BEIJING

Imperial exams

Visitors will have an close glimpse of the history and culture of China's imperial examination system in an exhibition at the Beijing Cultural Palace of Nationalities.

The exhibition, which runs until April 26, is co-sponsored by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage, the China International Exhibition Agency and the local government of Jiading District of Shanghai.

Spanning 1,300 years from 605-1905 AD in China, the imperial examination system {keju zhidu} was the most important way of selecting government officials for Chinese dynasties from the Sui (581-618) to the Qing (1644-1911).

Although controversial for its problems, especially in the later stage, the system played a substantial role in discovering talent through nationwidepublic examinations, experts say. For centuries, this system had great influences on the way in which officials were selected in the West and other Asian countries.

More than 400 relics, photographs and simulated models are on display. Most of the exhibits are on loan from the Jiading Museum in Shanghai, which is famous for its huge collection of relics related to the imperial examination system.

The most eye-catching exhibit is an answer sheet with an article handwritten by Zhao Bingzhong (1576-1626), who won first place in the national examination in 1598 and became a leading official of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).

New centre

The exhibition "Operation Free Ink: Paintings by Wang Jinsong" is on show at the newly established 25000 Cultural Transmission Centre at the Dashanzi Arts Territory in northeastern Beijing. It lasts until May 8.

This exhibition is organized by the centre as its first major art exhibition after it was established by the New York-based Long March Foundation in February.

"The fact that the first exhibition in our space is an ink exhibition is not surprising at all. In this 7-metre high, 250-square-metre art space, I have invited the artist to use ink in an aesthetic adventure," said Lu Jie, director of the centre and president of the foundation, who focuses on promoting Chinese contemporary art.

Artist Wang Jinsong was born in 1963 in Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province and graduated from the Chinese painting department of Zhejiang Academy of Fine Arts (currently known as the China National Academy of Fine Arts) in 1987.

Now an art teacher in Beijing, Wang is recognized internationally as a Chinese contemporary artist for his experimental art works using oil paintings, conceptual photographs, installations and videos. This is his first major solo exhibition of ink painting.

One of the most spectacular works in the exhibition is a huge figure painting painted directly on a 7 metre high, 10-metre wide wall, vividly portraying a soldier with a gun and ready to shoot. The painting provokes thoughts on war and artistic freedom.