In order to celebrate the centenary of the birth of Mr. Li Ruinian, National Art Museum of China, China Artists Association, Capital Normal University and China Central Academy of Fine Arts decide to hold an exhibition of Celebration of the centenary of the birth of Li Ruinian and exhibition of works donated by him from 6th Jul. 2010 to 16th Jul. 2010 in National Art Museum of China together. The exhibition will exhibit nearly 100 works of his oil paintings and sketches which are created in different times from 40’s to 80’s in 20th century. By then, visitors will appreciate the artistic style and features which we haven’t seen for a long time of the painter who is good at landscape drawing. During the exhibition, his family will donate Li Ruinian’s representative works in different times and the works will be collected by the National Art Museum of China permanently. This will enrich the collection of the National Art Museum of China with the artistic demeanor of those students who went to Europe for art study and serve our country with aesthetic education after they come back.

Li Ruinian was born in Tianjin in 1910 and admitted to Peking University Art College. He studied western art apprenticed with professors such as Wang Yuezhi, Wei Tianlin and others. He went to Europe for study in 1933 and studied in sketch drawing class of Belgium Royal Academy of Fine Arts. In 1935, he studied in National Advanced School of Fine Arts in Paris, France and come back to China in 1937.

Li Ruinian was engaged in art education from 1939 to 1985. His cooperative teaching with Xu Beihong, Huang Xianzhi and Lv Sibai in Central University in the early 1940s and 1950s and subsequent teaching activities with Xu Beihong in National Beijing Art College (China Central Academy of Fine Arts) were his most brilliant moment in his art teaching career. In addition to teaching, he also assumed the office of member of Discipline Assessment Group of the Academic Degrees Committee of State Council, vice-president of China Artists Association—Beijing Branch, Executive Director of Beijing Federation of Literary and Art Circles and member of Beijing Municipal Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference.

Li Ruinian is famous for his sketches and landscape oil paintings. His landscape oil paintings are believed the best by Xu Beihong. Mr. Xu called his works as simple and meaningful, with well-knit techniques, a gratifying naturalism , a lyric.