Runhuan is awed by the Campus Art Gallery Project. Since early December 2012, the gallery has constantly exhibited works of art in public areas across campus. It is co-launched by PKU’s Dean’s Office and School of Arts, aimed at enhancing cultural and artistic atmosphere of the campus. Its purpose is also to cultivate and improve students’ taste in culture and art. Twenty-four pieces of watercolor paintings by Mr. Chen Taiping, who has worked in PKU for years, are exhibited on the second floor of Natural Science Classroom Building, showcasing PKU’s magnificent buildings and beautiful sceneries.  

 

 

These paintings obviously serve their purpose. “Placing an art gallery in a teaching building is really interesting. These paintings are definitely a feast for the eyes,” says Lyu Nan, a student from the School of International Studies. In addition to immersing the campus in a more artistic atmosphere, this gallery has also influenced students’ artistic and cultural taste. As Cao puts it, “We learn something new from each and every book. Likewise, art appreciation enhances one’s taste in art and culture.”

 

This project is enjoying huge popularity among students. Wu Yiting, a freshman from the PKU School of Electronics Engineering and Computer Science, expresses her fondness for these paintings. “These paintings are so beautiful. They present us a very different Peking University and bring us a wonderful visual enjoyment of beauty,” she says. Jia Siyao, a sophomore from the PKU School of Physics, likes this art gallery because it brings her relaxation, despite her admittance for a lack of flair in art appreciation. 

 

It has been an important mission for the PKU School of Arts apart from its routine teachings. “We have considered for a long time about enriching the PKU campus culture. The art gallery project thus came to our mind,” remarked Tang Jinnan, a staff member of the School of Arts.

 

Simple as it may seem, the implementation of the project is by no means an easy job with the numerous details to be considered. According to Tang, there were three main challenges in implementing the project. The first was the selection of location for the project. Many places had been considered before the second floor of Natural Science Classroom Building was selected for the first exhibition. “The Natural Science Classroom Building is among the largest teaching buildings in PKU and the exhibition place chosen has a high student traffic. Therefore, more students will benefit from the gallery.” Another issue was determining the size of paintings. Since the original paintings vary in size, adjustments had to be made while duplicating these paintings. In order to maintain the artistic qualities, on-site measurement was conducted and computerized simulation of the gallery was employed to visualize the possible outcome. The third consideration was the security of the gallery. Since no specific security measures were taken, replicas of the paintings were used instead of the originals, and the paintings were framed before they were pinned instead of pinning them directly on the wall. With these issues settled, a fantastic and popular art gallery was finally achieved.

 

Currently, the art gallery exists only in the Natural Science Classroom Building. “It is only a pilot project. More art galleries on different themes will appear in more teaching buildings,” said Tang Jinnan. Currently, the public areas of teaching buildings are being examined, especially the public areas of Classroom Building No. 2, which will be the top choice for the next art gallery project this semester. As for the paintings on display, Tang explained that paintings from various sources will be adopted. “We plan to commission some artists to create paintings for us. Besides, we will also try to borrow works from some famous artists. Last, we will certainly save some areas for students to exhibit their works.”

 

 

By Xiong Min