The page has Chinese version only

Splashed-colour landscape

• Artist

  Zhang Daqian

• Year

  1966

• Media

  Hanging scroll, ink and colour on paper

• Dimensions

  86.5 x 50.8 cm

• Museum No.

  CL2018.0240

• Artist Bio

  Zhang Daqian (1899 – 1983), originally named Yuan, was a native of Neijiang, Sichuan province. In 1917, Zhang with his elder brother Shanzi, studied painting as well as the craftsmanship of dyeing and weaving in Japan. After returning to Shanghai in 1919, he studied poetry, calligraphy and painting as a student of Zen Xi and Li Ruiqing respectively. Between 1941 and 1943 Zhang stayed in Dunhuang to copy the ancient cave frescoes, followed by sojourns in Brazil, America and other parts of the world, until he finally settled down in Taiwan in 1977. Proficient in diverse artistic styles, he was a master of figurative, bird and flower as well as landscape painting. Empowered by excellences of the ancient artists, Zhang Daqian was a consummate painter of worldwide acclaim. In later years, Zhang delighted the art world with a new approach of splashed-ink and splashed-colour landscapes in blue-and-green.

• Description

  Zhang Daqian created this painting to celebrate the 60th birthday of Ho Iu-kwong, founder of the Chih Lo Lou Collection. The artist blended a bold splashed-colour technique with traditional blue-and-green landscape style. Retaining figurative expressionism in a near abstract composition, he created a “likeness and unlikeness” effect, leaving the viewer to feel the artistic concept of a landscape with much larger use of imagination. Zhang Daqian’s use of this form of expression became increasingly well established during the 1960’s. As a result, Chinese painting took on a new look in the 20th century.

• —Chih Lo Lou Collection, Hong Kong Museum of Art

• More information
  Hong Kong Museum of Art