Few people know that Chen Xiejun, director of Shanghai Museum, is also an artist. He has been painting for the past few decades despite his busy schedule.

Art lovers can admire about 120 of his oil paintings at the Shanghai Art Museum until Oct 18. The exhibits include his early works created in the 1970s and more recent paintings.

Xu Jiang, director of the China Academy of Art, praised Chen's masterpieces for capturing the essence of his homeland's art and using Western oil painting style to present the Chinese spirit.

Chen says his creations are influenced by his old friends, Shanghai artist Chen Yifei and his younger brother Chen Yiming. "They've played an important role in my development as an artist," Chen says.

9 am-5 pm, until Oct 18. Shanghai Art Museum, 325 Nanjing Road West, Shanghai. 021-6327-2829.

- Zhang Kun