In a world characterized by continuous transformations, the search for and exaltation of truth, goodness, and beauty emerge as values of incomparable importance. These ideals, like shining beacons, illuminate chaos and darkness, establishing deep connections with the human psyche and reminding us of the most authentic virtues of life. Cen Long, an artist profoundly devoted to the exploration of light, has dedicated decades to the search for the essence and meaning of existence. Through his poignant and vibrant pictorial language, he tells the stories of ordinary people who face the challenges of their conditions with courage, offering a new interpretation of the seemingly banal world around us. His works invite the viewer to immerse themselves in stories filled with struggle and resilience. Cen Long is an artist who embodies the highest ideals of his art, committed to bridging the gap between the contemporary and the classical, a bridge to rediscover the virtues and primordial beauty contained in the human spirit. This exhibition aspires to create a dialogue that transcends epochs, a timeless conversation that crosses the boundaries of space and history.

— Curator: Metra Lin

I do not love to paint the mysterious darkness, but a luminous world full of strength and hope. By painting, I wish to immerse myself in the light and happiness that arise in my mind, trying to transmit this bright hope so that it can remain guarded in the hearts.

— Cen Long

The theme of the Italy Cen Long Tour is particularly timely, universal, and timeless—the artist’s desire to sow hope through a vision of life depicted as a Purgatory, where people, subjected to trials and pain, do not give up but continue to hope and engage in the search for values such as goodness and beauty.

This is an exhibition featuring large-scale canvases, solid in construction and free in fluid brushwork, where powerful figures with plastic modeling are in constant dialogue with Western painting; coral textures with deep reminiscences of the art of this hemisphere; a diffuse spirituality that, while not directly linked to the stylistic elements of Christianity, conveys content that represents the essence of humanity, making his work a bridge for communicating through a universal intelligibility aesthetic-moral values such as love, kindness, hope, and strength. Guiding stars for the era of modernity, counteracting the speed of our time. The authenticity and strength of the works strike, using a language that transcends contemporary reality, presenting a humanity of fishermen and shepherds that expresses purity and grace and, transcending historical placement, leads to a purely spiritual experience.

Once before, Cen Long confronted the path of purification in the Divine Comedy when a precious exhibition was set up at the Palazzo Contarini del Bovolo in Venice, where Cen Long’s large canvases were placed in dialogue with Jacopo Tintoretto’s Paradiso. Both works were permeated with enveloping light that penetrates the shadows and highlights the whiteness of the bodies. Metra Lin, who has been a profound connaisseur of the artist’s work for decades, explained that the recent works mainly stemmed from the disorientation caused by the pandemic and the unexpected commonality of destinies, although Cen Long has experienced this for many years, having chosen to work in almost total solitude. The protagonists of this solitary, heterodox, and countercurrent artist’s paintings evoke a life from elsewhere, one that aims to capture the signs of the heavens and bring a message of humanity and intercultural mystical tension.

The artist, who sees painting as an essential part of his spiritual practice, hopes that with this Venetian exhibition, the second stop of his Italian tour, his art will bring out the most precious aspects of humanity, bringing courage and hope amidst the noise and fury of modern society. Hope, as a way of knowing how to face the difficulties ahead, is the core of Long’s message.

The works of Cen Long, displayed until November, are very distant from the representation of contemporary Chinese art that we are accustomed to knowing, especially in the field of painting. They constitute a unique phenomenon in the artistic landscape, characterized by a distinctive approach that includes a simple style, sophisticated brushstrokes, rigorous composition, and a layered and solid coloring. Each work contains a deep meaning and expresses values capable of withstanding the test of time and fascinating the imagination, evoking a sense of serenity in the viewer and encouraging those oppressed by the frenzy of modern life to experience once again the aesthetics of tranquility, returning to a more fundamental state of being.

The theme of hope is also the message of the documentary titled Hopes from the Underground, which has the support of His Excellency Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi. It was screened in Venice during the Cen Long exhibition at the Venice Film Festival and is now at Palazzo Cavazza Isolani in alignment with the theme of the exhibition and the upcoming Jubilee Pilgrims of Hope.

The exhibition is also celebrated with the presentation of the first monograph on Cen Long in Italian, published by Silvana.

The exhibition is sponsored by the Legislative Assembly of the Emilia-Romagna Region, the Municipality of Bologna, the Academy of Fine Arts of Bologna, the Academy of Fine Arts of Florence, the Italian Institute of Bioethics, and supported by the Crux Art Foundation.

Laura Villani Curator of the Cen Long Italy Exhibition Tour

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### CEN LONG – BRIEF BIOGRAPHY

Born in 1957 in Guangzhou, the largest coastal city in southern China, Cen Long left his academic career to pursue his work with greater freedom. His life was marked by the suicide of his father, Cen Jia Wu (1912–1966), a renowned anthropologist and historian. An intellectually stimulating family environment (his mother, Feng Lai Yi, is also an intellectual) quickly led him to study Western art, philosophy, and traditions; a foundational preparation that would influence Cen Long’s execution methods and the symbolism of his works. His artistic approach aims to imbue each work with deep meaning, expressing universal values. His works evoke a sense of clarity and serenity, encouraging the exploration of tranquility’s aesthetics to return to a more fundamental state of being. The result is a painting filled with mystery, speaking to all faiths without being tied to any particular belief, leading us with invisible steps into a shared fate where beauty is inherent in existence.

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### SOWING HOPE AWARD
The “Sowing Hope” competition in collaboration with the Academy of Fine Arts of Bologna and Florence

The theme “Sowing Hope” was chosen to inspire and challenge the creative minds of the Academy. In these times of uncertainty and change, hope represents a beacon of light and a catalyst for resilience and creativity. Collaborating with the Academy of Fine Arts of Bologna (Prof. Lenardo Santoli) and Florence (Prof. Saverio Vinciguerra), we aim to create a diverse range of artistic expressions that reflect on the transformative power represented by Hope. This collaboration is intended to provide students and recent graduates with a prestigious platform to showcase their talents on an international stage. The provision of an organization will allow students to connect with established artists and professionals in the art world, creating valuable networking opportunities abroad. The competition will also be significantly promoted to attract artists and art enthusiasts from around the world, with the intention of contributing to the visibility of the students and the institution of the Academy of Fine Arts during the exhibition at Palazzo Cavazza Isolani. The Crux Art Foundation and the Hann Art Agency are committed to providing the resources and logistical support necessary for this collaboration to enhance the creative potential of talented students and graduates. The “Sowing Hope Award”, the “Sowing Hope” artistic competition, aims to be not only a celebration of art but also an exploration of the lasting power of Hope. The selected works will be exhibited and published in a volume on the Italian Cen Long Exhibition Tour. The five finalists will be awarded during a ceremony on January 11, 2025, and the winner of the “Sowing Hope Award” will be invited to hold a solo exhibition at a museum in Taiwan.

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### HOPES FROM THE UNDERGROUND
Director: Valerio Finessi, Executive Producer: Vanni Sgaravatti

This short film, hosted due to its special connection with the theme of Hope that guides the Cen Long Exhibition and the path of people, even the most fragile and less fortunate in the face of insurmountable problems, presents the project “Caring for Relationships to Prevent Discomfort.” It seeks to raise awareness about the importance of a responsible and ethical approach to care. The documentary presents a series of situations and cases emerging from interviews with the protagonists. Produced in Bologna with the support of Cardinal Zuppi, promoted by the health organization Sokos and the Legal Medical Center of Inps, it explains the various connections. It represents and highlights the fractures between norms and social needs, which can be bridged through collaboration between institutions and volunteers. From the most dramatic stories to those showing the widespread malaise of life, various types of invisibility emerge, illustrating how different worlds overlap. These worlds intersect in a daily battle on the border of our comfort zones, which pretend to protect us from pain. The volunteers, institutional representatives, fragile people encountered, and the environments in which these contacts occur form the context in which solutions are sought between alternating hopes and disappointments hour after hour. From Bologna, the site of the project’s experimentation, one realizes how each neighborhood in the city becomes a viewpoint on the world, a kaleidoscope often of discomfort but also of a thousand colors of human
intensity.

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