At the Eighth National Congress of the Communist Party of China held in 1956, the Party determined that it would focus on leading the whole nation to carry out socialist economic construction and to vigorously develop the productive forces. Then, industrial and agricultural production in China experienced the prosperous development; people in the vast rural areas were full of passion; and peasants were enthusiastic for production. In order to have a good harvest and get rid of poverty and backwardness, they worked day and night in the fields. Lu Yanshao was inspired by the scene and created New Look of Motherland in 1957.

The painting takes a scene at a corner of the field and stretches in a horizontal layout. The figures are divided into six groups: four in the foreground, one in the middle and one in the distant view. One group of people in the foreground are in a heated discussion, as if they are studying the new situation; one group are standing around a swaddled baby, implying that the new generation would bring a bright future and good hope; one group is ploughing; one group is cultivating hard. The group of people in the middle are rushing over while talking. The group in the distant view are striding in high spirit. The whole picture is well arranged with properly-distributed figures. There are men and women, young and old in different postures. Lines of figures and texturizing dots of entourage coexist in harmony, which is attributed to Lu’s profound attainment and highly-coordinated techniques. Bright red and blue, green and white set each other off, highlighting the flourishing scene of production.

The painting is Lu’s in-depth practice of the creation concepts such as “making the past serve the present-day needs” and “going deep into life”. He used his brush to recreate the scenes of peasants struggling for a new life, and the infinite joy on their faces. He created a new realm of ink painting in the new era with his incisive and vivid traditional technique.

(Edited by Li Hanning & Yang Zhige, 2021)