Gu Yuan

Gu Yuan (Zhongshan, Guangdong Province 1919 - 1996). Gu Yuan is known as a woodcut artist. ln 1938, he joined the Communist forces. He studied at the Lu Xun Academy and he graduated in 1940. In 1945, Gu went to Northeast China, where he performed with local cultural groups and worked as a journalist and artist. He was also active in the land reform movement. His work has come to embody the popular style of the liberated areas and has played an important role in spreading the policies of the Communist Party in China before 1949. In 1959, the artist joined the printmaking department of the Central Academy of Fine Arts. Later, he held the position of President of the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing.