Hong Kong Museum of Art (HKMoA)

Wu Guanzhong was an important modern Chinese painter, who merged elements of the East and West in his art. He captured the beauty of things in simple forms with flowing lines, bouncing dots and bright colors. 

During the exhibition "Wu Guanzhong: A Retrospective" in 2002, Wu Guanzhong gave his first ever live sketching demonstration at the Hong Kong Museum of Art. Sketching the Victoria Harbour in the rain, this occasion became a favourite tale of the local art circle.

From the artist's writings, we can know how he felt about that event. He recalled, "Responding to great public demand, the Museum of Art consulted me about the possibility of performing a public sketching demonstration. I do not like to paint in front of the public, nor have I ever done any demonstration because it is impossible to get into the mood when it is a show. However, they explained that painters today seldom do sketching and young artists do not know where to start. As I have been sketching all my life, they hope people would not miss this only opportunity and asked me to encourage the younger generation. Unable to refuse the host's kind intention and the public's enthusiasm, I agreed to provide a "service" of demonstrating sketching for once. Since it's a service, the outcome does not matter. They were prepared to record the whole sketching process, from my first stroke on paper to the last, which would be put into the archive. I picked Victoria Harbour as the subject, which I would sketch on the podium of the Museum… On the day of demonstration, the lobby was packed with people. Alas! There was heavy fog and visibility was down to fifty metres. All the skyscrapers around Victoria Harbour disappeared in the illusory space of mist and clouds. The fog did not clear up and the audience was getting impatient. I did not want to disappoint the crowd, so I portrayed the buildings and ferries in the harbour by memory. How I composed the buildings, my sequence of strokes as well as the control and balance of strokes might serve as a reference to some people. Yet sketching is not about copying, it's the vitality that is being sketched, a vitality that is open to interpretation.


Victoria Harbour_Wu Guanzhong.jpg

Victoria Harbour

Finding more clues at the Wu Guanzhong Art Gallery on 4/F

Meeting new friend at the HKMoA and the first clue

Design a tomb guardian with the three sancai colors. 

Activity

Finding more clues at the Xubaizhai Gallery of Chinese Painting and Calligraphy on 2/F

Finding more clues at the China Trade Art Gallery on 3/F

Finding more clues at Hong Kong Art Gallery on 2/F

Finding more clues at the Chih Lo Lou Gallery of Chinese Painting and Calligraphy on 4/F

The Ending

Draw something you think could be in the empty space! 

Finding more clues at the Chinese Antiquities Gallery on 3/F

Let’s draw from what the below descriptions of animals!   1.	It is hanging upside down from tree branches. It has two long arms and two long legs with brown, shaggy fur. It has white fur all over its face, but the fur around its eyes is brown. It also has three sharp toes on each of its arms and legs.  2.	It is a large bird, growing up to 1.8 meters high. It is covered in dense, black feathers on its body, blue feathers on its neck and white feathers on its face. It has a black casque on its head, the casque is also called a helmet. It has a red wattle, or bare, fleshy pouches of skin that hang from the neck. 3.	It is a type of fish in orange color. It is rounded in shape with a long growth sprouting from the head. It has huge head and enormous crescent-shaped mouths filled with sharp, translucent teeth.   Educator notes: You could describe the animals from the document at the additional material section in your own word instead of my above suggestion. 

This resource kit is digitalized from a fun kit. It helps children and families discover the Hong Kong Museum of Art and its collections. We hope you will have a great adventure of exploring the museum and the exhibits.

Resource Kits

Object Library

Museums

Where’s Grandpa Ofu?

Finding more clues at the Wu Guanzhong Art Gallery on 4/F