Things are rare and valuable.
Gu Tongxiang knows that the most valuable way to make a painting method is to become the founder of a sect and turn this painting method into a prominent school in the field of art.
Such as Picasso's Cubism, Turner's Romanticism or Renoir's Impressionism.
Secondly, the fewer painters who know this painting method, the better.
It's best if no one else can play except you, and you have the only skill in the world.
When Mr. Cao Xuan called Cui Xuanyou for advice, Cui Xuanyou would rather refuse Mr. Cao's favor than give Gu Weijing advice to find a competitor for his son Xiao Cui.
Regardless of the possibility, Gu Tongxiang did not want to share the spotlight on his grandson.
Even if he is the other person's grandfather.
Even though he firmly believes that Gu Weijing's skills will be more successful than his own in the future.
The old man would still rather give up his dream than let this happen.
"Well... it's not a big problem. This unique painting style is already in short supply. There are so few people painting, so having one more Mr. Gu won't be a big problem. As long as Gu Weijing's painting skills can be improved to a higher level in the future, Step into the level of a true master. In the long run, the pros actually outweigh the cons.”
Hanks explained with a smile.
Hanks is a professional agent, and his career planning for artists is more complete than the artists themselves.
In his mind, ideally, the future career plans of Gu Weijing and Gu Tongxiang should not be a competitive relationship, but a gradient relationship.
As long as Gu Weijing's technical level can obviously surpass Gu Tongxiang's level.
With the marketing strength of Ma Shi Gallery, it can create a level for the two grandsons to sell their works.
It's the kind of sales gradient between ultra-luxury brands and luxury brands that are under the same general group and use exactly the same engines and chassis components, similar to Maybach and Mercedes-Benz, Rolls-Royce and BMW.
Gu Weijing’s target customers are mainly old-school senior collectors.
Gu Tongxiang is targeting the urban middle class who want to invest in art, as an alternative to Gu Weijing's version of "fusion paintings" that cannot afford it.
Impressionism in auction houses also has this invisible sales gradient.
If you can't afford Monet, you can buy Renoir or Manet.
If you still can't afford it, you can consider Pissarro or Degas.
Then there are the relatively cheaper Morisot, Seurat and the only female Impressionist master Miss Marie...
Hanks's is a very long-term vision, completely based on the fact that Gu Weijing's name will become valuable enough in the future.
It's too early to tell now.
"No, if you don't ask me for the type of painting, just let me express myself freely. As long as I agree to it, I can't ask for it. If you still ask me to suck the blood of my grandson, I would rather not sign it."
Gu Tongxiang was still as stubborn as a stubborn donkey.
"Old man..."
Hanks helplessly wanted to enlighten Gu Tongxiang's wooden head, but Gu Weijing on the side interrupted him with a smile.
"Grandpa, don't worry. The inventor of new body painting is Mr. Castiglione, and I am just an imitator. If you say outside that this is my painting method, you will make people laugh. Mr. Mas is right, since there are Lang Shining’s jewels are in front of you, and you are one of them. Secondly——”
Listening to what grandpa said before,
Gu Weijing's heart was filled with warmth.
I pity the hearts of parents in the world.
It is true that only a close elder would consider himself so thoughtfully, for fear of delaying his future.
"——I am also trying to constantly incorporate new artistic elements into the painting methods of the New Body Painting School to form my own artistic style and will not waste too much time on pure imitation. So you can rest assured It must have been signed.”
Gu Weijing smiled.
Blindly imitating the painting methods of the predecessors, the best achievement is only to become a substitute for the "Gang Shining" of the new era.
If you want to climb higher on the artistic peak, you must draw the characteristics that belong to Gu Weijing.
Shengzi had already shown him a clear path.
The finger painting method is just a small change in the details of the painting, but it is undoubtedly a very good start.
"Incorporate new artistic elements and form your own artistic style - is this true?"
Gu Tongxiang hasn't said anything yet.
Hanks's eyes were already scanning over like two bright searchlights.
——
[I have grown up hearing various art-related terms since I was a child. When I was just old enough to call my father and mother, I already knew about Michelangelo, Raphael and Giotto. When I was four years old, the maid took me for a walk on the banquet lawn of the manor on a table-high pony. By then I could already speak words like Rococo, Baroque, and "School of Athens."
I still remember that whenever such words came out of my mouth, the guests in the manor would frequently raise their glasses to my father and shout, Your Excellency, your son will become the patron of the next artist just like you. My father would laugh heartily.
But I still don’t understand what art is.
On Christmas Eve 1876, my aunt took me to attend mass at Melk Abbey. Emperor Joseph I also came that day. I don't have any impression of this. I only remember that it was the first time in my life that I stood under the dome of a church and looked up consciously.
The crystal chandelier exudes white-gold luster, and everything on the dome is like an impenetrable secret. Athena drove the lion chariot passing through the boiling sea of clouds. I could almost see the flash of light from the distant sky between the wheels and the clouds. The smell of pine and cypress wood and paint floated in the air of the church. At that moment, I felt Think of it as the strange spice on Olympus.
Candlelight, Athena, pine and cypress wood - even when I was five years old and knew nothing about Paul Troeger, the great Austrian Baroque painter who painted this mural, I understood that it was art. 】
Austria has a typical temperate broad-leaved forest-style climate.
In mid-to-late March, the average temperature in the city of Gleze is only a few degrees.
Anna was wearing a light brown velvet coat and a dark pink soft hat, sitting quietly in a wheelchair.
In front of her is the commemorative bronze sculpture of her great-great-grandfather, the old Count Irene, the founder of Oil Painting magazine.
People in Gleze love the Jelena family.
At the beginning of the twentieth century, within a month of the old count's death, they spontaneously raised 12,000 Austrian crowns.
The city government hired the then Munich sculpture master M. Kbreland to cast this magnificent sculpture of 2.7 meters high and placed it in front of the oil painting magazine, so that the old count would forever be remembered by the citizens who loved him. Stay together.
Today is the time for "Oil Painting" magazine to officially hold a shareholders' meeting regarding the acquisition of equity by Kruger Brothers Bank.
The meeting location was set on the top floor of the magazine's headquarters.
As the current largest individual shareholder, Anna arrived at the magazine building early and was not in a hurry to go upstairs.
The girl has been sitting in front of the ancestor's sculpture for a long time.
Her eyes fell on the engraving on the nameplate below the sculpture. Her eyes were gentle and deep. She could not see sadness or impatience, but she was very calm, as calm as a deep pond.
Anna raised her hand and ran her fingertips under the nameplate of the bronze sculpture, feeling the undulating touch of her fingertips.
"It turns out, this is art."
The girl slowly repeated the message that the old count left on the title page of the first issue of "Oil Painting" many years ago.
She tried to imagine the solemn and sacred feeling of her ancestors standing under the dome of Melk Cathedral on that snowy Christmas night 150 years ago, watching Athena drive the lion chariot across the sea of clouds.
"More than a hundred years have passed since then."
The bronze sculpture in front of us is like a metaphor about the uncertainty of rise and fall.
It silently witnessed the rise and division of empires, the Germanic cavalry crushing the entire Europe, and the world-ending confrontation between the two sides in the Cold War.
No matter how politicians stir up the storm in the world, the iron-gray clouds of war cover everyone's hearts so darkly that they can't breathe.
The Elena family is still studying art like hermits in this old baroque office building with red walls and blue roof.
Just like the flash of bright color in a black and white movie.
Art and poetry are the flames of hope burning in people's hearts.
The ancient Greek sages said that as long as there is one person in the world who is still willing to talk about the beauty of the soul in art, then the divine punishment of annihilation will not come, and the glory of humanity will last forever.
Even in war years,
The citizens of Glitz City also have a belief that as long as members of the Elena family are still working in this building, time will seem to be frozen.
If the sky doesn't fall, life can still go on.
Just today,
The founder of the "Oil Painting" magazine survived the great changes of the long 19th century, survived the disintegration of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and defeated NC Germany's suppression of degenerate art.
After all, he lost to the financial wave of the new era and was about to be completely expelled from the magazine's management.
The sky is blue and green, and the wind is a little cold.
The distant street orchestra rarely played Tchaikovsky's "Pathétique Symphony".
The sound of orchestral music came from the wind, and even the air contained a layer of lonely sadness.
"Woof woof." The hound barked twice.
August also came here today.
Springer Spaniels are quite energetic dogs out there.
In addition to sleeping, they often maintain 6 to 8 hours of fun time every day.
Anna’s pet dog didn’t know whether it was because of its age or because it could read the girl’s mood.
August didn’t run out to chase butterflies, nor did he wander around trying to scare the other dogs by grinning.
It lay very obediently at the girl's feet, occasionally sticking out its tongue to lick Sweet Anna's ankles for comfort.
"Hey, if you can, please let the gentlemen change to a more energetic song. The Elena family is not a loser, and there is no need for such a sad tune as a funeral dirge."
Anna placed her hand on August's furry head and ordered softly.
The young woman was very light, and her voice immediately dissipated into the wind.
But Miss Elena's will was immediately satisfied without compromise.
The secretary standing next to him, wearing a gray professional skirt, took out a blue 100-euro note from his pocket wallet.
The secretary walked over.
She folded the banknote in her hand and put it into the black top hat in front of the street band, and whispered something.
After a few seconds,
The sound of Tchaikovsky's music stopped and was replaced by the cheerful notes of the prelude to "The Blue Danube" pouring down from the violin strings.
It was created during the war, but it represents a beautiful meaning like the dawn piercing the darkness.
Whether the audience is Austrian, Hungarian, or from Poland or Slovakia, any major ethnic group in the former Austro-Hungarian Empire can find elements of their own nation in this Strauss waltz.
Dozens of street symphony orchestras, large and small, in the city of Glitz, all skillfully perform Austria’s second national anthem.
Anna slowly beat the time with her left hand, and slowly scratched the hair on the back of August's neck with her right hand.
Let it make a comfortable humming sound.
"August, I haven't given up yet."
Anna muttered silently to herself.
She took out a rectangular object wrapped in lemon-toned striped gift paper from the small bag at hand. This was the gift she received from Osborne last night.
There is a small card hanging on the silk bow above the gift——
[To Dear Ms. Anna Elena:
I heard about the acquisition proposal for Oil Painting Magazine, and I'm sorry for you. It's hard for me to help you with financial matters. This is a gift I sent to you, I just hope it can make you happier.
:
1. The printing teacher forgave me when he saw the finished book. He said it was the most realistic and perfect illustration he had ever produced in these years. I agree with him.
2. The commercial videos of Scholastic Group that I have shown you before will also be released across the board starting from this Wednesday.
Love you Uncle Osborne. 】
Anna read the small card on the silk ribbon. She tore open the wrapping paper of the gift, and an exquisite fairy tale book was revealed from the wrapping paper.
[Title of work: "The Little Prince"]
[Original author: Saint-Exupéry (France)]
[Translator: Charlie Hawke (UK)]
[Illustrator: Detective Cat (Algeria)]
In Anna's hand is a new edition of the fairy tale book "The Little Prince".
This is not the kind of product that was simply printed photos bound to white text like previous market research, but a genuine "The Little Prince" that is ready for sale.
The publishing house is working overtime to finish the work.
The printing assembly line for the new version of "The Little Prince" has started.
The fairy tale book in front of Miss Elena, which still smells of ink, is the first batch of printed products.
At this moment,
In the group's large printing factory in the Netherlands, tens of thousands of identical books are being produced continuously.
The first edition of "The Little Prince" has a print run of 300,000 copies, and they will all be printed in the next few days.
Among them, there are 250,000 copies of the English version, and 50,000 copies of the French version using the illustrations of the Detective Cat Lady and the original French text of Saint-Exupéry.
These books will be transported through the blood vessel-like logistics network to the group's various affiliated distributors in the European Union and the United Kingdom. Some of the books will be packaged and sent on ferries, along the Panama Canal to North America, and put into the markets of the United States and Canada.
Scholastic Group is one of the largest book publishers in the world.
They will use "The Little Prince" as part of the "Easter Fairy Tale Children's Book Season" and will be released simultaneously worldwide at the end of March.
"Does it look good?"
Anna put the torn gift paper into her bag and showed August the book at hand.
August made a "woof" sound.
"I like it too."
No matter how good the painting is, no matter how hard they work on printing and color correction, they have to look at the cost effect in the end to judge whether their efforts are effective.
The moment I saw this "The Little Prince".
Anna knew that Ms. Detective Cat's work had not been lived up to, her efforts in reading for her eldest sister had not been in vain, and even the printing teacher who was about to be driven crazy by Anna's obsessive-compulsive disorder was worth it.
Just like Osborne said.
This is a very perfect work, so perfect that printing teachers can be proud to produce such a beautiful book.
Anna turned the pages in her hand and checked the imaging quality of each illustration.
In the thick pages,
Dozens of illustrations flash past like a fast-moving slideshow. Each page has the solid texture of oil paints. You can clearly see the smallest patterns pressed by the oil painting knife on the surface of the canvas.
"very nice."
Even with MYCK four-color printing, the output standard of the advanced printing factory owned by the Scholastic Group with an investment of tens of millions of euros has reached 500PPI (pixels per inch).
The output resolution is nearly twice as high as the 300PPI standard for illustrations in the industry, and is even higher than the screen imaging pixels of early IPHONE mobile phones. It has already reached the quality of photos developed by some photo shops.
It certainly cannot be said to be better than the original painting, and it is not an exaggeration to achieve seven points of the brilliance of the artist's original painting.
Anna closed the book and looked at the cover illustration drawn in the two main colors of velvet blue and desert gold.
"In addition to being too smooth and having a strong specular reflection of sunlight, the printing texture is almost the same as holding an oil painting canvas in your hand!"
Anna brushed the smooth book cover with her fingertips and nodded with satisfaction.
It's almost like a real oil painting canvas - in the eyes of professional art album publishers, getting such an evaluation is the highest praise for their efforts.
Anna closed her eyes, raised the newly printed "The Little Prince" to her nose, and gently smelled the smell of ink and pages.
"My great-great-grandfather's artistic enlightenment was candlelight, Athena, and pine and cypress wood. I believe that countless children of this generation will be accompanied by the smell of ink in books, allowing them to realize art among the stars, the sea of sand, and the little prince. The beauty of it made me fall in love with art.”
Art is the concrete expression of the desire and yearning for beauty deep in people's souls in the real world.
There is no one in the world who does not like art.
It's just that some people are dull by nature, or their dusty hearts are obscured by the trivial matters of life.
Therefore, when people fall in love with art, they need a so-called "divine revelation" to wash away the dust and numbness in their hearts with a moment of shock.
Just like Miss Elena's ancestors, looking at Athena on the dome under the Christmas hymns and crystal candles is so full of ritual.
Or you can just be moved by the artistic illustrations on the bus stop for a moment while you are busy at work.
As long as a widely circulated illustration is beautiful enough and seen by enough people, it will naturally shock countless people and become an art enlightenment teacher for tens of thousands of children.
After seeing this completed book, Anna no longer had any doubts that the work in her hands could do this.
What her nose smelled was not the smell of ink, but the smell of art, the wisps of Zen smoke falling from the incense wood on the altar of the Temple of the Muses.
Money can buy shares in "Oil Painting" magazine, but it cannot buy the emotion in people's hearts.
Of course Anna didn't give in.
If Detective Cat Sister's qualifications were not too weak, Anna believed that this book would have enough qualifications to win the best illustration in the publishing industry this year after its release.
It took history 30 years to prove Paul Durand-Rue's vision for Impressionism, 20 years to prove Larry Gagosian's confidence in Andy Warhol, and 10 years to transform Picasso into The criticisms of the blue style era were blown away.
Miss Elena believes that she is luckier than all these people combined.
She only waited for more than two months to get such a set of illustrations in her hands.
This fairy tale book is a sharp sword in her hand, enough to cut off any criticism of Miss Elena's vision.
"Miss Elena?"
Wearing a gray business suit and a quiet face, Elliot raised the Jaeger-LeCoultre moon phase watch on his wrist and glanced at the time.
Elliot is Miss Anna's personal secretary.
She doesn't want to disturb her employer unless it's an emergency.
Especially when Elena is in a bad mood.
It's just that it's getting late now, and there's less than a quarter of an hour left before the shareholders' meeting starts. The young lady is still in a daze in front of the bronze sculpture, with no intention of going upstairs, which makes Elliot feel a little anxious.
What makes the secretary even more anxious is that such an important meeting today involves an acquisition proposal worth hundreds of millions of euros and the disturbing news that the Elena family may be kicked out of the management.
Miss Anna actually remained so calm.
Elliot admired the hostess's calmness, but it was a bit too calm to bring only a personal secretary and not even a financial or legal adviser!
Faced with such a huge property and the reputation accumulated by the Elena family for centuries.
Can she, a personal secretary who is more inclined to deal with Miss Anna's life affairs, really handle it well?
“Your legal team is standing by at the coffee shop two blocks away and you can always call them if you change your mind.”
"Don't worry, Elliot, today's matter will not be very complicated. I know simple legal common sense, and the agenda of the shareholders' meeting has been handed over to me. Since both parties know what is going to happen, No matter what proposal they make, I will vote against it and then it will be rejected because of insufficient shareholding."
“Since even the best lawyers in the world can’t change a simple share ratio with words, just skip this step.”
Anna shook her head calmly.
"By the way, please help me place the bouquet you prepared at the foot of this sculpture."
(End of chapter)
