Page 20 - The Pioneers, November 26, 2016 Hong Kong

Fig. 4 Ding Yanyong, Portrait, Dated 1969. Fig. 1 Western Art Paintings Studio at the Tokyo School of Fine Arts Fig.2 Ding Yanyong, Self-Portrait, Dated 1925,
圖 1 東京美術學校西洋畫科教室
From the Collection of Ting Lan-sai, Aesthetic Collection of University Art Museum, Tokyo

Images of Ding Yanyong's Paintings, National National University of Fine Arts and Music
圖 2 丁衍庸，《自畫像》，一九二五年作，
History Museum, Taipei, August 2003, p.155. 東京藝術大學美術館
圖 4 丁衍庸 《仕女》 一九六九年作 香港丁蘭
茜 藏 品《意像 之 美：丁衍 庸 的 繪 畫 藝 術》，國
立 歷 史 博 物 館，台 北，2 0 0 3 年，第 15 5 頁。

A painting has to come alive – if it is dull and bland, the image lacks the vitality and charm of art. In
order to achieve this, the spirit of the subject, whether landscape or figures, needs to be captured. One must
have the idea of the painting before picking up the brush, instead of painting aimlessly without purpose.

- Ding Yanyong, A World of Wonderful Paintings, p. 15

EARLY LIFE IN JAPAN experimenting with bold, non-naturalistic colour
and applying them in short, energetic strokes.
Ding Yanyong was born in 1902 into a rapidly changing
China at a moment of the country's entry into the Most of his teachers at the Tokyo School of Fine Arts
modern world. At the time, many art students, such as received training in Europe, and were heavily influenced
Xu Beihong and Lin Fengmian, chose Europe as their by Impressionism. Ding chose to follow Wada Eisaku
destination. Japan, for its success in modernisation (1874 – 1959), a follower of Kuroda Seiki (1866-1924),
and geographical proximity, became another choice who was central to Ding's discipline towards art
for Chinese students. In 1920, Ding arrived in Japan creation and the use of colour in oil painting. In June
to study at the renowned Tokyo School of Fine Arts. 1924, the periodical Chuo Bijutsu (Central Art) held
an exhibition to promote modernist movements – of
During Ding's time in Japan he was greatly exposed the 2,500 entries, Ding's On the Dining Table was
to the Modernist movement due to the mentors from selected for the inclusion in the Fifth Central Exhibition
differing studios – Fujishima Takeji (1867 – 1943) was in 1924. Interestingly, the judge for the exhibition
his first teacher at the Kawabata Painting School, included modernist artist Ryuzaburo Umehara (1888-
who oversaw the Western painting department there 1986), whose lot is part of the Pioneers, Lot 2510.
as well as acted as professor in the Western Painting
Department of the Tokyo School of Fine Arts, which Sadly, the majority of his work during this time was
Ding later enrolled in in September 1921 (Fig. 1). lost save for his self portrait (Fig. 2), preserved by
the University, where Ding's admiration towards
Ding's own autobiography spoke of being "motivated Matisse, together with his instinct for the use of
by youthful fantasy and ambition and recklessly and ability to contrast bright colours, is evident.
escaped to Tokyo to study painting" - his training in
Japan enabled him to gain a working knowledge of the CONNECTING WITH THE TRADITION
realist technique, and at the same time exposed him
to the latest artistic development in Europe, of which The study in Japan laid the foundation for Ding's future
the art of Matisse, Gauguin and Cézanne influenced career in art, having devoted five years towards the
him most profoundly. There, Ding experimented on study of Western painting (Fig. 3). Matisse's fauve
different forms and techniques, one being Fauvism. style had a profound effect on Ding's style, and upon
The fauves ("wild beasts"), led by Henri Matisse, returning to China in 1925, Ding became a teacher
sought a more dynamic way of depicting nature, at the Shanghai College of Fine arts. During his

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