Editor’s note: Themed on “Chasing the Light”, 2025 CAFA Graduation Season kicked off at CAFA Art Museum in early summer. Surrounded by diversified creations, visitors may find that some of graduates chose performance to burst their inner impulses, some chose to interact with the space to build their visual tension, and some got inspired from traditions to bring about more contemporary creative appearances. More young creators are paying their attention to drawing materials from the life around them, trying to capture the multiple realities of emotions, experiences and thoughts...

In these cases, the collisions between individual experience and the external world, between new and old media, as well as between virtual life and real life have repeatedly inspired their creativity that may not be perfect but fresh. In the poster of 2025 CAFA Graduation Season, a symbolic apple is outlined in a constantly changing form under the illumination of light. CAFA graduates who believe in “light”, follow the light in their hearts and present their initial explorations of “what art is” that have been honed for several years at their degree shows. Featuring interviews with graduates, “CAFA Graduates Who Believe in ‘Light’”, invites graduates to talk about their creative stories from a more microscopic and in-depth perspective, and we would like to share and convey the “light” in the hearts of young people through these candid and vivid narrations.

First Contact

By Feng Runde, Department of Mural Painting

 I got inspired by the ancient mural relics at Mogao Grottoes, Yulin Grottoes, Bingling Temple, Maijishan and other places during my field trips led by the Department of Mural Painting. Those triggered my enthusiasm and I have developed a keen interest in Chinese Buddhist art. I had read Marc Aurel Stein’s 1906—1908 DISCOVERY OF DUNHUANG LIBRARY CAVE, Xuanzang’s The Great Tang Dynasty Record of the Western Regions and other books, and combined with my love for movies such as Raiders of the Lost Ark, my desire was ignited  to create through the story mode of “exploration”, and I used Midjourney v4 to create a series of exercises “Explorers of the Western Regions”, and I submitted it as my report of field research assignment.

The Visual Effect of Explorers of the Western Regions

In the summer of the same year, I went to Xizang, led by a professional guide who had studied at the Buddhist College, and I have visited more than 20 famous monasteries with mural remains. With accumulated valuable experience in both images and words, I have gained a deeper comprehension of the development of Buddhist art in China. The visual experience of my expedition to Xizang and my research of literature corroborate each other, and finally they contributed to the prototype of my graduation creation.

Exhibition View of First ContactThe Detail of First Contact

I intend to focus on the philosophical reflection of the dislocation of time and space in my work: the concept of “ first contact” has been thought to be something that will only happen in the future since it was proposed by American science-fiction writers in 1945, and I have turned my mind around and fictionalized a story about “first contact” that happened as early as the primeval period. Just as the super-era craftsmanship of Sanxingdui, a Bronze Age of Civilization suggests: in the dark long night of human writing prehistory, there may have been interstellar encounters that we can hardly imagine. The scroll itself is similar to a time capsule, allowing the viewer to rethink the dialectical relationship between “the ancient” and “ the future” in the encounters between traditional visual elements and science-fiction themes.

Details of First Contact

In this graduation project, I have built a complete set of AI-assisted creation processes, mainly integrating tools such as Midjourney, DeepSeek, ChatGPT-4o, and ComfyUI, and each is targeted to solve my creative needs at various stages. The entire process confirms the innovative value of AI tools: they have greatly improved the efficiency of my creation (making it possible to iterate dozens of times a day), and they also continuously expand the boundary of my creation through the model of “human-machine communication”. Of course, each key decision from stylistic orientation to the choice of final product, still relies on my professional vision and judgment.

The Working Process of First Contact

The entire series of “First Contact” unfolds in the form of “spatial narrative” common in murals, and I construct a progressive timeline through five works, covering scripture, line drawing, scroll, and photograph. It tells the story of how the human encounter with extraterrestrial life in ancient times was recorded as a “myth” and passed on from generation to generation through stone carvings and folk paintings. It is not until modern times that these images have been rediscovered in archaeology, and this “First Contact” has been inferred from this. This fictional narrative framework leaves room for imagination that is difficult for visitors to distinguish it’s true or fictional, and it also stimulates their continuous exploration of the story behind my work.

Exhibition View of First ContactInstallation View of First Contact

There’s a beam of light in my painting, and it was set up for the visual effect of contrasting colors. It also represents the typical characteristics of a flying saucer: a beam of light from the belly of a aircraft (often used in science fiction to carry the crew members ) or the fire of a thruster. “Chasing the Light” reminds me of my experience before and after I was enrolled in CAFA. The care of my teachers, the mutual encouragement among my classmates, and the strong support from my family will motivate me to continue to “chase the light”.

Feng Runde was on his way to Lhasa, Nyingchi in 2023.Feng Runde visited Samye Monastery Prayer Path, Shannan in 2023.Text and Image Courtesy of Feng Runde, edited (EN) by Sue/CAFA ART INFO.