Balthus and His Affection for China

Author: Xiaosheng
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-08-01
Features: In 1984, I was selected by the state to study Western art history in Paris for two years. After that, I was invited multiple times to visit and lecture in various countries in Europe and America. As a result, I had many opportunities to meet the elite of the contemporary art world. I suppose because I am from China, I was particularly treated with great kindness and courtesy. They often invited me to their guest rooms, studios, to discuss art and philosophy, make friends, and build good relationships, allowing me to live a happy life surrounded by art and friendship. I gradually introduced them to China, and received widespread and enthusiastic responses. What I introduced may not fully depict the panorama of the art world in the 20th century, but it certainly covers the essence of it. In today's world, everything is bustling, and the art world is crowded. The rampant nihilism has made art, in the hands of some, not only a "form of self-pleasuring" (as described by Sikyros), but also pushes humanity towards self-destruction in the process of anti-civilization. Although my work involves researching and introducing foreign cultural arts, I am determined to select the excellent and reject the trash, with the aim of spreading beauty, promoting mutual understanding between our peoples, sharing the common spiritual wealth of humanity, encouraging and inspiring each other, and recreating our own brilliance. We are a great nation in culture, and we should have an open and inclusive mindset and a graceful and magnanimous attitude. However, as we return to the big family of all nations in the world, facing a rapidly changing world and an even more rapidly changing art world, we should also maintain a clear mind and avoid abandoning our independent judgment due to confusion in understanding, or even being greedy for immediate benefits, to accommodate values and aesthetic standards that are not suitable for us. Otherwise, colonial consciousness will inevitably spread, and the spirit of the nation will be difficult to express again.