Inauguration: 2017-08-18 18:30
Duration: 2017-08-19 - 2017-09-17

Glamour of the Jao's Lotus － Touring Exhibition of Lotus-theme Artworks by Professor Jao Tsung-i

by Macao Museum of Art

As one of the activities for the 100th birthday of Professor Jao Tsung-I, “Glamour of the Jao’s Lotus – Touring Exhibition of Lotus-theme Artworks by Professor Jao Tsung-I” coorganised by the Macao Museum of Art, will be held at the Handover Gift Museum of Macao, showcasing 39 pieces/set of paintings and calligraphy. 
 
The theme of this touring exhibition is particularly relevant to the city, since the lotus flower is the floral emblem of the Macao SAR. In the depictions by Professor Jao Tsung-I, the endless vitality of lotus that appears in different forms and styles symbolizes the progressive and prosperous development of Macao and its cultural progress. 

In the recent decade, “lotus” has been Professor Jao Tsung-i’s major painting subject; meanwhile, he has also developed new techniques and methods for this type of painting. Therefore, lotus painting is also a symbol of his unceasing exploration of art. When we planned to hold a touring exhibition in Mainland China, there was unanimity among the Jao Tsung-I Petite Ecole of The University of Hong Kong, the Jao Tsung-I Petite Ecole Fan Club, and the Jao Studies Foundation that “lotus” is the theme of the exhibition.

Professor Jao indicates that there is a reason why he loves to do lotus painting. His father named him “Tsung-i”, literally meaning “modeling yourself after Zhou Dunyi”, because his father hoped that he could learn after Zhou. Zhou was a master of the Neo-Confucianism in the Song dynasty who loved lotus, and his Ode to Lotus has been the most important essay praising lotus since then. Nonetheless, according to Professor Jao, Bada Shanren’s “Flowers on the River” is the major agent to induce him of his unique Jao’s Lotus.
The editor mentioned in the first part of Opulence of the Jao’s Lotus that “Hu Yin (1098-1156) once commented on Su Shi’s lyrics in his essay Preface to Jiubian Lyrics which reads, ‘It brings to the world a brand new direction.’ The saying can also be applied to Jao’s Lotus.” In this exhibition, Professor Jao’s idea of “amalgamation of scholarship and art” and his everlasting creativity are embodied through his lotus artworks.

Macao is one of the stops of the “Glamour of the Jao’s Lotus – Touring Exhibition of Lotus-theme Artworks by Professor Jao Tsung-I”, whose subject is particularly relevant to the city, since the lotus flower was chosen as its floral emblem. At the time of the 90th birthday of Professor Jao Tsung-I, the Macao Museum of Art held the exhibition “Immortal Lotus – Painting and Calligraphy by Jao Tsung-I: His 90th Birthday Celebration” at the Handover Gift Museum of Macao to mark his anniversary. Somehow, Macao is destined to be a place for holding the Touring Exhibition, which echoes with the one themed “Immortal Lotus”. In the depiction of Professor Jao Tsung-I, the lotus flower of endless vitality appears in different forms and styles. It is rendered as a symbol of the progressive and prosperous development of our cultural undertakings, which makes it all the more important. 


Tang Wai Hung
Deputy Director (Art)
Jao Tsung-I Petite Ecole, The University of Hong Kong