Anna Zhao, Chen Hongjuan

    Anna Zhao@yahoo.com

    MORE than 80 landscape paintings by contemporary artist Sun Rixiao are on exhibition at the Guan Shanyue Art Museum through May 21.

    Most of the paintings, featuring mountain peaks clad in clouds, capture the illusive beauty of nature. One of the most frequently depicted landscapes under Sun’s brush is Huangshan Mountain in Anhui Province, renowned for its magnificent granite peaks and rocks emerging out of a sea of clouds.

    Despite the huge number of works on the same topic, the sceneries created by Sun vary with different formations of clouds. Sun seems to be able to take snapshots of the forever-changing cloud like a photographer, although he simply reproduces those scenes with water and ink on paper. He attributes his success to closely observing China’s natural landscapes for half his life.

    By drawing a comparison between static mountains and moving clouds, the artist has created pictures that give viewers free rein to their imaginations.

    Speaking of his artistic life, Sun said he feels an artist has to accept loneliness when pursuing art. Now in his 80s, Sun keeps the habit of painting every day. He models himself after Li Keran, a master painter of 20th-century Chinese art. “Like singing or writing, one must continuously paint so one’s hand can be well-trained for creating good works. Painting requires coordination between the brain and the hand,” Sun said.

    A native of Qixia in northeastern Shandong Province, Sun is an old friend of Shenzhen. He first arrived in Shenzhen in 1977 and worked with Song Wenzhi to produce a giant painting for Wuzhou Guest House in Futian District.

    Dates: Through May 21

    Venue: Guan Shanyue Art Museum, 6026 Hongli Road, Futian District (福田区红荔路6026号关山月美术馆)

    Metro: Longgang or Longhua Line, Children’s Palace Station (少年宫站), Exit B