16-meter ink painting depicts epic of Long March in northern Guangdong

原创 羊城晚报•羊城派  

A monumental 16-meter Chinese ink painting on the Long March, “Long March Trail in Nanling Mountains,” created by the Guangdong Academy of Painting, went on public display recently.

The peaks of northern Guangdong rise in layers of ink, revealing vivid scenes among the vast, mist-shrouded mountains and forests: marching Red Army soldiers, fierce blocking battlesand soldiers and civilians on an old street.

Beginning on October 25th, 1934, the main force of the Central Red Army’s Long March moved through northern Guangdong, passing through Nanxiong, Renhua and Lechang, among other places. After fierce fighting, it broke through enemy blockades and carved out a westward route. From October 31st, Red Army units began entering Renhua, launching a surprise attack on Chengkouand fighting fiercely at Tongguling. They broke through the Kuomintang army’s second blockade along the Guangdong-Hunan border, creating favorable conditions for the Central Red Army to continue its westward advance.

The monumental painting “Long March Trail in Nanling Mountains” depicts precisely this historic chapter that unfolded across the landscapes of northern Guangdong.

Rooted in the tradition of Chinese landscape painting, the work integrates local scenery, historical narratives and the spirit of the Long March into a monumental composition. The creative team structured the painting according to the traditional compositional progression of introduction, development, transition and conclusion. Its four sections depict the ancient route into Guangdong, the old town of Chengkou, the fierce battle at Tongguling and the onward journey. Together, they form a sweeping landscape painting with both grandeur and vivid narrative detail.

Zheng Apai, vice-president of the Guangdong Academy of Painting, said, “We wanted to capture the vastness of the mountains in northern Guangdong and the lush greenery of the Nanling range, while incorporating the stories of the Long March that unfolded here. This is what sets the work apart from previous artistic depictions of the Long March.”

Beyond the painting’s powerful overall impact, its details become clearer on closer inspection. Scenes unfold across the vast canvas: Red Army soldiers launching a nighttime surprise attack on Chengkou, fierce blocking fighting in the mountains of Tongguling, and troops advancing along mountain paths. In the area around Red Army Street, moving scenes show local residents removing their door panels to make beds for the soldiers and bringing them meals and cloth shoes. Through these delicate brushstrokes, the deep bonds between the army and the people gradually emerge.

In April this year, the Guangdong Academy of Painting launched a field-research initiative to commemorate the 90th anniversary of the victory of the Long March by the Chinese Workers’ and Peasants’ Red Army. Zheng Apai, vice-president of the academy; Du Ning, president of the Guangdong Youth Academy of Painting; and full-time and resident painters from the Guangdong Academy of Painting, along with artists from the Guangdong Youth Academy of Painting, traveled to Shaoguan, Ganzhou and other places to sketch and conduct field research. They visited the mountains and ancient routes of northern Guangdong, as well as revolutionary sites, observing the landscape firsthand and seeking historical details in local records and community memories. “We were not imagining history while sitting in the studio,” Du Ning said.

Drawing on oral accounts from people with firsthand knowledge and local historical records, the creative team uncovered many moving stories of interactions between Red Army soldiers and local residents, translating them into vivid details in the painting. On-site sketching also provided fresh, firsthand material for the work. “Only with firsthand material can the subsequent artistic creation truly gain depth and richness,” Du said.

Du sees the project as a kind of “Long March” for artists. “We are always on the road, too, undertaking our own ‘Long March’.” The road he describes is both a creative journey of engaging deeply with everyday life and taking root among the people, and a continuing quest to explore artistic expression. For contemporary artists, the enduring purpose of this journey lies in drawing nourishment from China’s fine traditional culture, responding to the times through new forms of expression and portraying the people.

Source:PEARL

广东画院创作16米水墨画卷，再现粤北长征史诗

日前，广东画院组织创作的长征主题16米巨幅中国画《南岭长征路》正式展出。

粤北群峰在墨色中层叠而起，苍茫的山林间，一幕幕生动画面浮现：行进的红军、激烈的阻击战、古街上军民的身影……

1934年10月25日起，中央红军长征主力部队转战粤北，先后经过南雄、仁化、乐昌等地，成功突破敌人封锁线，浴血拼出一条西进通道。10月31日起，红军部队陆续进入仁化境内，奇袭城口、鏖战铜鼓岭，突破国民党军设置在粤湘边界的第二道封锁线，为中央红军继续西进创造了有利条件。

巨幅中国画《南岭长征路》描画的正是这段发生在粤北山河间的故事。

作品以中国山水画为本体，将地域景观、历史叙事与长征精神融入这幅巨型画面。按照主创团队的设想，整件作品采用起、承、转、合的传统章法，以入粤古道、城口古镇、铜鼓岭血战、征途向前四个部分谱写气势雄浑、叙事完整的山水画大作。全卷既具山水之雄浑开阔，又含叙事之精微生动。

广东画院副院长郑阿湃说：“要把粤北山区的苍茫、南岭山川的郁郁葱葱表现出来，同时把发生在这里的长征故事放进去，是这件作品和以往长征题材创作不一样的地方。”

除了整体画面的冲击，更耐人寻味的是走近才能看清画中景物：夜色中红军奇袭城口、铜鼓岭山间的激烈阻击、行进在山道上的队伍，以及红军街一带，老百姓拆下门板为红军做床铺、为红军送饭送布鞋的感人场景依次出现在巨幅国画中。军民间的情谊，也由这些细小笔触渐渐显露出来。

今年4月，广东画院纪念中国工农红军长征胜利90周年考察活动启动，广东画院副院长郑阿湃、广东青年画院院长杜宁，以及广东画院专职画家、在职画家，广东青年画院画家等前往韶关、赣州等地写生、采风。他们走进粤北山岭、古道与红色旧址，在现场感受地貌风物，也在地方史料与群众记忆中寻找历史细节。“我们不是坐在画室里想象历史。”杜宁说。

主创团队借助亲历者口述与地方史志记载，挖掘出不少红军与群众互动的感人故事，最终转化为画面中的生动细节。实景写生则为本次创作收集了最鲜活、最扎实的创作素材。“只有拿到第一手材料，后面的创作才能真正丰满起来。”杜宁说。

杜宁把这次创作看作属于美术工作者的一次“长征”。“我们其实一直在路上，也在走属于我们自己的‘长征’。”而他所说的这条“路”，既是深入生活、扎根人民的创作之路，也是不断探索艺术语言的求索之路。如何从中华优秀传统文化中汲取养分，以新的表达回应时代、为人民画像，正是当代艺术家始终在路上的意义。

译 | 郑书悦
审 | 盛嘉