Wu Guanzhong and Hong Kong 吳冠中與⾹港: Prints and Photographies 老照片與版畫展
吳冠中與香港
吳冠中先生對香港有著深厚的感情。他生前曾打算將全部作品捐獻給香港（參看筆者在明報月刊2009年12期的文章）。後來，先生雖然將捐獻分散到國內外（包括香港）的多個藝術館，但是，他情有獨鐘地特意將最得意的作品《雙燕》連同極珍貴的繪畫創作用具留給了香港。先生對香港的感情與信任被他的後人承繼，長子吳可雨在先生身後繼續將手中保留的作品一而再地捐給了香港。
吳冠中先生從上世紀八十年代起，多次訪問香港。與香港藝術館多次合作，對藝術館工作人員的品德與能力讚賞有加。先生說：他們讀懂了我的心。
香港藝術館十分罕見地接二連三為同一藝術家舉辦畫展，詳情如下：
叛逆的師承——吳冠中 1995年10月27日至12月10日
無涯惟智——吳冠中藝術里程 2002年3月15日至5月12日
獨立風骨——吳冠中捐贈展 2010年3月26日至10月10日
吳冠中——畫·舞·樂 2011年11月9日至2012年4月15日
吳冠中作品捐贈展2014 2014年12月24日至2015年8月2日
除了藝術館的展事以外：
香港藝術中心早在87年就為先生舉辦盛大的回顧展，掀起吳冠中熱潮。
我們在89年為先生舉辦首次商業畫展，轟動一時；同年稍後在蘇富比的拍賣中，先生的作品開創了中國畫畫價的最高紀錄。
隨後，先生從香港走向大英博物館，羅啟妍、羅啟文與筆者參與了組織工作。吳冠中成為大英博物館首次（也許是唯一的一次）為在世畫家舉辦個人展覽的藝術家。
92年，香港土地發展公司舉辦了題為“吳冠中眼中的香港”畫展，同年，筆者與中國美術家協會合作，在北京歷史博物館舉辦了盛大的吳冠中師生展。
吳冠中夫人曾語重心長地對筆者的太太說：我們還不是從香港起來的。
8月29日是先生的百歲紀念日，各地的紀念活動相繼展開，我們僅以先生在香港活動的影像做這個展覽來紀念、懷念深深地愛著香港的、偉大、高尚的藝術家吳冠中。
Wu Guanzhong and Hong Kong
Wu Guanzhong has a great affection for Hong Kong. He used to want to donate all his paintings to Hong Kong (see the article written by Fong Yuk Yan, published in Ming Pao Monthly, 2009/12). Even when later he donated them to museums at home and abroad. The important masterpiece “Two Swallows” which he favoured was offered to Hong Kong as he wished, as well as his valuable drawing tools. Wu Guanzhong’s descendants inherit his love and trust for Hong Kong. The eldest son of Wu Guanzhong, Mr Wu Keyu, continues to make several more donations to Hong Kong museums after he passed away.
Wu Guanzhong visited Hong Kong very often since 1980s. He had collaborated with Hong Kong Museum of Arts for many times. It was the virtue and professional competence of their staffs that Wu Guanzhong highly praised for. As he put it, “They read my mind”.
List of exhibitions held by Hong Kong Museum of Arts for Wu Guanzhong includes:
“Twentieth-Century Chinese Painting: Tradition and Innovation” exhibition, with one of its thematic exhibitions being “Vision and Revision: Wu Guanzhong” (This was the first special exhibition of Wu Guanzhong’s work), 10.27-12.10,2019
“Wu Guanzhong: A Retrospective”, exhibiting 124 of his representative works since the 1960s, 3.15-5.12, 2002
“Lofty Integrity: Donation of Works by Wu Guanzhong”， 3.26-10.10，2010
“Wu Guanzhong: Painting‧Dance‧Music”, 11.9.2011-4.15.2012
“Donation of Works by Wu Guanzhong 2014”, 12.14.2014-8.2.2015
Besides the exhibitions held at Hong Kong Museum of Arts, other important exhibitions are:
Hong Kong Art Centre held Wu Guanzhong’s first major solo exhibition outside mainland China back in 1987. His painting became all the rage.
We held Wu Guanzhong’s first commercial exhibition in 1989 in Hong Kong, which was a sensation of the year.
Same year in the Sotheby’s HK spring sales, Wu’s ink painting “The Ruins of Gaochang” sold for HK$1.87 million, breaking a world auction record for Chinese paintings by living artists.
Later, Wu Guanzhong went from Hong Kong to the British Museum. Kai-Yin Lo, Kai-Man Lo and I took part in organising “Wu Guanzhong: A Twentieth-Century Chinese Painter” host by the British Museum. It was the first time the British Museum held a solo exhibition for a living Asian artist, maybe the only time it did so. In 1992, the Land Development Corporation of Hong Kong invited Wu to sketch local old streets, which were to be demolished and rebuilt, and organised the “Hong Kong through the Eyes of Wu Guanzhong” exhibition. In the same year, China Artists Association and I organised the exhibition of Wu Guanzhong and his students in the National Museum of China.
Ms. Zhu Biqin, Wu Guanzhong’s wife, said to my wife, “Didn’t we start all from Hong Kong? ”
There are different exhibitions and activities in different places commemorating Wu Guanzhong’s 100th Birthday this year. We start this exhibition entitled “Wu Guanzhong and Hong Kong, Prints and Photographies” August 29th, 2019. As the title suggests, historical photos of the artist in Hong Kong will be exhibited. Wu Guanzhong loved this city. So we would love to honour the memory of him, one of the contemporary Chinese artists achieving greatest prominence, in this way.
