An artist of the people

For those in the art community, Xu is remembered mostly for blending Eastern and Western styles and establishing the high education of fine arts in China. While for his people, the artist is best known for depicting the true life of those at the grassroots. And for this, researchers of Xu's art in Beijing and Chongqing have mounted an exhibition titled Profiling His People.

Held at Peon Art Museum Chongqing, the exhibition, through to May 27, shows Xu's paintings and sketches of ordinary people, inspired by his deep compassion for them. The museum was renovated from a historical building where Xu and his family lived in Chongqing in the 1940s. "Peon" was how Xu wrote his name, "Beihong", in French, while studying in Paris.