art exhibitions many times and have been collected by art institutions and individuals. My watercolour works have been exhibited in international exhibitions in Italy, Mexico, Canada and other countries, and won the gold medal at the Canadian International Watercolour Exhibition in 2019.” – Fucai Zhao 2024
Artistic Achievements
In March 2017, the “Signs-Looking for Treasures” Zhao Fucai Watercolor Painting Exhibition was held Boutique exhibition;
In August 2018, the “Signs-Scenery” Zhao Fucai watercolor exhibition was held;
In January 2020, the “Signs-Liyun” Zhao Fucai watercolor exhibition was held;
In October 2019, Jiangxi Fine Arts Publishing House published the painting collection “Zhao Fucai, Contemporary Chinese Watercolor Painter”
In August 2019, the watercolor painting “Sparrow and Jackfruit” was selected for the “94th International Watercolor Exhibition” hosted by the Canadian Watercolor Painters Association and won the gold medal of this exhibition;
In September 2019, the watercolor painting “Qiongdao Pearl-Brilliant Li Brocade” was selected for the “13th National Art Exhibition” and won the gold medal of the 6th Hainan Art Exhibition;
In March 2021, “Qiongdao-Liyun” Selected for the “First China Watercolor Still Life Exhibition”;
In September 2021, “Liyun” was selected for the “Second National Art Education Teachers’ Works Exhibition”; In December 2021, “Qiongdao Pearl-Brilliant Li Brocade” won the “Fourth Hainan Nanhai Literature and Art Award”;
In May 2022, “Spring of the Free Trade Port” was selected for the “National Sketching and Creation Art Exhibition”;
In December 2022, 10 watercolor paintings were selected for the “2022 International Painting Exhibition” hosted by the Canadian Artists Federation;
In March 2023, “Lychee in Lingnan” was selected for the “New Era, New Journey-National Art Exhibition”;
In July 2024, “Qiongya Liyun” was selected for the “14th National Art Exhibition”.
赵福才 – 艺术家简介
赵福才，教授，水彩画家，毕业于中国美术学院。中国美术家协会会员，加拿大水彩画家协会会员。
“我是来自中国海南的水彩画家，祖籍山东省临清市。2022年以来居住在加拿大温哥华。自幼喜欢画画，十几岁考入美术学校开始接受正统的绘画训练，我画过素描、水粉画、油画、工笔画、写意画，虽然学的是艺术设计，但我对画画痴迷，这期间我每天坚持油画风景写生，扎实的基本功使我对绘画有了学习的方向和感悟。八十年代初考入中国美术学院，在美术学院求学时师从中国著名水彩画家何志生、程自良、王中义诸先生。前辈们严谨的学养与精湛的技法使我在艺术修养、绘画技巧、创作诸方面受益，并影响了我对水彩画的感悟与创作。参加工作后，伴随大学的专业课教学，我坚持水彩画创作三十余年，多次举办个人画展。繁重的教学任务没有使我放下画笔，反而让我更加珍惜时间，不断创作与思考。在工作期间我发表了两部建筑画技法教材著作和赵福才水彩画集。与此同时作品多次入选全国美展并被艺术机构及个人收藏。水彩画作品在意大利、墨西哥、加拿大等国际画展展出，并于2019年在加拿大国际水彩画大展中摘获金奖。
艺术成就
2017年3月，举办《迹象-觅珍》赵福才水彩画精品展；
2018年8月，举办《迹象-风物》赵福才水彩画作品展；
2020年1月，举办《迹象-黎韵》赵福才水彩画作品迎新展；
2019年10月，江西美术出版社出版画集《中国当代水彩画家赵福才》
2019年8月，水彩画《麻雀与菠萝蜜》入选加拿大水彩画家协会主办的“第94届国际水彩画展”并获得此次展览的金奖；
2019年9月，水彩画《琼岛明珠-璀璨黎锦》入选“第十三届全国美术作品展”并获海南省第六届美术作品展金奖；
2021年3《琼岛-黎韵》入选“首届中国水彩静物画展”；
2021年9月《黎韵》入选“第二届全国美术教育教师作品展”；2021年12月《琼岛明珠-璀璨黎锦》荣获“第四届海南省南海文艺奖”；
2022年5月《自贸港的春天》入选“全国写生采风创作美术作品展”；
2022年12月10幅水彩画作品入选加拿大艺术家联合会主办的“2022国际画展”；
2023年3月《岭南荔枝》入选“新时代新征程-全国美术作品展览”；
2024年7月《琼崖黎韵》入选“第十四届全国美术作品展”。
Summer Blue Series – Artist Statement
Vancouver’s pleasant climate and unique urban environment gave me the urge to paint. I painted several sketches of street scenes in Downtown Vancouver. Watercolour landscape sketches can free oneself, and creation can allow the painter to think more fully. My watercolour works show the beauty in nature. People crave for beauty while being caught in the daily grind of the mundane. I just want to provide viewers with some beautiful reverie and comfortable mood through the expression of poetic watercolour paintings. Vancouver’s public transportation system, fire protection facilities, road signs and traffic lights are its unique city symbols.
The blueberry is a speciality fruit in North America, and is also known as the king of berries. In North America, especially Canada, the blueberry is regarded as a symbol of summer and also has very auspicious meanings. My watercolour series, “Summer Blue,” combines blueberries with Vancouver’s unique city symbols, represents my good wishes for this city. In my practice, I prefer to use the composition of Chinese paintings, and I strive for realism in my rendering technique. This creative combination of Chinese and Western watercolour techniques allowed me to form a unique style. From this, I want to offer a strong artistic style that is both pleasing to the eyes and heart of the viewer. I use vivid colours and relaxed themes throughout my watercolour paintings. My work is the synthesis of realistic Western oil paintings with the lyrical freehand quality of Chinese paintings. – Fucai Zhao 2024
【夏季之蓝】系列 – 赵福才水彩画
温哥华宜人的气候，别样的城市环境使我有画画的冲动，我在温哥华市中心画了大量的街景写生。水彩风景画写生可以释放自己，而创作可以让画者更加充分思考。我的水彩画作品表现的是自然界中的景物，他们有着美好的寓意，人们在浮躁的现实生活中渴求美好，我只是想通过“诗一样的水彩画”这种表达方式，给观者提供些许美好的遐想和惬意心境。艺术家看事物有自己的视角，温哥华的公交系统、消防设施、路牌红绿灯等是其独特的城市符号。蓝莓是北美的特产水果，也称浆果之王，在北美，特别是加拿大，蓝莓被视为夏季的象征，也有非常吉祥的寓意。我的水彩画“夏季之蓝”系列作品，把蓝莓与温哥华独特的城市符号相结合，代表着自己对这个城市美好的祝福。
在我的水彩画创作中，我更愿意吸收中国画的构图形式以及它的寓意，在表现技法方面我力求画的写实。这种有创意的中西结合的水彩画创作形式以及现代人审美眼光的变化，让我开始重新考虑构图表征新的所指，这促使我在构图形式呈现出更加整体、更加单纯、更加强烈、更加集中的审美特征，使观者即养眼又养心。淋漓明快的色彩，酣畅轻松的画面，水色交融的水彩画即能够像西方油画一样客观写实，又可以有中国水墨画的写意与抒情，水彩画的这一特性让我着迷，欲罢不能。” –赵福才 2024