Ye Qianyu, Complete Collection of Famous Chinese Painters

Author: Ye Qianyu (Illustrator) / Zhang Tianman
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-03-01
Features: The painter, drawing upon the spiritual essence of heaven and earth, weaves it with the wondrous imagination of the human heart. Standing between heaven and earth, the painter is surrounded by all phenomena. With thoughts blending with delight, they suddenly draw with a stroke, pursuing what they see, hear, and feel. With a resounding cry, they create works in myriad forms, achieving excellence. Our country's painting tradition has deep roots. Since the Jin Dynasty's Gu Kaizhi, for over a thousand years, schools of thought have flourished, with outstanding masters emerging generation after generation. From the north to the south, talented artisans have appeared, each with distinct styles, forming their own unique schools. The vast Yangtze River and the majestic Kunlun Mountains are not enough to describe their lofty heights. Later generations wish to understand their details and marvels, yet it is difficult. I was born unable to paint, but by observing the works of ancient and modern masters and their inevitable changes of the time, I have come to understand that learning the rules leads to understanding the lack of rules. An elder once said that this path is full of artistic expression—so it is? Reading through the masterpieces of past generations, I realize that their methods are like mirages and flowing water—apparent yet elusive; while their lack of rules is like the boundless blue sky and clear water, vast and endless. Our society gathers the essence of both ancient and modern times, selecting the outstanding works of masters, detailing their lives, artistic theories, technical features, and lineage, allowing readers to see a glimpse and grasp the whole, understand one painter and grasp an era's art, and through reading the collections of dozens of masters, gain an overview of our country's millennia-old painting civilization. Due to the passage of time and frequent wars, countless masterpieces have been lost or damaged. There are masters whose paintings no longer exist, paintings that survive but are few and far between, and painters renowned yet whose lives and deeds are unrecorded. Thus, the surviving images and texts are scarce, and introductions cannot be complete. We have compiled works of several masters, which is better than nothing. In the past, Ouyang Xun compiled Yiwen Lüju and said, "I wish to make every household rich in pearls and every person treasure jade, allowing the predecessors to compile their works freely." This collection embodies that spirit. Chinese painting art has a long and profound history. For thousands of years, schools of thought have flourished, with outstanding masters emerging generation after generation. From ancient times to the present, talented artisans have appeared, each with distinct styles, forming their own unique schools. The Complete Collection of Famous Chinese Painters is a series of books selected from the masterpieces of ancient and modern Chinese painters, from Gu Kaizhi of the Jin Dynasty to the late Guan Shanmei of the modern era. Each book reflects the painter's life, artistic characteristics, technical features, and artistic theories, allowing readers to see a glimpse. This book fully reproduces the artistic career of the contemporary painter Ye Qianyu.