Xu Kuang   (b.1938) Changsha, Hunan

Between 1951 and 1954 Xu studied applied arts in Shanghai at the private Tao Xingzhe Academy. He then attended the middle school of the Central Academy of Fine Arts, where he learned the Soviet socialist realist style in both drawing and oil painting. After graduating, in 1958, he was sent to Chongqing, where he produced graphic work and oil paintings. Honored as a National Progressive Worker in 1960, Xu has been a member of the Sichuan Literary Union, vice-chairman of the Chongqing branch of the Chinese Artists' Association, and standing member of the council of the Chinese Printmakers' Association.

93. The Hatred of the Boat Towers Title sheet and three prints from a series of ten illustrations for a story by that name 1964 Black and white; oil-based ink on Chinese paper A. Title sheet 32.5 x 47 cm The events are depicted with a minimum need for explanatory text: the worker applies for a job, performs backbreaking work, and is punished. The ten illustrations "recreate a tragedy of the past in which a debt to the boss enslaves three generations of a boatman's family....All ten woodcuts have the river as their background--a river flowing with the blood and sweat of the poor. [From a review, "Exhibition of Art from Southwest China," Peking Review, 18 June 1965, pp. 30-31.]   B. 32.5 x 46 cm   C. 33.5 x 47 cm   D. 33.5 x 47 cm These prints were part of a large group work called The Crimes of the Capitalist Class Recorded. Each artist contributed six or more prints illustrating a separate story of his or her own invention; the theme of Capitalist exploitation was a favorite during the early 1960s when there was a campaign to illustrate the history of the Communist Party's struggle. The entire work was widely exhibited in China's major cities.       95. Epic of the Grasslands 1975 73 x 104 cm Black and white; oil-based ink on Chinese paper Signed, title inscribed and numbered by the artist: 10/50 Mounted, armed women patrol the plateau. Rural electrification is represented by the pylons marching off in the distance.       96. Cordial Love 1976 67 x 112 cm Black and white; oil-based ink on Chinese paper Signed, titled inscribed and numbered by the artist: 8/50 The arm bands read, "Red Guards." The young people are dressed up in soldiers' uniforms, the teenage fashion of the time, and several hold books of *Mao Zedong's writings. In Chinese, the expression "cordial love" implies parental guidance.