Events

Liang Sicheng and Lin Huiyin are household names in China. Liang Sicheng (April 20, 1901 – January 9, 1972), a graduate of University of Pennsylvania and son of Liang Qichao, one of the most prominent Chinese scholars of the early 20th century, was a Chinese architect and architectural historian, known as the father of modern Chinese architecture. Liang authored the first modern history of Chinese architecture, and was the founder of the Architecture Department of Northeastern University in 1928 and Tsinghua University in 1946. He was the Chinese representative on the 11-person team that designed the United Nations Headquarters in New York City. Princeton University awarded him an honorary doctoral degree in 1947 and issued a statement praising him as “a creative architect who has also been a teacher of architectural history, a pioneer in historical research and exploration in Chinese architecture and planning, and a leader in the restoration and preservation of the priceless monuments of his country.”

Lin Huiyin (June 10, 1904–April 1, 1955), Liang’s wife, was also a Chinese architect and architectural historian. She is known to be the first female architect in modern China. Both of them were founders and professors in the Architecture Department of Northeastern University in 1928 and, after 1949, at Tsinghua University in Beijing. The couple initiated restoration work on cultural heritage sites in China in the post-imperial Republican Era, a passion which she would pursue to the end of her life. Lin was also known for her literary talent, having written many essays and poems. The American artist Maya Lin is her niece.

The couple left behind a large volume of valuable manuscripts in the form of letters, personal documents, photos and films, much of which are now kept at the Shanghai Art Collection Museum.

To mark the 120th anniversary of Liang Sicheng’s birth and celebrate the couple’s distinguished accomplishments, the Renwen Society presents a lecture on January 9, 2021 by Mr. Hu Muqing, President of the Shanghai Art Collection Museum. The day happens to be the 49th anniversary of Liang’s passing in 1972. At the lecture, the speaker will discuss the life and achievements of these two distinguished personalities in modern Chinese history through their manuscripts in the collections of his museum. Mr. Hu will illustrate his lecture with rare manuscripts of the couple and their photos and videos, an opportunity not to be missed.

Free, but advanced registration is requested.

梁思成和林徽因先生是中国著名的建筑艺术家，在建筑艺术方面取得了非凡的成就。梁思成为勘察中国古建筑留下了丰富的遗存，撰写了包括《中国建筑史》、《图像中国建筑史》、《清式营造则例》等一批影响深远的著作；创办了中国著名的清华大学建筑系， 并首次建立了科学的建筑体系；参与了联合国大厦的设计、中华人民共和国国旗与国徽的指导审定等。林徽因则还在文学艺术、传统工艺保护等方面取得了卓越的成就。

梁思成和林徽因作为一对学者伉俪，毕生都致力于中国古建筑的研究，为保护中国 古建筑做出了巨大贡献。多年之后，他们的名字依旧深深印刻在公众的脑海中，人们传说着他们不同寻常的家世学识，传说着她的美丽、才华、爱情故事，传说着他半个世纪前对一座古城的痴迷和眷恋。通过珍藏的手稿和影像资料，他们鲜活的形象在我们面前浮现：人民英雄纪念碑设计的经过，国旗国歌的选定过程，林徽因与梁思成在中国驻加拿大渥太华总领事馆举行婚礼，梁、林婚后在欧洲度蜜月……

手稿有鲜明的个人印痕，既透露一个人的文化底蕴、书法风格，又可见证一部作品的原初形态。而且，手稿往往是作者自然状态的呈现，是作者性情的真实写照，透露出来的信息量和一个时代的社会生活、文人生活有关，这就使得手稿有了社会、思想与艺术等多重价值。另一方面，影像则真实还原了历史原貌和时代背景。

那么，这些手稿和影像具体如何反映了梁、林的学术成就、生活片段和性格特征呢？ 华美人文学会特邀上海艺术品博物馆理事长胡木清先生于美东时间 2021 年 1 月 9 日（周六）晚 8 时至 9时半（北京时间 10 日上午 9 时至 10 时半）做“双峰映秀–手稿中的梁思成、林徽因”专题讲座。胡木清先生在讲座中将通过手稿和影像还原最真实的梁思成和林徽因，并讨论上述问题。

主讲人胡木清，上海艺术品博物馆理事长、上海创意产品开发中心理事长，系中华人民共和国文化部非物质文化遗产国际推广策展专家、上海市文化创意产业基金会资深专家、 梁启超家族文化研究专家，兼任上海市创意产业协会 副会长、上海长宁艺术博物馆协会会长等职，曾多次组织策划各类国际、国内展览上百场，具有丰富的策展、办展经验。胡木清先生是中国国内率先收集、整 理、研究梁思成、林徽因（及其家族）相关文献、实物、著作的专家之一，由其创建的上海艺术品博物馆以丰富的梁思成、林徽因（及其家族）馆藏而饮誉业界；他曾多次策划举办梁思成、林徽因主题展览和论坛，并与宾夕法尼亚大学、清华大学共同发起成立“梁思成林徽因研究国际联盟”，由其主编的梁思成手稿版《中国雕塑史》、《梁思成林徽因影像与手稿珍集》等广受业界欢迎，已成为国内外众多图书馆、宾夕法尼亚大学等重点购藏的参考图书；他还多次应邀在上海“博雅论坛”、宾夕法尼亚大学上海校友会等举办“梁林”专题讲座。