At the end of the Qing Dynasty, Chinese painting was almost in decline, and the traditional aesthetic taste of lightness, softness, quietness, and solitude could no longer meet the needs of the new era. In the 20th century, the society has undergone drastic changes, and Chinese painting has also entered a new period of development. Famous artists have emerged in large numbers, the ancient integrate with and the modern, and the East and the West meet. Some painters have rooted in tradition, trying to break the 300-year division of "Southern and Northern Buddhism". They explored many ancient classics, and tried to turn the ancient into the new, so that the traditional methods and interest would spread in the new era. Other painters with overseas backgrounds tried to integrate the techniques and expressive power of Western painting into Chinese painting, while emphasizing the role of sketching and realism, prompting ink painting to present a new style in the new era and thus carry more social functions. It can be said that the Chinese paintings of the 20^th century is a new chapter with diversified colours, and its great significance still affect the current artistic creation and aesthetic taste.

The Long Museum has a rich collection of 20th-century Chinese paintings, which comprehensively reflect the survival and development of a large number of outstanding Chinese painters in the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China as well as their artistic evolution and innovation.

The exhibition will focus on the works of dozens of outstanding Chinese painters of the 20th century collected by Long Museum, such as Huang Binhong, Zhang Daqian, Fu Baoshi, Li Keran, etc. These works are not only the testimony of the innovation and development of Chinese painting in the century, but also the embodiment of the artists’ tireless pursuit and exploration of artistic development.