"The CPC took a long journey from the shikumen house in Shanghai to Pagoda Hill (Baotashan) in Yan'an, which marked a revolutionary path that took Chinese people to a brand new world."
In Shanghai, Yan'an artists visited the historical site of the first, second and fourth national congresses of the CPC; the original publishing house of New Youth, an important magazine that introduced Communist ideas to China; and the former residences of historical figures such as Chen Wangdao, the first scholar to translate the Communist Manifesto into the Chinese language.
In Yan'an, artists included historical sites related to the Chinese Communist Revolution, the roaring Yellow River and Pagoda Hill in their paintings.
During the Tang Dynasty (618-907), a nine-level pagoda was built atop a hill overlooking Yan'an city. In 1935, the central committee of the CPC settled in Yan'an and the pagoda hill soon became a symbol of the revolution.
"All these paintings are pictures of history and reality. More importantly, they are a passionate ode to the centennial journey of the Party," says Fan Jianlin, director of the Jiushi Art Museum.
