Recently, Dean Qiu Ting and his delegation from the Landscape Department of the School of Chinese Painting at the Central Academy of Fine Arts went to Nanxi River in Yongjia County for a sketching expedition, and arrived at Ruoxi International Art Village (administratively named Shangrichuan Village) located in Hesheng Town, Yongjia County on April 20th. Ruoxi International Art Village was awarded the title of "Zhejiang Province Art Education Demonstration Village" in 2023. The Art Village connects Chinese artists with artists from around the world through artistic exchanges, organizes the "Encounter" series of international exchange activities, forms a unique landscape of "half village fireworks, half village danqing", lights up beautiful rural areas in China with art, and actively explores the integration of art and sociology in the footsteps of Mr. Liang Shuming and Mr. Fei Xiaotong.

Dean Qiu and his delegation inspected the practical achievements of art lighting up the countryside in Ruoxi Village in recent years. They visited representative venues such as calligraphy hall, framing studio, mineral pigment studio, Huayan inkstone studio, and Oulan Society, and interacted and exchanged ideas with young art enthusiasts in the village, encouraging them to maintain their love for painting.

The dean of the Chinese Painting Academy at the Central Academy of Fine Arts, Qiu Ting, said, "Yongjia is a typical representative of green mountains and clear waters. Here, you can see the clarity of the stream and give people spiritual enlightenment through 'quiet observation'. We hope to settle here for a long time and use our pen and ink to present the scenery here.

On April 21st, a sketching team of about 40 teachers and students arrived at the Nanxi Academy Sketching Base in Yongjia, embarking on an 8-day journey of landscape sketching. Nanxi Academy is located in Shiweiyan Scenic Area, Hesheng Town, Yongjia. It is a comprehensive architectural complex that integrates an art museum, an artist studio, and an artist sketching base. Its positioning is a base for the revival of traditional Chinese culture and a platform for cultural exchange between China and the West. Classmates appreciate pond fish, appreciate calligraphy and painting, experience traditional handmade paper making, observe Huayan inkstone carving, and find suitable sketches in and around the academy. They study ink to calm their minds, converse with the mountains and forests, listen to the stream's own words, and draw inspiration from their hearts before applying their brush and ink to paper.

Recently, it happened to be spring rain in Nanxi again. From Nanxi Academy, one could see the  misty scenery of mountains and peaks rising from afar. It seemed to be blended with light ink, creating a vivid atmosphere and stepping into a fairyland of ink painting. It was a wonderful opportunity for landscape painting and creation.

On the afternoon of the 22nd, the sketching team walked into the Shiweiyan Scenic Area to collect scenery. Along the way, there were turbulent springs, rugged mountains and rocks, mysterious and hidden beauty, and perse resources. This place also has the characteristics of mountains and rivers in both the north and south, making it an endless treasure for painters. The team walked to a high pavilion deep inside, where Dean Qiu demonstrated the method of transforming real-life sketches to students, led them to experience the spirit of mountains and waters, and comprehend the importance of composition selection.

It is reported that the teachers and students of the team have almost arrived at Nanxi River in Yongjia for the first time, and have expressed admiration and high praise for the natural scenery and cultural relics here. They also cherish this opportunity for sketching. We look forward to them deeply experiencing the spiritual energy of the natural mountains and rivers of Nanxi during their sketching journey in the next few days, using their own painting language to integrate the ancient, clear, beautiful, strange, and secluded characteristics of Nanxi mountains and rivers into their works, completing the process of knowledge accumulation and artistic precipitation, and storing more sources for future artistic creation.