Chinese Traditional Ink Painting Learning Series · Ink Chrysanthemum Practice

Author: Wang Yaoting
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-04-01
Features: Chinese painters have long ago referred to the four plants—plum blossoms, orchids, bamboo, and chrysanthemums—as the "Four Gentlemen," symbolizing noble virtues. For example, spring orchids, summer bamboo, autumn chrysanthemums, and winter plum blossoms can depict the changes of the four seasons, the emotions of literati painters in the "Four Gentlemen," and serve as a means of communication among friends and scholars. Chrysanthemums, blooming in late autumn when the severe cold is approaching, produce flowers with unique fragrance, and as plants symbolizing longevity and high moral integrity, they have been cherished by people since ancient times. In ink chrysanthemums, the painter's noble and simple spirit is condensed. Based on learning painting techniques, especially for beginners of ink painting, it is generally considered the best to start with the "Four Gentlemen." Learning from bamboo helps in understanding the arrangement and combination of straight lines, while learning from orchids teaches the composition of curves. Learning to paint plum blossoms can be connected to the painting of other branches and trunks, and learning to paint chrysanthemums and leaves allows one to paint various types of flowers. Through painting the "Four Gentlemen," one can experience and master the use and manipulation of the brush, meaning that while mastering the basics of brushwork, one also gains an in-depth understanding of the essence of Chinese painting, which is ink and its variations in density and hue.