Known as a "Painter of Great Men," Wei Chuyu, now a professor of fine arts at Renmin University in China, is recognized particularly for his vivid oil paintings of Mao Zedong, the first chairman of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee. One of his major works, "Searching the Truth", depicts a senior Chairman Mao reading among an enclave of books and magazines on a ragged, patched-up bed in his room at Zhongnanhai, the seat of China's central leadership in Beijing. The oil on canvas attempts to capture the leader's daily life and study.

  Brief introduction

Wei Chuyu, who specializes in oil painting, Chinese painting and calligraphy, was born in 1945 in Wenshui, North China's Shanxi Province. After graduating from the oil painting department of Zhejiang Arts Academy in 1970, Wei joined the People's Liberation Army (PLA) and was stationed in Nanjing. In 1986, he was transferred to the Museum of the Chinese Revolution in Beijing.

Wei's works of Chinese painting and calligraphy were on display both in China and abroad many times and have garnered several prizes.

The painter was introduced by China Central Television, Bangladesh Television, the People's Daily, China Daily and the Dagong Daily in Hong Kong. Wei's name appeared in The Dictionary of the Names of Chinese Artists and The Dictionary of the Names of Chinese Calligraphers.

  Major works

Some of Wei's best portraits, such as those of the mathematician Xiong Qinglai, architect Liang Sicheng, microbiologist Tang Feifan, physician Zhang Xiaoqian and military officer Luo Ronghuan, were chosen by the former Ministry of Post and Telecommunications to be printed in a commemorative stamp series called "Modern Chinese Scientists (third series)" and "The 90th Anniversary of the Birth of Comrade Luo Ronghuan," which were sold throughout China.