Academy traces country's modern path through art

The establishment of the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing in 1918 synchronized with the evolution of 20th-century Chinese art.

Artists and educators reformed to awaken and motivate people through works advocating for national progress, opening schools to cultivate new generations of artists and art teachers.

Many of them taught and studied at CAFA and left works that became essential to the academy's collections.

The school is showing selected works featuring preeminent art figures in a long-term exhibition at its art museum.

The works fall into three categories — the first half of the 20th century, the period between the founding of the People's Republic of China and the reform and opening-up, and from 1977 to 2000.

The exhibition displays the varied styles and themes that homegrown artists employed to address the ever-changing social realities and mentalities of people against China's dramatic historical context over the last century.