AUTHOR'S PREFACE

　　　The character "du" has the meaning of wholeheartedness and perseverance. The painter has to hold on to your heart,  get away from the irrelevant and dive into the action

　　For decades, I have concentrated on painting, which is a Way for me to connect the virtual and reality. People do ask me why I have such profound preoccupation with painting. I believe in the most important and elemental drivers of painters---always wanting to draw. For me the time is always not enough, and numerous ideas need to be represented. Painting has become part of my life.

　　For years I have considered that painters should be true to themselves and their personality and take art work seriously. Art work needs to be treated with honest and genuine emotions, that's why the painter's personality traits should include being peaceful and steady. That includes being true to yourself, being true to the audience. I am always loyal to my heart and am never lost in the tide of the times. I just stick to my color, paint myself and conform to my own inner world. It's important not to please others: when you do not worry about others' opinion, you're free, and can draw a truly good drawing. As for what is a truly good painting, ideas and taste change with time, but a work of art stands forever.

　　From the preparing part to the end, each exhibition is like a full-scale drama and can be exhausting But being a painter, the showing stage is very important. The exhibition hall gives the painter an opportunity to have right, appropriate and objective evaluation of himself. All above these. an exhibition intends to encourage all painters. Let us move forward together and portray our own consciousness.

Written in the spring of 2018, Tianshui studio, Cao Hui

作者自序

　　所谓“笃”有一心一意，坚持不懈之意。画家必须坚持心中专注的，摒弃与自己无关的，潜心笃行。

　　几十年来，我专注沉迷于画室，作画成为我链接某种虚拟现实的一种途径。有人问我为何如此执着？我认为这是画家最重要也是最原始的冲动，希望不停地画下去……于我而言总觉得时间不够，太多想画的画尚未完成，画画已然变成一种需要。

　　我始终认为画家要忠实于自己的性格，然后诚恳地去画，艺术作品也需要实在，要有深厚、永久的性格，不能欺骗自己，更不能骗观众。我一直忠于自己的初衷，未曾迷失在时代的潮流里。我只是坚持我自己，画自己的语言，尽量中肯，也尽量能接地气。但不能取媚，当你不担心你自己的欲望时，你就是自由的，才能画出好画来。至于什么是好画，时代在变，观念和审美也会变，但真正能称得上杰作的好画终究会永存于世。

　　每次，决定办展，从辛苦忙碌的开始到如释重负的结束，都如一场大戏，劳心费神，但身为画家，这个舞台非常重要，偌大的展厅可以让画家完整地面对自己的画作作出正确的判断和分析，冷静而客观，遗憾或欣慰，从而理性地面对真实的自己，找寻到属于自己的那块高地，锲而不舍…并借此鼓励后者，坚定地共进，也算是尽了画家的一份责任！

2018年初春于天水画室 曹辉