ABOUT DEENA GU
简历

Deena Gu Laties is an accomplished artist who melds aspects of western art with her Chinese training. Born in Shanghai, Deena Gu studied under famous Chinese painters Cheng Shifa and Tse Chen-Na. She continued her art studies at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts when she moved to the U.S. in the 1980s, fusing Chinese tradition with a western approach in terms of space, color and relationship.

The late renowned Philadelphia artist, Sam Maitin said, “In painting watercolor on silk, I find that her command of the medium is extensive and eloquent. It has an imperial, regal quality. She handles it so deftly and so expertly.”

Deena Gu’s preferred painting medium is watercolor on silk. Silk is a traditional Chinese medium. Deena feels that the smoothness of silk exhibits the most exquisite colors. She also paints on rice paper as well as oils on canvas. “When I paint on silk, I feel a strong communication with its texture. Silk is like a part of me,” says Deena, whose subjects include landscapes, flowers - especially lotus blossoms - birds, as well as portraits. 

Contact: DeenaGuArt@gmail.com

Media
Oils, Acrylics on Canvas, Watercolors on Silk and Paper, Sculpture

Membership
Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts Committee for the School, 1998 -
Philadelphia Museum of Art East Asia Art Committee, 2005 -
Board of Overseers, Marine Biology Lab, Woods Hole, Massachusetts, 2010 - 2016
Trustee of the AMDG1933 Foundation, 2013-
Trustee of Opera Philadelphia, 2023-

Studies
Apprenticeship under Professor Chen Shi-Fa (Chinese Watercolor), 1978-1982
Apprenticeship under Professor Tse Chen-Na (Chinese Watercolor), 1980-1982
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 1984-1987

Selected Solo Exhibitions

  • Chinese Culture Center, Los Angeles, CA, 1984

  • Jane Law Gallery, Long Beach Island, NJ, 1984

  • Joy Berman Gallery, Philadelphia, PA, 1987

  • Philadelphia Art Alliance, Philadelphia, PA, 1993

  • Burrison Art Gallery, University of Pennsylvania Faculty Club, Philadelphia, PA, 1993 1999 2001 2003 2004 2007

  • Langman Gallery, Philadelphia, PA, 1996

  • Artworks Gallery, Philadephia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, PA, 1997

  • Peng Gallery, Philadelphia, PA, 1998

  • Shanghai Chinese Painting Academy, Shanghai, China, 2006

  • United Nations, New York, NY, 2008

  • Highfield Hall, Falmouth, MA, 2009

  • Maser Gallery, Falmouth, MA, 2009

  • Peaceful Harmony: The Art of Deena Gu Laties, Kamen Gallery, Washington and Lee University, Lexington, Virginia, 2010

  • Deena Gu Laties, Harmony, Sea, Sky and Land, Sidney and Berne Davis Art Center, Fort Myers, FL, 2014

  • Deena Gu: Early Work Early Scrolls, Philip and Muriel Berman Museum of Art, Ursinus College, Collegeville, PA, 2014 - 2015

  • Journey in Watercolor: The Art of Deena Gu, Woodmere Art Museum, Philadelphia, PA, 2014 - 2015

  • Shanghai to Naples, StayInMay Festival, Naples Arts Association, April 25 - June 4, 2017

  • Highfield Hall, Falmouth, MA. September 8 -October 31, 2017

Selected Group Exhibitions

  • Shanghai Exhibit Hall, Shanghai, China, 1981

  • Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts Student Exhibition, Philadelphia, PA, 1987

  • National American Show (Won 1st Prize), Lever House, New York, NY, 1987

  • Falmouth Artists Guild, Falmouth, MA, 1994 1995 1996

  • Art Exhibit Asian American Artists, 125th Anniversary

  • Juried Fellowship Exhibition, Centennial of the Fellowship of Pennsylvania, Academy of the Fine Arts, Chester Springs Studio, Chester Springs, PA, 1997 2000

  • Annual Art Exhibition, Woods Hole, MA, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005

  • "Gardens and Landscapes", Fellowship of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, The American College, Gregg Conference Center, Bryn Mawr, PA, 2000

  • Woodmere Art Museum, Philadelphia, PA, 2012

  • Cape Cod Museum, Dennis, MA, 2012

  • Haunting Narratives: Detours from Philadelphia Realism, 1935 to the Present, Woodmere Art Museum, New England Artists of Pennsylvania Academy, 2012

Selected Demonstrations and Classes

Demonstration of Watercolor Painting
Philadelphia Museum of Art
Philadelphia, PA
1998 1999

Demonstration of Traditional Watercolor Techniques
Asian Afternoon
University of Pennsylvania Museum
Philadelphia, PA
1998 1999

East Asian Calligraphy
Philadelphia Museum of Art
Philadelphia, PA
1999 2004 2005 2006
Chinese Figure Painting Workshop
Philadelphia Museum of Art
Philadelphia, PA
1999

Teaching at AMY
James Martin School
Philadelphia, PA
2000

Mainline Art League
Wayne, PA
2002

Watercolor Workshop
Falmouth Artists' Guild
Falmouth, MA
2004

Calligraphy
Valley Forge Elementary School
Valley Forge, PA
2005-2012

Woodmere Art Museum
Philadelphia, PA    
2014-2015

Ursins College,  
Collegeville, PA
2015

Naples Arts Association
Naples, FL
2017

Valley forge elementary School
Valley Forge, PA  
2008 -2017

Lecture at American Ophthalmological Society

Dana Point, CA

2018

Lecture at Harvard Club Annual Meeting

Santa Belle, FL

2018

Philadelphia Museum of Art

Philadelphia, PA

2019

Selected Private and Public Collections

  • United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon

  • Mr. and Mrs. Gordon Gund

  • Mr. and Mrs. H. F. (Gerry) Lenfest

  • Mr. and Mrs. John S. Price

  • Foundation Fighting Blindness, Baltimore, Maryland

  • Grand Teton Music Festival, Jackson Hole Wyoming

  • Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, PA

  • National Liberty Museum, Philadelphia, PA

  • Woodmere Art Museum, Philadelphia, PA

  • Curtis Institute of Music, Philadelphia, PA

  • Washington and Lee University, Lexington, VA

  • Columbia University, New York, NY

Articles