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Chinese Painting / Chinese Brush
Painting Introductione

Chinese brush painting has its origins in the distant past. Some of the earliest paintings were of figures on funeral banners and illustrations of everyday life commemorated on cave and tomb walls, complete with possessions. The sizes of the paintings varied, along with the amount of detail portrayed. Above all, Chinese artists followed their own inclination, ignoring ideas from the West, such as perspective, and absorbing the culture of their conquerors. In their turn they had an impact on neighboring areas, such as Korea, Malaysia, and Japan. Their religions, superstitions, and beliefs were reflected in their paintings and motifs.

Early forms of calligraphy were scratched or painted onto shell and bone for divination. Bronze, pottery, and wood were decorated from early times with symbolic symbols and shapes, often for funerary or ritualistic use. Silk was also a popular medium before the invention of paper.

Since these early times, the Chinese have looked to the work of the past, copying the “masters” in order to learn. The extent to which each master copied earlier works is a matter of debate. But each artist is capable of adding something of themselves, even when looking back to the past masters’ techniques and styles. It is easy to mistake a painting from the 9th or 10th century for a modern version.

Some emperors, such as Hui-zong (Hui-tsung) (1082-1135), who promoted the Academy (lifelike) style, established special styles and schools. He also encouraged beautiful calligraphy, and would often “sign” a painting he approved of , along with other masters, which makes subsequent validation difficult.

China is a large country, with cities and regions separated by difficult terrain, so many styles of painting evolved quite separately from each other. Some styles have disappeared, others have evolved, and yet more have merged. There are also many folk-painting traditions.

There are two main styles of Chinese brush painting: Gongbi, often called meticulous, outline, or contour painting; and Xieyi, boneless or freestyle painting. Both place great importance on brush strokes and linework. Art institutes in China require students to practice calligraphy, linework, or grass orchids everydat, in order to make their brushwork fluid and flowing.

Professional painters who produced realistic versions of their subject were not always as highly regarded as the scholar painters (or literati) who painted for their own satisfaction in a more “spiritual” style. They painted subjects such as the “Four Gentlemen” (plum, orchid, bamboo, and chrysanthemum) for their virtuous qualities. Chinese brush painters strive to achieve qi (chi), often described as the “essence” in their paintings. This can be acquired by following certain principles, or simply by being in the right frame of mind for the subject.

These principles look at the interplay between the following contrasts: dark and light, wet and dry, large and small, long and short, thick and thin, dense and sparse. If you achieve three of these in your painting, you may achieve qi.

Chinese or Oriental composition is quite different to Western approaches to art. The Oriental style tries to capture a “moment in time,” which might include only part of a larger subject. The Western world generally takes an overall view of a subject, and is not so likely to abbreviate a picture. The Oriental way of presenting a picture, its frame and preservation, are quite at odds with Western concepts. In the West we have a feeling of permanence rather than transience. Paper, and therefore scroll paintings, were not considered or expected to be long-lasting by the Chinese. It is only in recent years that paintings have been deliberately preserved.

Chinese brush painting does not seek to “include every leaf.” Instead it contains only enough for recognition of the subject and its character- rather like a caricature, in fact. The attitude of the subject is all important. The interplay of brush strokes, and the space surrounding them, is carefully orchestrated within a painting. It is not sufficient to paint on a larger sheet of paper and then to cut it to size. The relationship of the strokes to the edges of the paper must be considered while painting.

The West has been fascinated with Chinese art for centuries, but, even so, the Western taste is for the more picturesque rather than the esoteric styles. Therefore the Gongbi style will probably have more devotees than the Xieyi style. An increasing number of exhibitions display Oriental culture and related arts, with many including work of a high standard, especially in the Xieyi style, and this will create a more “informed” audience.

Many artists are fascinated by the fact that Chinese paintings often leave some elements to the viewer’s imagination; it is said that the ideal painting is just a piece of white paper –the viewer can visualize a new painting each day!