National Tide 1980.

In addition to lending some of the treasures in his collection to Pierre Caton, Ning Weimin also did not forget the two art colleges in Beijing - the National Academy of Fine Arts and the Academy of Arts and Crafts.

Especially the latter, because of its natural attributes of practical art, it is more suitable for commercial use than the pure art school of the National Academy of Fine Arts. It is destined to be of great help to his personal career both before and in the future.

In fact, for Ning Weimin, whether it was out of gratitude, selfishness, or even out of the public welfare commitment he had made to Huo Yanping, he had always wanted to lend some of the modern art paintings in his collection to these two art schools for long-term exhibition.

So during his time in Beijing, in addition to being busy with business matters, Ning Weimin also took the time to contact and communicate with the two colleges on this matter many times.

Needless to say, the two art schools were quite surprised by Ning Weimin's voluntary goodwill and were extremely positive in their responses.

When they first came into contact, the leaders of the two schools not only praised Ning Weimin's generosity and fully expressed their gratitude and admiration, but they were almost eager to take these masterpieces back to their own schools as soon as possible.

After all, there are too few resources available to invest in education in the country, especially in "niche" majors like fine arts.

Even though it is the country's top art school, the funding it receives each year is still pitifully small. At most, it can barely maintain basic teaching work. Where would it get the spare money to buy these famous artists' works of art?

To put it bluntly, if Ning Weimin hadn't always been able to come up with some fancy tricks and make some extra money for the teachers and students of these art schools from time to time, even the professors and teachers would have lived a tight life. How could they have such extravagant hopes?

So what Ning Weimin gave them now was something they would never even dare to think about in normal times. It was simply a dream coming true.

At the same time, it is even more important to emphasize that these masterpieces by famous artists are indeed what the art industry lacks and urgently needs in professional teaching.

Having the opportunity to copy authentic works of famous artists and viewing more fine paintings are extremely effective ways for every professional artist to improve their vision and knowledge, and to hone their painting skills.

Although it cannot be said to be a necessity.

But this is just like the imported motion capture equipment that the national table tennis team wants to buy. It is a good thing that can help professionals break through bottlenecks in key details and may bring the artistic realm to a higher level.

Therefore, even many well-known professors of the two major universities who are already considered artists are very keen on this matter.

It is no exaggeration to say that I was filled with excitement and inexplicable excitement.

But then again, this cannot be accomplished in a short period of time and it is not an urgent matter at all.

Ning Weimin is not a young man. He would never get carried away and do charity work by making donations on impulse.

So how to ensure the absolute safety of these paintings has become the most realistic problem facing everyone.

The "safety" here does not only refer to the issues of anti-theft and fire prevention. The more important reason is that the preservation of calligraphy and painting requires very professional storage conditions. Humidity, light, temperature, and dust prevention must all be taken into consideration.

And everything requires professionalism, whether it is equipment or people.

But unfortunately, judging from the actual situation, the two art schools currently only have a few simple buildings and do not have such hardware foundation.

So, within a short period of time, the leaders of the two colleges lost their enthusiasm, as if they were poured with a bucket of cold water.

They instantly understood Ning Weimin's needs - if they wanted to get these paintings for exhibition and teaching, they would at least have to set up a few copying rooms, and the equipment conditions must reach the level of a professional art museum.

How is this possible?

Originally, they were a poor family who couldn't afford to buy horses, but they built a manor just to raise horses. What was going on?

It is undoubtedly an unrealistic fantasy.

Fortunately, since Ning Weimin can raise the problem, there is a way to solve it. He is not here to make fun of everyone or to see others suffer.

He called another meeting.

And when the school leaders were silent and embarrassed, Ning Weimin clearly expressed his sincerity.

"In fact, even if you don't say it, I know what you are worried about. I have a certain understanding of the actual situation of the school. Is it short of funds? It doesn't matter. What I mean is that if we can communicate well with the Education Bureau and get permission, I am willing to fund the construction of a building on our campus as an exclusive art gallery for the school. In this way, not only can the calligraphy and painting works I lend to you be guaranteed to be safe, but the works of our school's professors and teachers will also be better preserved..."

"What! You're actually going to donate a building to us?"

"Manager Ning, are you telling the truth?"

“Building a building is not cheap!”

"A professional exhibition hall, even a three-story building, would cost at least several million!"

Ning Weimin's words immediately caused a huge uproar at the scene, and the news made it impossible for many school leaders present to remain reserved. "

Even though they all had the qualities of artists and experts, they completely lost their composure at this moment.

This is not surprising, not for any other reason, but because Ning Weimin really did lend a horse and also gave away a manor.

And this is not just a gift of money. What Ning Weimin wants to give them is fame, reputation, influence in the industry, and social status.

If such an art museum is really established, it will be a huge honor. The existing limitations of the two schools will all change because of this event.

Don’t talk about the far ones, just talk about the near ones.

There is no doubt that this shocking news will be announced once it is confirmed.

These two schools will obtain better applicants, and their status in the education system will be greatly improved. The first goal for art talents who want to be teachers is to come to their schools.

It can be said that they are about to completely establish their position as the leader among art schools in the country.

Sichuan Fine Arts Institute, Guangzhou Fine Arts Institute, Zhejiang Fine Arts Institute will immediately be left far behind in terms of teaching conditions.

This kind of change is enough to make other art theaters anxious and envious.

"Yes, it's true. I want to donate the building to our two schools. This is not only to help our schools cultivate more outstanding art talents, but also to repay your long-term support for me in various aspects. I don't have any additional conditions. I just hope that we can jointly establish a way of combining industry and academia in the field of arts and crafts, and use a virtuous cycle to change the current situation of lack of financial support for our art industry and art talents. So money is not a problem, and you don't have to help me save money. Let's start with the design work, and try to make the design plan the best according to the actual conditions. I will also ask some foreign professionals to provide opinions. In short, I hope that the art museums I build for our two schools are practical and professional. As long as the money should be spent, we will spend it..."

After hearing Ning Weimin's words, the expressions of everyone present were first surprised, and then turned into awe.

The result was that everyone quickly reached a spiritual consensus and burst into uncontrollable applause of gratitude.

Although most of these people were over 40 years old, and although there were only less than seven or eight people present, none of them cared about the age difference between themselves and Ning Weimin, and they still expressed their sincere emotion, causing the applause to have a warm effect.

"You have vision and courage!" an old professor was convinced. "No wonder Pierre Cardon and Tan Palace Restaurant have developed so fast!" said another professor.

"Youth are formidable. Manager Ning, although we have been dealing with each other for such a long time, I still feel like I just met you today. Well, let's continue to support each other in the future. I believe that we will be able to create an unprecedented bright future in the art industry..."

The vice president of the Academy of Arts and Crafts made the assurance seriously and extended a hand of gratitude to Ning Weimin.

Perhaps some people will say that Ning Weimin is a saint because of this. Perhaps some people will worry that the paintings Ning Weimin lent out will be secretly replaced by shameless villains, and think that he is looking for trouble and is asking for trouble.

But to be honest, people who have such thoughts are petty, stupid and ridiculous.

Indeed, human nature is selfish, and there is nothing wrong with that.

One person is not much nobler than another. Many noble behaviors have prerequisites, and most of the time they are based on each person's social status and wealth.

But we have to admit that even if we are selfish, we still need to have brains.

Putting aside other things, are calligraphy and paintings the kind of things that can be placed quietly like porcelain and will never be damaged?

If that were the case, Kang Shude would not have sold the ancient paintings without hesitation when he first bought them from the street stalls.

In fact, Kang Shude was right. After Ning Weimin obtained tens of thousands of famous paintings and calligraphy with the help of Huo Xin, he has been under pressure that ordinary people can hardly imagine.

The storage and maintenance of these paintings is not that simple. They have to be taken out and displayed from time to time and hung on the wall to air in order to avoid moisture and frost.

Those who have never owned a famous painting will never understand the trouble involved.

But Ning Weimin had already understood that collecting is actually a physical and technical job.

If it weren't for Ning Weimin's Tan Palace Restaurant and his help in Kang Shude's quick recovery of the Ma Family Garden, and if it weren't for reliable people like Kang Shude, Luo Guangliang and Xiao Tao who he could trust, he would never have been able to hold out for so long on his own.

Frankly speaking, when he was most tired, he even regretted his greed.

If he had known how hard it would be, he wouldn't have bought so much.

So from the most basic practical point of view, lending paintings to others is a need that Ning Weimin has due to his own limitations.

By lending it out, he can save himself some energy and worry less.

In addition, he can only make this choice in terms of industrial investment, layout and public welfare.

What you keep hidden by yourself is a dead treasure. Only when you take it out and show it to others, it becomes a living treasure.

These calligraphy and paintings should not belong to individuals; their cultural value should be shared by people across the country.

Ning Weimin also made a similar promise to Huo Yanping at the beginning. He said that the reason why he competed with Hong Kong visitors to buy these calligraphy and paintings was not only to appreciate the value of the books and paintings, but also to preserve national assets.

This cannot be said to be entirely false, especially considering his wealth today, it is even possible that this statement is 70% true and 30% false.

Not to mention, even from a self-interest perspective, doesn’t it require any industry to continue to invest resources in research and development in order to maintain its leading position?

The same is true for the arts and crafts industry.

Ning Weimin uses what he has to increase investment in teaching. On a larger scale, this is to contribute to the country and the art industry. On a smaller scale, this is also to have more talents in the future, so as to make the arts and crafts industry bigger and ensure his own unending industry leadership and profits.

Therefore, lending art works to art schools and continuously strengthening cooperative relations with art schools is a far-sighted and very necessary step.

If you keep them and don't show them to others, are you just going to wait for these calligraphy and paintings to become rusty at home?

Of course, considering the economic value of these calligraphy and paintings themselves, as well as their huge potential in the future, theft and substitution are inevitable.

After all, the Forbidden City has been robbed several times, and some thieves actually succeeded.

There were also rumors that Changlin diamonds were swapped during the exhibition.

But there is a solution to every problem. At least we can reduce the probability. We can't just throw the baby out with the bathwater, right?

Should we stop paying taxes just because there is corruption?

Are we going to sleep out in the open forever because we are worried about the risk of earthquakes?

This doesn't make sense. There are probably no such extreme people in real life.

This may be an example of different opinions. In the eyes of those who have no ability, everything is difficult and they have no choice but to give up.

But in the eyes of those who really want to do something, any difficulties and obstacles can be overcome, and at least they should try.

Ning Weimin is like this. To be honest, in his eyes, the cultural industry is such a huge market, so all investments are worthwhile.

Take the matter of lending calligraphy and paintings to art schools in Beijing as an example. Donating a building to the school to build an art museum is only the first step. Later he will set up a professional custody company, establish a strict security system, and even hire professionals from home and abroad to take charge of the management of his collection.

Because one thing he can be sure of is that his collection will grow in the future, and the economic value generated by these collections in the future where they can be applied will also increase.

To be a collector and a cultural tycoon, one must have incredible courage, which is why he founded the Panjiayuan Flea Market himself.

The biggest difference between him and others is that he has begun to set his sights on the upper echelons of the entire cultural industry.

Even though many people are not aware of it, he himself is very clear that he has occupied a lot of high-quality resources and has become the leader in the internal operations and external exports of Chinese culture.

An unprecedented wonderful prospect is waiting for him ahead, which is very exciting.

He needs to have a vision. (End of this chapter)