ZHONG CHENG

Foujita Tsuguharu was born in Tokyo, Japan, he graduated from the Tokyo University of the Arts. In 1912, he travelled to London and stayed permanently in Paris. Fujita quickly became involved in the arts scene of Paris, and in various art movements, the members include Picasso, Chagall, Sting, Modigliani and more. Although he was in a Foreign country, he was still well received in France and even recognized as the only Asian painter master at the time. Six of his paintings were selected for the Autumn Salon in 1919 and 1920. At first, Foujita attempted the European-style of painting, however in 1925 he pioneered a manifestation of French-Japanese painting style using ink brush to create a kind of tenuous, thin and transparent Oriental painting. The subject of his works include landscapes, animals, portraits and self-portraits. Today, he is one of the most prominent Japanese artist in France, his painting of nudes was widely celebrated by art critics of the West for its unique "milk white skin" characteristic. His works are in the permanent collection of Tokyo National Museum of Modern Art, Japan National Museum of Western Art and twenty other museums in Japan. In 2016, Fuchū Art Museum held “Foujita Tsuguharu: Art Bridging the East and West” retrospective exhibition to celebrate the artist’s 130^th birthday.