The Tao of Charles Chu Celebrates Chinese New Year 2014

In honor of the Chinese New Year 2014, The Gallery at Firehouse Square, located at 239 Bank Street in New London, is presenting a unique art exhibit called “The Tao of Charles Chu,” which features the exquisite private collection of New London artist Charles Chu, a master painter and calligrapher know for his sweeping watercolors. These never before seen masterpieces from Chu’s private family collection make a statement through the wonder of discovery, lyrical beauty, and graceful, gentle brush strokes that evoke a sense of pleasure and peace. Charles Chu was a New London resident for more than 40 years, taught classes at Connecticut College and Yale University, and is renowned for nurturing a true passion for learning in his students.

The Tao of Charles Chu opens Thursday, February 6th and runs through Saturday, March 1st at THE GALLERY AT FIREHOUSE SQUARE.  Guests will have an opportunity to meet and greet the artist’s family during a special opening reception on Thursday, February 6th from 5:30pm to 8:00pm.  Among the 24 pieces of original Charles Chu artwork, 22 will be available for sale. Images include “Wisteria,” “Dancing Cranes,” and “Buzzell Camp.” Once the show closes at THE GALLERY AT FIREHOUSE SQUARE, these original masterpieces will be taken to a prominent auction house in New York City.

Charles Chi-Jung Chu was an accomplished painter, professor, calligrapher, and scholar. He was born in 1918 in a small farming village in Hebei Province, China.  His mother called him "Little Frog" when he was a young boy.  Chu possessed a lightness of spirit and a boundless energy that was quite infectious. 

Chu went to high school in Beijing and then studied at the National Central University in Chongqing.  After serving in the Chinese army during World War II, he came to the United States in 1945 to pursue graduate studies in political science at the UC Berkeley and, later, at Harvard, with the intention of returning to his native China to help in reconstruction after the war.  When Communists took charge of China's government, Chu realized there was no room in his home country for a political scientist trained in America.

Shifting his vision, he set out to adopt the United States of America and to make his impact as a teacher.  He enjoyed teaching at Yale University for 15 years, but could not resist the opportunity to create and direct a Chinese program at Connecticut College in New London, Connecticut.  He became one of the College's most loyal, devoted, and beloved professors.  Until his retirement in 1984, Professor Chu taught Chinese language, literature, and the history of Chinese painting.  He was known by his students, many of whom maintained close contact with him until his death, as a wholly devoted teacher of the most influential kind.  He demanded excellence of his students, and he nurtured in them a passion for learning.  The Chu home, adjacent to the campus, was always open to his students, some of whom, through the years, lived with the Chu family and had both the opportunity and the challenge of constant tutoring from their professor.

Though he had several very successful art exhibits throughout his teaching career, it was not until his retirement from the College at the age of 65 that Chu was able to devote himself fully to his painting and to curating the Chu-Griffis Collection.  This extensive collection of literati style paintings was established in Chu's honor by his close friend, Toby Griffis, and was funded by the Griffis Foundation and by numerous donors of funds and paintings.  It is housed in the Charles Shain Library at Connecticut College. 

Charles Chu and his wife Bettie lived in New London for 40 years.  Three of his four children remain in Connecticut, and one is working, temporarily, the family hopes, in California. Charles Chu passed away at his home in 2008, and Bettie died within a few months of him.  The couple was once told by a "seer" that the two had been together for seventeen lives, and their children have enjoyed wondering how their parents are cooking up a reprise for their next lives together.

For more information about “The Tao of Charles Chu” as well as other exhibits at THE GALLERY AT FIREHOUSE SQUARE, please visit www.firehousesquare.com.