Chinese Painting Techniques Series – How to Paint Flowering Peaches in Xieyi Style

Author: Liang Shimin
Publishing House: Shaanxi People's Fine Arts Publishing House
Book Description:
Pomegranate, also known as "An Shi Liu" (An石榴), is also called "Dantai," "Golden Jar," and "Celestial Paste." It originated in regions such as Afghanistan in Central Asia. According to the Qun Fang Pu, it was brought back to China by Zhang Qian over 2,000 years ago from An Shi (near Iran), hence its name "An Shi Liu."
Pomegranate blossoms are red as fire, dazzlingly bright. The fruits are round like balls, with small petals at the top. Larger fruits resemble cups, with a crimson skin dotted with black spots. The inside resembles a honeycomb, with yellow membranes separating the seeds, like human teeth. White ones are as snow, pale red like red rubies, and deep red like cinnabar. After the autumn frost, the fruits naturally split open.
This fruit is rich in nutrition and has a sweet and sour taste. It has the effects of quenching thirst, generating saliva, detoxifying alcohol, and eliminating poisons. The crushed pomegranate skin can be applied to swollen wounds. The branches and trunks are graceful and simple, making them excellent materials for bonsai.
Today, there are thousands of-acre pomegranate groves in places like Shan Zhou City, Shandong Province, Lintong, Shaanxi Province, and Huaiyuan, Anhui Province. The Jin dynasty poet Pan Yu once wrote: "A wonder of the world, a famous fruit of the nine states." The Tang dynasty poet Yu Lan wrote: "One flower with a thousand red leaves." In the Tang dynasty, it was said that "pomegranate blossoms covered the suburbs of Chang'an."
Throughout history, many famous poets and painters have used pomegranates as themes for their works. In folk culture, pomegranates are used to express blessings, such as the sayings "Pomegranate smiling," "Pomegranate splitting into a hundred seeds," and "Many children, much fortune," giving them auspicious and pleasant connotations.
Author Bio: Liang Shimin was born in Sichuan in 1959. He graduated from Sichuan Fine Arts Institute in 1984. His works have been exhibited in various domestic and international exhibitions and have won gold, silver, bronze, and excellence awards. Some of his works have been collected by dozens of cultural and art institutions, including the National Museum of China, the China History Museum, the Humen Museum in Guangdong Province, the Keyuan Museum, the Modern Art Museum of Malaysia, and the Macau China Art Center. He is currently a member of the Chinese Fine Arts Association