Yixing Art Museum

Wu Guanzhong’s Former Residence

Wu Guanzhong’s Former Residence is a cultural tourism attraction.

Wu Guanzhong’s Former Residence is located next to Beiqu Village Primary School at Zhakou, surrounded by an elegant environment. The newly built facilities were renovated on June 25, 2011, the first anniversary of Mr. Wu Guanzhong’s passing, with investment from Jiangsu Donglai Cultural Industry Group. The total planned construction area of the residence is 2,500 square meters. The old house where Wu Guanzhong once lived is situated in the northeast corner of the planned site, with a construction area of approximately 213 square meters.

The renovation of the former residence strictly follows the principle of “restoring the old as it was, to preserve its authenticity.” Based on the original two-bay, single-courtyard structure that was retained, it has been restored to a three-bay, double-courtyard layout according to the structure of Wu Guanzhong’s childhood home. To better showcase Master Wu’s life and works, and to meet exhibition and visitor needs, three auxiliary buildings — a biography exhibition room, a works display room, and a reception room — have been added.

After the passing of Master Wu Guanzhong, the protection project for his former residence and surrounding areas is being actively advanced. The small house of Wu Guanzhong’s former residence at Zhakou is rather dim inside, where Wu spent his childhood and teenage years.

Wu Guanzhong was born in 1919 in Yixing County, Jiangsu Province. He graduated from the National Academy of Art in 1942, was awarded a government-funded scholarship by the Ministry of Education in 1946, and went to the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris in 1947, where he studied Western art history under Professor Souverbie. Wu returned to China in the autumn of 1950. He taught successively at the Central Academy of Fine Arts, the Department of Architecture at Tsinghua University, the Beijing Art Academy, and the Central Academy of Arts and Crafts. He currently serves as a professor at the Central Academy of Arts and Crafts, executive director of the China Artists Association, and member of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, among other positions. He has published works such as Selected Sketches and Color Paintings by Wu Guanzhong... More details about Wu Guanzhong++