AN exhibition featuring 125 fan paintings by 22 artists from China and 21 from South Korea is being staged in Guan Shanyue Art Museum now through Aug. 13.

This is the third exchange exhibition co-organized by Guan Shanyue Art Museum and Uijae Art Museum in Gwangju, South Korea, since the two museums established a sister-museum relationship in 2004.

"As a special art genre in the East Asia, fan painting played an important role in the cultural exchanges between China and Korea and other countries in history," said Chen Junyu, the exhibition's planner and senior researcher of Guan Shanyue Art Museum.

"Today, we want to use the art genre as a platform for Chinese and South Korean artists to explore the potential of further exchanges and deeper communication in the area of ink painting," Chen said.

There are two types of fans used in Chinese ink painting. The first type is of silk mounted on a rigid frame in a round or oval shape, which began to appear in China during the Han Dynasty (206 B.C.-220).

The second type, the folding fan, is made of paper pressed into folds with thin sticks of bamboo inserted for support.

According to historical records, the folding fan originated in Japan and was first introduced to China from the Korean peninsula. The folding fan became a format for Chinese ink painting in the Song Dynasty (960-1279).

When the second exchange exhibition was held in Gwangju in August last year, Chen was invited to visit South Korea and talk with some artists in the country.

"Both the history and current development of ink painting in South Korea impressed me a lot, which made me reconsider the importance of ink painting as an Asian art," Chen said.

While researching the art history for common points between Chinese and South Korean ink paintings, Chen realized the importance of fan painting in the history of Sino-Korean cultural exchanges.

When heading back on the plane, Chen got the idea of using fan painting as the common medium for both Chinese and South Koreans who would be invited to join the third exchange exhibition.

Discussing the differences between participating Chinese and South Korean artists, Chen said Chinese painters were generally more conservative while South Korean counterparts were more open and modern.

"Chinese artists stick more to their long-cherished traditions and are more advanced and skilled in the method of using brushes and ink," Chen said.

"South Korean painters appear to be more influenced by modern Western art styles and subjects."

A delegation of eight participating South Korean artists, including Kim Cheon-il, professor of Mok Po National University, attended the opening ceremony Friday.

Following the opening ceremony, South Korean artists joined a seminar to discuss with local Chinese artists on how to develop ink painting with the perspective of the current Asian culture.

Editor: Wing