Almighty painter

Chapter 541: Selection by the Artists Association

"We were sitting in the ambush made of branches and twigs by the Wandrobo hunters on the edge of the salt marsh when we heard the sound of the truck approaching—"

Gu Tongxiang glanced at the corner of the room, where a red indicator light was on, indicating that the TV camera was recording.

He tried to straighten his back a little more, turned a page of the essay collection "Green Hills of Africa" ​​in his hand, and continued to read in a very strange, distorted voice, like a low-quality version of the People's Art Theater drama actor Pu Cunxin.

"—at first it was so far away that no one could tell what the sound was. Then it stopped, and we hoped that there was no sound at all, or that perhaps it was the wind..."

Gu Weijing was sitting next to his grandfather, drinking a cup of free coffee provided in the break room to the artists shortlisted for the National Artists Association this year.

usually.

You don't need a straw to drink coffee.

But Gu Weijing really felt that he urgently needed to hold something in his mouth to keep a straight face and prevent the liquid from spitting out.

Bang!
Gu Weijing could feel that he was kicked by Old Man Gu across the coffee table.

"Be serious, the camera is filming. I've told you before, when you listen to grandpa reading, you should have that kind of respect and love from the bottom of your heart. I am the mountain, I am the sea."

Gu Tongxiang lowered his voice and said with a fierce threat in his eyes, "Boy, your expression now is like looking at a monkey."

Respect, okay, respect, I understand.

Gu Weijing nodded obediently.

When Gu Tongxiang saw his grandson's appearance, he felt that he could not lead such a weak teammate, so he had to temporarily put an end to the reading session between the grandfather and grandson.

He took out a solid wooden snow flute box from his arms and threw it to his grandson.

Gu Weijing resisted the urge to complain.

He opened the box and pulled out a cigar as big and thick as a stick.

Gu Weijing raised his head and glanced at the old man whose face showed "I'm watching you, don't try to be lazy!", and reluctantly followed the procedures he was told.

It was as if the natives in a primitive African tribe were preparing to hold a series of complicated prayer ceremonies around a campfire.

Very strict.

First, knock on the cigar to make the tobacco leaves firm, then carefully use a cigar cutter to cut off its head to reveal the dried and compacted tobacco leaves inside, then pick up the lighter.

It is said that this is to prevent the pungent smell of kerosene in the lighter from tainting the original flavor of the snow horn.

So under Gu Tongxiang's threatening gaze, Gu Weijing first used a flint lighter to ignite the cedar wood chips in the cigarette box, and then used the wood chips' moderate outer flame to rotate and ignite the tobacco bit by bit.

at last.

Gu Weijing pinched his forehead, held the cigar in both hands, and handed it to his grandfather.

"Your heart is in turmoil, ah."

Who knows.

Old Master Gu took the Xuejiao but didn't smoke it. He criticized her in a very ungrateful way, "Your mind is in a mess, so the taste you order won't be good."

He stared at the slowly burning cigarette in his hand, as if he had experienced the same service from his grandson hundreds of times in his life, and the slightest mistake would not escape his keen eyes.

It was like a high monk staring at the green moss growing by the well, as if there were some subtle Zen method that he was about to reveal.

"Grandpa taught you, didn't he? Every word and action should have its rules. A true gentleman should remain calm and composed even when faced with a catastrophe. Do you know where you went wrong?"

Gu Tongxiang waited for two seconds.

Seeing that his grandson did not answer.

I had no choice but to continue my work: "Didn't I teach you? Don't be stingy. Although this Cuban handmade snow pipe is not expensive, it still needs to be treated seriously. You must cut a little more so that the pipe skin in the middle can fully participate in the combustion. With the first puff, you can taste the flavor of Central American coffee beans."

Gu Tongxiang let the tobacco burn slowly in his hands.

"I know this is the first time in your life that you have the opportunity to be selected by the National Artists Association, but there is no use in being impatient. Waiting, waiting enough, can brew the best flavor."

He criticized and educated his grandson with a flexible and maneuverable manner.

He pushed the chair away, stood up, and walked to the corner of the tea room.

open the window.

Based on his experience of carrying a camera to the park to shoot birds, Old Man Gu assessed the angle of backlighting, adjusted his stance, then held the snow flute in his mouth and took a deep breath.

“Delicious.”

Old man Gu clicked his tongue and made a genuine London accent.

In the gushing white smoke, the camera lens was left with a visual silhouette of alternating light and dark.

Gu Tongxiang thought he was so handsome.

As for Gu Weijing, he felt that he had tried very hard, but he really wanted to live in Bengbu.

……

Today is the day when the National Artists Association selects and approves new members every year.

The candidates were invited to the headquarters office building of the Artist Association.

It’s quite a scene.

The TV station sent a team of reporters and directors, and even set up cameras in the tea room where the artists could rest.

It is said.

They are going to edit today's scenes into a short documentary called "Artist's Day".

Gu Tongxiang was very excited and was ready to try, but Gu Weijing was not very interested in this matter.

He is very busy.

What's more, although he has a strong resume, Miao Angwen has Brother Hao as his supporter.

Really run over here.

It is impossible to tell who is the red flower and who is the green leaf until the end.

In the past, he would definitely wait for the results at home.

But a few days ago, a conversation with Miss Shengzi in the orphanage changed Gu Weijing's attitude towards life to a certain extent.

There is no end to practicing painting.

He felt that he should relax and embrace life more.

Good or bad, it's all part of life.

Listen more to the hustle and bustle of the city, and wait for the moment when the hustle and bustle of the world touches your heart.

Then--

Gu Weijing felt that from today on, he could no longer bear to look at the image of his father in his mind. On the way to the headquarters of the Artists Association, Gu Tongxiang seemed to have become a different person.

The temperature today was over 30 degrees, but Gu Tongxiang still wore a seersucker shirt, jacket, and brogues. Not only did Old Man Gu dress like this himself, he also required Gu Weijing to dress very formally.

In the short two-minute unair-conditioned journey from the parking lot to the office building, Gu Weijing felt as if he had been in a steam sauna from head to toe.

"Mr. Hemingway, I have a question for you. I like to read martial arts novels. My grandfather who watched short videos of the elderly suddenly disappeared. Do you know where he went? If I can't find him, I will post a missing person notice."

Gu Weijing followed Gu Tongxiang to the window, and was again knocked down by the hot air coming in from the open window.

Looking at the bald head on his forehead that was bright as a light bulb under the scorching sun almost at noon, Old Man Gu stood resolutely in the high temperature, posing motionlessly.

He couldn't help it, so he stood next to the old man, looked out the window, and complained in a low voice.

"What do you know? Don't you young people always say that being popular is a temporary thing, but being handsome is a lifelong thing?"

"Is it necessary? Excuse me for being frank, but it is very likely that the two of us are here today just to go through the motions." Gu Weijing reminded from the side.

"As for it?"

Gu Weijing has a clear understanding of his position.

After all, the quota of the National Artists Association is related to the opportunity to be recommended to the national pavilion of some world-class super exhibitions.

Among a total population of 50 million, there are less than 50 members of the Art Association, or as some European countries call them - academicians of arts.

This kind of opportunity is still very, very scarce.

Among the dozen or so candidates present, only one can become a formal member of the National Artists Association.

After a rational analysis, Gu Weijing felt that the probability that this opportunity would eventually fall on his head was no more than 3%... The remaining %? That would naturally belong to Miao Angwen.

It’s not that Gu Weijing intentionally looks down on himself.

Although this membership review was advertised to be fair and transparent.

But.

As I said, Brother Hao is standing behind Miao Angwen.

Anyone who truly believes that the underworld will give you fairness and transparency is simply a cute fool.

This is less than a 30% probability.

25% of them are because the TV station will follow up the report, and the insider operation may not dare to be too exposed. Perhaps this follow-up documentary is also a part of Brother Hao paving the way for Miao Angwen.

But objectively it helped Gu Weijing a lot.

His artistic advantages over Miao Aung Win in all aspects.

The more transparent it is, the clearer the selection rules will be.

The higher his chances of winning.

The remaining half is because the National Artists Association is, after all, the highest representative of a country's artists.

Those who can achieve this level all have high social status.

You have your connections, and I have mine.

If someone is willing to listen to Brother Hao, then perhaps someone is also willing to give face to Cao Xuan.

The selection committee of the National Artists Association includes several bigwigs who are highly respected and have a certain international reputation.

The key is that they don’t live in Yangon.

They may not necessarily sell it out for the sake of the face of a regional godfather like Brother Hao.

of course.

Adding all these factors together, a 30% chance is already very good.

It's still the same truth.

How about Miao Angwen signing with Three-Dimensional Space Gallery and Gu Weijing signing with Mesch Gallery?
So what if the person who wrote the recommendation letter for Miao Angwen was a second-tier critic and the person who was optimistic about Gu Weijing was Cao Xuan?
You are talking about the rules of the art industry.

People don't have to tell you the rules of the art industry.

joke.

For the underworld, the biggest fist is the only rule.

Without these favorable conditions, this year's selection would be a complete black box.

Gu Weijing thought that the father and son could just pack up and go home now.

Submit the submission materials.

He was simply trying his best to help his Grandpa Wu prove his innocence, and that was the only role he could play.

He didn't know why his old man was so confident.

Anyway, he is quite pessimistic about being selected into the National Artists Association.

"Is it that important? Take away the "I" and it will be like, of course it is important."

“If you don’t believe you can be selected and don’t act like a great artist, why should others believe you can be selected?”

Gu Tongxiang took a puff of cigarette calmly and glanced at his grandson.

"You are still too young. Packaging, packaging is very important."

"At least, the mixed-up shots are good. Society has a high tolerance for artists. You can be cool, handsome, arrogant, bad, or even a little awkward."

"But the only thing I won't tolerate is that you're boring."

“Because society itself is boring, and most people’s jobs are boring. They don’t expect to see a boring shadow in an artist.”

"They are all people with two legs and two arms supporting a head. Especially those who do modern art graffiti, who put a dot on a piece of white paper, how many people do you think can understand it? Why would people spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to buy your white paper instead of putting a dot on it at home and seeing it?"

(The picture shows the oil painting "White Cloth" by the famous minimalist artist Robert Ryman. The final auction price of this painting in New York was 1.3 million.)
"At least one thing, think about it, if you are the director of a documentary, when you go back to edit the film, would you like to give more shots to a bored old man who is waiting for time and watching Tiktok short videos with his head down? Or would you like to give more shots to an intellectual grandfather and grandson who is reading Hemingway's works to his grandson tenderly?"

“Which one is more in line with the public’s expectations of artists?”

Gu Tongxiang smiled wickedly and pushed the meticulously tied Windsor knot at his collar. "Boy, since you are my grandson, I will teach you a lesson. It is hard and tiring to paint with style. In front of the camera, it is much easier to make the audience think that this guy has real style. So, even if you pretend, you have to pretend with style in front of the camera. Don't be afraid of being scolded by others. At least there will be discussion. Which top artist doesn't have some controversy? The art industry is afraid of being forgotten. If you are forgotten, you are really dead."

"Clothes make the man, and saddles make the horse, so for the sake of the classics, straighten your back! Show your style. Show the aura that I am the future emperor of art and the spiritual mentor of thousands of girls. I have always felt that the evaluation of Van Dorn by Miss Anna Elena in the YouTube video was too nitpicking and too easy to say."

"In The Great Gatsby, it says that when you judge others, you should remind yourself that not everyone in the world has what you have. Then who is Miss Elena? She was born a billionaire and grew up in a palace. So she is ethereal and has no trace of worldly airs. She donated 5 billion dollars with just a wave of her hand, and even after donating 5 billion dollars, she is still one of the richest people on the planet."

Gu Tongxiang sighed lightly: "People like her will never understand the desire and hardship of ordinary people to become famous. What does Van Dorn have? Van Dorn has earned everything by himself. So what if he pretends to be famous? Fame is his biggest reliance, so of course he has to pretend."

"There are so many people in the industry who are playing the emperor's new clothes. It takes a skill to pretend well. If you can fool everyone in the world into thinking you are a superstar in the art world, then you are the next great Leonardo da Vinci. Van Doorn pretended for 20 years to have his "style", but the judge insisted on saying that he had no clothes on. If she doesn't make a mortal enemy, who will?"

(End of this chapter)