In the art world, a worthy mentor, Ding Jingwen

Author: Zhu Qing
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-01-01
Features: Mr. Ding Jingwen, pen name "Lao Ding." Perhaps many people are unfamiliar with this name, but he is a well-known figure in the art world. Mr. Ding was an anti-Japanese veteran from 1938 and graduated from the Lu Art Institute in Yan'an. In 1950, when the Central Academy of Fine Arts was established, he was appointed as the Director of the Academy Office and Head of the Personnel Department. Later, he successively served as the Director of the Chinese Painting Department of the Academy and the Principal of the Affiliated High School of the Academy. Over half a century of, Mr. Ding has made a significant impact in the art world, with his disciples spread across the country. Many successful artists today have benefited from his recommendations and mentorship. His legendary experiences, sincere character, and the spirit of a mentor have long been praised in the art world.
Mr. Ding was born in 1914 into a Hui family in Bo'ai County, Henan. From a young age, he loved painting and graduated from Henan Art Normal School in 1931, serving as a teacher for several years. In 1938, during a time of national crisis, he joined an anti-Japanese guerrilla unit as a company political instructor. In 1939, he went to Yan'an, and in 1949, he followed the central government to Beijing, once serving as the family art teacher for Mao Zedong and Liu Shaoqi. He had every opportunity to stay with the central government or the Central Military Commission, but he chose painting in the face of fate—or perhaps it was the art cause of the People's Republic of China that chose him.