X Museum is delighted to present “Inherit with Love: Continuity of Time and Media Innovation” in collaboration with the Central Academy of Fine Arts and Douyin Art. The exhibition is on view from September 28^th, 2025, to January 11^th， 2026, on the first floor at X Museum in Beijing. As an extension panel of the “China Young Artist’s Superior Cultivation Program” and  “The Start of a Long Journey National Academy of Fine Arts Graduation Works Exhibition”, the exhibition features more than 80 works by creators across generations, encompassing painting, sculpture, calligraphy, video, and AI-generated media. Taking “love” as its narrative thread, the exhibition links diverse projections and expressions of this theme across different contexts, generations, and media, seeking to create a dialogue space between traditional form and the digital present of art.

As one of the core drive in art and a recurring motif throughout art history, “love” not only embodies the profound structure of emotions but also reflects the inherent demands of civilization of transmitting and renewing cultural genes. “Love” is the artist’s spirit of inquiry into the limits and boundaries of art, it manifests as specific subjects and layered emotions within works, and represents a steadfast dedication to preserving cultural lineage. Under the humanist vision of the European Renaissance, “love” in art took on both sacred and secular dimensions, foregrounding the pursuit of humanity and fostering exploration of truth in the world. In the traditions of ancient Chinese art, “love” often appeared subtly in the form of “metaphorical expression” within all things in the world—especially landscapes, flora, and the life of the literati—embedding personal sentiments into broader reflections on nature, ethics, and society. After 1949, the concept of “love” in art grew broader and more holistic, emphasizing a profound concern for the people, the nation, and collective ideals. This forged a distinctive emotional politics and visual ethics, becoming an indispensable spiritual dimension of China’s modern discourse.

This exhibition presents works from within the academic system as well as by professional and non-professional artists, and it includes a special open call launched in partnership with Douyin Young Astists Program. Among these, the Central Academy of Fine Arts, as one of the core institutions in Chinese art education, contributes works that highlight both the continuity and innovation of artistic language within the academy. These works emphasize the dual mission of passing down technical mastery and cultivating spiritual heritage across generations—educating with great love and creating with great beauty. In this light, the exhibition foregrounds the inheritance of academic art—featuring outstanding works led by senior professors at the CAFA, alongside young generations of artists, including current students, graduates from the past five years, and distinguished alumni. These works not only offer distinctive perspectives on the transmission and renewal of the concept of“love,” but also weave an emotional map across generations, revealing both visible and invisible bonds of inheritance within the educational context. Meanwhile, emerging digital content creators on Douyin explore new expressions and dimensions of “love”. Through short videos, virtual interaction, and AI-generated content, they reconstruct the relationships between creation, viewing, and participation, while algorithmic recommendation and user co-creation give rise to new contemporary models for transmitting love.

The exhibition presents the multiple faces of “love” in artistic creation and expression. In today’s world, marked by accelerated technology, rapidly shifting emotional forms, and profound transformations in artistic practice, it seeks to trace the contemporary pathways through which art reconnects people with one another and with their times. We hope to join audiences in searching for answers through visual encounters and contemplative reflection. May visitors here discover personal resonances with “love,” while considering how its broader concept is continually re-articulated, expanded, and sustained—in where we live of here and now.