For the past 15 years, Tong Yanrunan has been painting people's faces. His oil works mostly measure 41 cm by 33 cm. The portraits feature either blurry eyes or an unclear nose or mouth, by which he pursues the freedom and perfection embodied in the ink paintings of mountains and water. The treatment also reflects his concerns on the direction of Chinese contemporary art. "The so-called 'Chinese elements' in the context of contemporary art struggle to survive under the strong influence of Western culture," he says. "The real spirit of Chinese art is to discover the origin of art in people's hearts and then to attain a state of release." Tong lives and works in Hangzhou in Zhejiang province, where he also teaches at the China Academy of Art.
10 am-6 pm, until Nov 11. Today Art Museum, 32 Baiziwan Road, Chaoyang district, Beijing. 010-5876-0600.