There was no joking on Gu Tongxiang's face: "This money is not for you, it is for Gu's Book Gallery."
The old man took out an art sales agreement, filled out all the columns carefully, the seller and the acquirer all wrote their names, and finally paid the money into the gallery's account.
Gu Weijing watched eagerly as the five green Franklins disappeared into the safe.
"Don't worry, your share of the money will be deducted from the gallery's share, and will be transferred to your school account after you file your taxes." As the old man spoke, the accounts in his hand were meticulously prepared.
"Is this necessary?"
Gu Weijing was surprised. If it were a serious art purchase, of course all the necessary procedures should be followed.
But my grandfather's behavior of turning his left hand into his right hand was very strange.
Art transactions are subject to the same transaction taxes as luxury goods, but you will not be charged less just because you are not famous.
The tax you have to pay on the five hundred dollars is also a tax, right?
"My father and grandfather both studied gongbi painting. At that time, Yangon was still a British colony, and oriental art could not be sold at a high price. Therefore, I was the first person in our family to learn Western painting techniques. I sold my first sketch when I was a teenager, for fifteen dollars."
"It was also in this calligraphy and painting shop. I still remember the way my father, your great-grandfather, took out fifteen dollars from under the floor of the back room."
Mr. Gu Tongxiang pointed towards the back: "My first reaction was not excitement, but fear. At that time, Myanmar was in chaos and wars were going on. Basically, calligraphy and painting shops could no longer operate, and sometimes they couldn't even eat. .I have never seen so much money. Five dollars in Rangoon at that time was enough to kill many people."
"Your great-grandfather told me that this is the first painting I have sold in my life. He is investing in art. Not only investing in this painting, but also investing in me. He believes that I am no better than any blond and blue-eyed person." The white people are inferior, and I am better than all of them. When our ancestors of the Gu family picked up the paintbrush, those foreigners were still playing with mud. One day my paintings will really sell for the sky-high price of 15 US dollars."
In the traditional Western art industry, the works of yellow people have inherent disadvantages in the market.
After all, the art field is known as the last fig leaf for the great powers. Although our economy is not good, our national power is declining, and our industry has stopped production, I understand art and I am awesome.
For many European aristocrats who are down and out, their old houses are about to collapse because they cannot afford the maintenance costs, and all the furniture and antiques are sold. According to the aristocratic tradition, they will put two oil paintings in the living room to commemorate the glory of their ancestors.
It doesn't matter whether this is tradition and honor, what matters is that you look awesome. When they invite beautiful girls to their homes for dinner and dates, they can point to the picture frame on the wall and say: "Look, my great-grandfather was the patron of such-and-such artist back then?"
Or: "Look, my great-grandmother graduated from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts! This is an oil painting she painted when King So-and-so came to visit."
What is pretentiousness? This is pretentiousness, even if you are about to go bankrupt because of investment failure, or if you have spent generations without restraint, your pockets will be full of money.
Compared with you, those emerging NEW MONEYs in the East are still bumpkins with yellow mud in their crotches.
When art is strong, those silly girls like theater sopranos or ballet dancers will immediately have starry eyes, and the next great job of creating people will naturally be smooth sailing.
Gu Tongxiang leaned on the sofa and spoke in a daze: "At the International Art Biennale in Myanmar the year before last, an 80×60 sketch of mine was sold for not fifteen dollars, nor fifty dollars, but five dollars. One hundred dollars. If your great-grandfather could see this, he wouldn’t be too disappointed even if inflation is taken into account.”
The sketch is not a painting, and $500 is not low. For example, Mr. Li Tiefu, a modern painting giant and revolutionary in East Asia, the transaction price of the sketches auctioned at Christie's fluctuates around US$2,000.
In the oil painting circle, only RB painters in East Asia may barely be considered second-class citizens. After all, there are "Oriental Angels" like Moriki Kusuke, and there are also a lot of emerging painters who can be named after the 1980s and 1990s.
Others are miserable, not even third-class citizens because they are not good at speaking out. In the selection of many international awards, even African friends are more popular.
After all, this year is not the 19th century. No one in the art circle dares to be blatantly racist, but they will give you a cold shoulder, isolate you, and tell you with hypocritical and polite faces that your kind of artistic desert is not worthy of the birth of greatness. painter.
Even taking into account the fact that the buyer was particularly discerning, selling a sketch for $500 is something to be proud of.
"From fifteen dollars to five hundred dollars, it took me sixty years to bridge this gap and overcome the stereotypes of foreigners against Eastern artists."
The old man looked at his grandson with a sigh.
"I'm very happy today. I'm happy not only because you painted a painting that in my opinion can even be called a masterpiece, but because you kept your heart in the face of temptation. This is more important than the former. I know now There are many foreign artists who have access to wine, sex, money and everything, hang out with various gangs, and are proud of themselves, as if this is enough to be an 'Artist'."
Not all painters are moral gentlemen. In the industry of emerging painters, there are many people with messy private lives. They indulge themselves uncontrollably in the name of pursuing inspiration.
Some people are either high or on the way to high. Having an affair with a body worker cannot be considered a scandal. It is normal to parade around the city with a yacht girl on your arm. The paparazzi are too lazy to report it. What's the point of being creative and romantic? ? Literary giants like Nietzsche and Flaubert were also syphilitic patients who changed their girlfriends like they changed their pants.
The orthodox painting circle may be cleaner. Many creative painters who started their careers through creative street spray painting and gained millions of followers on YouTube and Instagram are as crazy as the gangster rappers who were shot dead every two days.
"I don't judge them, but I don't want you to be one of them. For our Gu family, learning to be a human being is more important than learning to learn art. If you don't know how to be a human being, you are not worthy of painting, and your ancestors will be shamed."
Gu Tongxiang's painting makes it very clear that this is Myanmar, not the mainland where the public security situation and anti-drug efforts are perfect. The more familiar name of the northern part of Myanmar is the Golden Triangle, where it is easier to get white powder than flour.
Underworld, drugs, cultural relic smuggling... If you get involved in the same thing, your life will be ruined.
Gu Tongxiang saw his grandson Gu Weijing nodding solemnly, and then continued: "You already have all the conditions to become a painter, so I decided to buy your first painting, just like my father did. Your talent is better than mine, your family background is better than mine, and your artistic environment is much better than mine. Your lower limit is naturally higher than grandpa’s upper limit."
"I hope you can remember the five hundred dollars today, do good deeds, and take the right path. Sixty years later, when I am no longer here, I hope you can be here, proudly telling your grandchildren that your life has made this What a fortune five hundred dollars turned into.”
Gu Weijing answered directly because a new prompt appeared in front of him.
[Wealth value received: US$367.50]
[The experience redemption panel has been activated! 】
[Extra points earned: 0]
[Note: Social welfare activities that spend money for purely charitable purposes will be automatically converted at the exchange rate of (10 US dollars to one point)
"By the way, Brother Hao's group... don't worry too much. I thought about it on the way back and it just so happened that next week the Myanmar government recently officially launched a Shwedagon Pagoda Fresco restoration project in cooperation with Dong Xia, RB and other international organizations. Mural Restoration)] Master Project, in order to enhance the international image of Yangon, I was invited. I will show off my old face and take you to hang your name inside.
Although the police in Myanmar are ineffective, Brother Hao and the others are gangsters after all, and they can't pester you too much in this kind of government international project. In another year, when you go to university, you will probably no longer stay in Yangon, and the situation will be much better. "
"Shwedagon Pagoda? It's the Ruiguang Shwedagon Pagoda. Can I do it?"
This time it was Gu Weijing's turn to be surprised.
Shwedagon Pagoda is the English name of Shwedagon Pagoda, and it is also the most important historical monument and tourist card in Yangon or the entire Myanmar.
Not only does it support tourism throughout Myanmar, it is also one of the most important Buddhist holy sites in Southeast Asia.
The Shwedagon Pagoda is the national symbol of Myanmar. Its status to Myanmar is equivalent to that of the Great Wall to the Eastern Xia Dynasty, the Statue of Liberty to the United States, and the pyramids to Egypt.
"Of course you can't. What are you thinking about? I'm not asking you to preside over the restoration. Just be satisfied if you can serve tea and water to those masters, move a ladder and so on."
Gu Tongxiang blew his beard and looked at Gu Weijing's surprised look, feeling secretly proud in his heart.
Even if I can participate in this project as a student, it is definitely a rare good thing.
Not to mention that it is the dream of every young painter to have close contact and study with those real masters. Even if you have a name in such an international project, it is a very big highlight in your resume.
It will also be a great bonus to apply to an internationally renowned art college when you go to college. Foreign universities attach great importance to this aspect of practice.
"Remember, be smart when the time comes, do more and talk less. Those art masters who are truly famous internationally have a bit of a weird temper, and I'm just a little guy inside. Don't ask for the blessing to be appreciated by anyone, But if it offends anyone, even I won’t be able to eat it and walk around in circles.”
