Symphony of Black and White: Shama Layi•Treasure of China

Symphony of Black and White: Shama Layi·Treasure of China - Panda Painting Exhibition

Shama Layi (2^nd from right) in Riverside Art Avenue

    Morning of May 28, when the opening of Picasso in China Art Exhibition was held in Riverside Art Avenue, Treasure of China - Panda Painting Exhibition by Shama Layi - the famous Chinese panda painter was also held there. Vice president of United Nations World Intangible Cultural Heritage Foundation and American Philatelic Group Wu Yiping, executive director of United Nations World Intangible Cultural Heritage Foundation and director of American Philatelic Group China Arts Foundation Cui Enqing, vice president of Beijing Youth Daily Wu Bin, leader of 2016 WFRS Regional Convention Organizing Committee Li Jiantong, Review Editor of Ethnic Publishing House Ta Bing, general manager of Riverside Milan Company Wanghong(Ms.), spokeswoman of American Philatelic Group Fu Dandan, manager of 2016 WFRS Regional Convention Center Shi Yi, director of China region of American Philatelic Group Yang Bao, Representatives of China National Art Gallery and Chinese Painting Academy, ten little painter of Beijing and Shama Layi witnessed the opening ceremony of panda exhibition.

    This exhibition was jointly held by United Nations World Intangible Cultural Heritage Foundation and American Philatelic Group China Arts Foundation, and was co-worked and participated by teachers and students recreational center of National Academy of Chinese, Chinese Painting Academy, Beijing Youth Daily and other national cultural authority.

Shama Layi together with children

    Shama Layi, Yi Nation, subject review team member of Academic Degrees Committee of the State Council, member of Committee of National Education Experts of Ministry of Education, Former vice president of Southwest University for Nationalities, current secondary professor of Southwest University for Nationalities, PhD Tutor; Sichuan Literary Federation Vice-President, Vice president of China National Painting and Calligraphy Association; vice chairman of Chinese Folk Literature and Art Association, Chairman of Sichuan Folk Literature and Art Association. In 2015, panda paintings of Shama Layi were published on US stamps and won the title of "Sino-US Cultural Ambassador".

    Panda paintings of Shama Layi was an innovation of heritaged tradition and a combination of ancient and modern. He is the leader of contemporary Chinese panda painters. He was born in a small village of Yi nation in Daliangshan of Sichuan where is the paradise for panda living in. That made him a kind of unspeakable feeling of panda from childhood. For decades, he dipped himself into panda protection zone for sketching and observing every move of panda, accumulated 3000 pieces of panda sketches and creative materials to make a solid foundation for the future creation of panda painting.

Art works of Shama Layi

    In the colorful area of art, Shama Layi always adhere to his own creative path and ideas. When talked about his creative idea, Shama Layi said.

    “Chinese painters must have their own local cultural characteristics and don’t bother to meet the aesthetic of others. You can feel, understand and absorb the artistic advantages of others, but never lost your own things. To maintain local cultural characteristics is to get a foothold.” He believes that painting is something to start from what you like, not blindly seeking fame and fortune. The painter need to adjust to the local conditions and draw monasteries things of their own to express the familiar things and highlight the local characteristics. Love from heart makes the feelings of pleasure and brilliant art inspiration while creating. Shama Layi think that the painting art is to choose the means and characteristics of expression through observing, understanding and perception of a great quantity of paintings of the objects to describe, then naturally formed one’s own painting style. Any art and culture should primarily be local and national, then the whole country and world.

    Panda is the “national treasure” of China, and even the image ambassador of WWF. Sichuan is the hometown of panda and there is panda base in Chengdu. Sichuan panda Tuantuan, Yuanyuan and others were friendship messengers between regions and countries in Taiwan, America and Australia and others. To draw the pandas is a desire of Shama Layi for many years that to show the charmingly innocent image of panda to more people in the world. Coincided with the eve of International Children's Day, Shama Layi especially painted a scroll of "Love panda, love nature, love China" with the little painters of Beijing. The panda created by him was vivid and lifelike, and deeply loved by children in the capital and people in all walks of life.

Art works of Shama Layi