Yang - Xun the Peasant Painter (1981)

[Music] n [Music] oh no what bad Rock [Music] my name is nien and I'm 15 years old now I'll be ready for my artgrass and I might get sent home I live in China one of the largest countries in the world and my Fage in central China is called hushen and is famous all over the world for the beautiful paintings done by our peasants and workers [Music] Rockery teacher Shaw hasn't noticed I'm R since I was six I've attended these summer art classes and they made it out to me each year two special classes are held one for children and one for advanced painters to help continue our peasant painting tradition and our teachers are wellknown peasant painters peasant painting in hen first starts at a reservoir construction site in 1958 when a few farmers and workers had the idea of painting to work in progress to record the great happening slowly this became an art form and soon Village walls were decorated with beautiful murals of our everyday life to inspire and teach each other how to build and improve our country now there's even an enormous gallery to show visitors our work and many men women and even children paint whenever they have [Music] time my father says we not only create Beauty but also help to build [Music] China of course we're just beginners but I love drawing and especially learning from pant painters themselves now that the summer Harvest is over and they have time to teach us this afternoon we're going to visit the advanced class after we finish our assignments [Music] I've always had trouble drawing people in action so they feel alive teacher fan has been working with me and says even a tiny line in the right place can make a ball roll or a body [Music] move teacher fan is one of the original peasant painters of hen [Music] teacher fans suggests I might improve my drawing of people in action by sketching the workers restoring the pagot and our fited Square I think it's a good idea [Music] [Music] teacher Shaw has a special announcement for us he says we're going to have a class competition and seven of our paintings will be chosen to hang in The hoan Peasant painting Gallery he asks us first if we are all interested and of course the answer is yes we all know it would be an honor to have one of our paintings chosen we often visit the advanced class to observe and learn more from the master peasant painters and see how their work takes shape [Music] besides being an excellent artist leot qu is an expert on Rice crops is a village tlor and now likes painting flowers and scenery [Music] and J Jang is one of the best painters in hen teacher tadin G Tang instructs the advanced class he's 45 and it was he who actually started the PE painting of hen in [Music] 1958 I live with my mother father and sister in a small two room house my father ting to is an industrial manager on a commune 1/ half hour away by train my mother yuun is principal of a primary school and my sister shiao Jin is 9 years old we see my father on weekends and this Saturday we're going to Dad's commune for their Harvest [Music] Festival for [Music] [Applause] [Music] for show you show you [Music] show you something [Music] [Music] Happ [Music] I've decided to enter my pagota drawing in the competition though I've been back several times I still can't seem to catch the motion of the workers I've decided to ask my aunt Yin Jing for help her Village is 5 kilm from town and right now I wish I had a bike like my dad's [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Music] here [Music] [Music] [Music] my aunt in Jing is 64 and a famous peasant painter she says in any kind of art inspiration is most important and if I concentrate on what people feel my pencil will make their movements and even their dedication come at Al [Music] [Applause] [Music] she on [Music] [Music] my Pagoda drawing is coming along well and the deadline is today I don't know if he good enough and sometimes I get confused about painting my parents want me to be an architect but I don't know [Music] [Music] seeing the gallery paintings gives me confidence that people can do anything even move mountains if they want to [Music] my pagota isn't quite finished and I know it can be [Music] better fore [Music] teacher Shaw says the results will be announced by the gallery committee after the weekend he says anyone who's not ready can hand in their work this evening I'm relieved because it gives me time to finish and in the morning we e from my father's commune and the Harvest Festival how you [Music] [Applause] anothere h [Music] [Music] I really admire my parents they're always very Ling and gentle with us and I wish we could be together more but it's impossible until my father finishes his work at the commun and that might be two more years [Music] make coming [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] w w [Music] [Music] w [Music] [Applause] well this is it teacher Shaw says the committee had a hard time selecting all of our work was good [Music] [Applause] [Applause] how exciting to have our drawings hanging with the work of Master peasant painters teacher Shaw says there more exciting news the advanced class has invited all of us to join them tomorrow morning for an Excursion to a bridge building site where we can actually sketch the people working [Applause] [Applause] [Music] my I know in [Music] of [Music] [Music] [Music] and [Music] [Applause] [Music] f [Music] this worker says my sketch is good but not quite right and just when I thought I was doing so so well he says experience is the best teacher and instead of sketching why don't I help him [Music] work I guess if I really want to be a peasant painter I must get inspiration by working as a peasant does and learn to feel what I paint [Applause] [Music] got [Music] I [Music]