Goldfishes (The Nine Happiness)

Artist Bio
Chao Shao-an (1905 – 1998), a native of Panyu, Guangdong province. He studied painting at the Gao Qifeng (1889 – 1933) Private College of Art. In 1930, he founded the Lingnan Art Studio in Guangzhou. In 1948, Chao settled in Hong Kong and re-established the Lingnan Art Studio to teach students. He excelled in painting landscapes, animals, flowers, insects and fish, and was particularly noted for painting cicadas. Chao is a representative painter of the second-generation artists of the Lingnan School. His works are widely exhibited in Hong Kong and overseas. He was awarded Honorary Degree of Doctor of Letters from the University of Hong Kong (1994).
Description
The “Nine Happiness” is an auspicious and celebratory term originating from The Book of Odes, which in visual terms, is represented by nine fish. But the artist’s real intention in this painting is to show the goldfish swimming leisurely in the water, as opposed to his own hectic and much harassed life. Apart from depicting the carefree fish with their tails swaying, Chao also represented the sensual qualities of the water and light, so much an integral part of this restful painting.
—Collection of Hong Kong Heritage Museum
More information
Hong Kong Heritage Museum