On May 21st, 2007, the Retrospective Exhibition of Du Yongqiao’s Watercolors and Oil Paintings was held in Sichuan Art Museum. The exhibition, co-held by Sichuan Artists Association and Sichuan Fine Arts Institute, was the result of the efforts by his family and friends, and displayed more than 70 paintings since the 1950. Mr. Du was also present.

　　After the opening ceremony, some of his students and renowned artists were interviewed, and a symposium for Mr. Du’s art was held in the conference room. A summary of the interview as well as the symposium is as follows.

　　He Duoling, oil painter

　　1. Tales about professor Du were ubiquitous when I was in college, and I was astonished when I first saw his works because they embodied all I had in my mind on oil paintings. He has been deemed the “cream of the crop” of his time, and his works unparalleled since 1950s. As I have said, what we have learnt from Professor Du is just the tip of the iceberg. This is not flattery, but a matter of fact. His paintings of the recent period reinforce the fact that he is indeed in the pink of perfection.

　　2. His paintings, from which one can sense much serenity and purity, indicate, however, little of his hardships and misfortunes. He was beyond his era, which is commendable, for I believe he was rescued, by art, from all the unfairness and miseries, and that life must have been blissful for him.

　　3. Professor Du was not in the spotlight which he was due, and many of his works have not been unveiled until today, in the exhibition. I suppose that’s because he has lived in seclusion since I was a student, and he had little interest in (nor any knowledge of) business—he might have just shielded his paintings from the market. The price of his works may be comparatively low for the moment, but I believe it’s only a matter of time before the paintings are reevaluated.

　　4. I’m filled with both delight and sorrow—I’m happy that the exhibition has been such a success, but I feel that the exhibition of this scale should be held earlier. It seems too late for him, in the last moment of hiss life.

　　Zhang Xiaogang, oil painter

　　1. I’m not a close friend to professor Du and haven’t met him for 10 years or so; however, I have always respected him for his perseverance in art. I saw so many people present in the opening ceremony, which demonstrates how much they admire him as an artist.

　　2. I thought it a great chance to have had professor Du to teach us, to show us the enchanting hues of grey. Much as I have been told how great his watercolor paintings are, this is the first time I see all his works. From an objective perspective as an artist instead of his former student, I think all his oeuvres from youth to recent years are fantastic, especially those from his later period when he shifted his style, with a strong sense of individuality and interesting color expression. As an artist, I admire him. As one of his students, I feel proud of his achievement.

　　3. I paid a visit to Moscow this March, where I observed many paintings, including those by The Itinerants; while I see today works by professor Du, I can tell how deeply he has gone to understand the Russian paintings and how far his contemporaries are left behind.

　　4. His generation have encountered and suffered so much that I suppose life has never been fair to them, to this, however, Mr. Du has responded with his piety and dedication to art. He has chosen to confront fate with his insight into art and love for life, which I could not appreciate any more.

　　5. It is my belief that art is never abstract; on the contrary, it is always a projection that the times shed on our minds. The key factors to evaluate an artist are whether he/she faithfully reflects his/her artistic aspiration, and whether he/she goes ahead of the time. I believe professor Du is well-qualified.

　　6. Different as professor Du and I might be on our artistic schools, I suppose we share one thing in common—only by combining one’s art with the essence of humanity can he touch the people. And that is why we are so dazzled by his paintings.

　　7. He could have been ignored once for some historical reasons, but we can see in today’s exhibition that genuine artist and their works shall never be forgotten.

　　Zhou Chunya, oil painter

　　1. Unlike Luo Zhongli, Zhang Xiaogang and He Duoling, I was taught by professor Du for only one month on watercolors, this, however, has benefited me much for the rest of my life.

　　2. Professor Du has been a very diligent artist through his life, and he has also permeated his dedication to the students. One of the main reasons we are here in the exhibition is to show our respect for him and for his artistic achievements; also worth mentioning is that despite all his achievements in art, he keeps modest and enjoys communicating with the young painters.

　　3. He has done even better and more powerful in his later period, which shows his sustained power into old age. This is rare and commendable.

　　4. His paintings also show something of the modern and contemporary painting style, but he didn’t follow trends, instead, he has adhered to his own style. This is marvelous.

　　5. I agree with some fellow colleagues that professor Du deserves more recognition than he has today; he would have been a greater success if the country had esteemed its artists and intellectuals decades ago. Even so, he is still a master, an academic authority, and what we have learnt from him is far from being enough. It is my belief that the value of an artist is often rediscovered and recognized after he/she passes away—as has been proven many times in history.

　　Qin Ming, oil painter

　　1. I’ve been abroad for more than 10 years, during which I have observed works by masters of former Soviet Union, the United States and Europe in their exhibitions and galleries. Compared with them, Mr. Du still stands out with his own style and mentality. That has been quite a feat.

　　2. He actually outstrips many Russian oil painters, and I can still remember an array of his paintings during Cultural Revolution (1966-1976), which were profound and showed some expressionist characteristics.

　　3. His latest works are of more liberal style and in my view, they have reached the acme of perfection, which I would attribute to his artistic attainment and his religious belief. I can sense something above the secular world, something mysterious, religious yet touching.

　　4. We have benefited so much from his instructions on both painting skills and artistic perspectives that I couldn’t appreciate it more.