Debra Li

debra_lidan@163.com

MORE than 120 paintings by Chinese artist Zhuang Yucong were exhibited from June 10 to 16 at Artron Art Gallery in Futian District.

Organized by China Artists Association, the show, which has previously toured to Jinan, Shandong Province and Lanzhou, Gansu Province, aimed to promote the traditions of freehand style ink and wash paintings.

Unlike the elaborate style of Chinese painting which uses highly detailed brushstrokes that delineates details very precisely, the freehand style was traditionally an art practiced by gentlemen and considered more difficult.

One of less than 10 established contemporary freehand style Chinese painters in the country, Zhuang takes withered lotus leafs, ponds in the moonlight, ravens in winter and chrysanthemums to be the subjects of his paintings.

“Traditional Chinese gentlemen would instill their paintings with their emotions and thoughts. Influenced by Taoism, many would resonate with nature and lament the passing of time. Therefore, the bleak landscapes of fall have long been a popular subject,” said the painter at the opening of his exhibition.

Born in 1954 in Hui’an, Fujian Province, Zhuang first studied sculpture at Fujian Arts and Design School, the predecessor of Xiamen Academy of Arts and Design, Fuzhou University and then studied Chinese painting at Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts.

Of the numerous famed Chinese painters of the past, Zhuang said he feels close to ancient masters Xu Wei (1521-1593), Zhu Da (1626-1705) and Wu Changshuo (1844-1927) in particular. “They are known as individualists who rebelled against many of the traditional rules of painting and found ways to express themselves more directly through free brushwork,” he said.

“Xu used broad, dramatic washes of ink and dynamic, cursory lines, suggesting an emotional confrontation between the artist and his materials. While in Zhu’s paintings, usually in ink monochrome, such creatures as birds and fish are given a curious, glowering, sometimes even perverse personality. Wu was noted for helping to rejuvenate the art of painting flowers and birds, using bold colors.”

Guo Xiyuan, Chinese painter and professor at Shenzhen University, praised Zhuang for combining traditions with techniques he acquired from his previous experience with sculpture.

The exhibition will tour to Guangzhou and other Chinese cities later this year.