Learn from Zhang Xuan, Zhou Zhao, and Gu Hongzhong

Author: Guo Weihua (Editor)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-01-01
Features: Zhang Xuan, a native of Jingzhao (Chang'an). During the Kaiyuan era of the Tang Dynasty, he served as a painter in the Imperial Academy of History and was renowned for his skill in portraiture, especially in depicting court ladies, infants, and horseback riders. His representative works include "The Lady of Guo's Spring Outing" and "The Weaving Scene." Zhou Fang, styled Zhonglang and also known as Jingxuan, was a native of Jingzhao (Chang'an) and a famous painter of the mid-Tang period. He came from a noble family and served successively as the Magistrate of Yuezhou and Xuzhou. He excelled in painting court ladies, Buddha figures, and portraits. His surviving works include "The Fan-Wielding Court Ladies," "The Court Ladies with Flowers in Their Hair," and "The Musician and the Tea Drinker." Later generations revered his figure painting style as the "Zhou Family Style." "The Court Ladies with Flowers in Their Hair" is now housed in the Liaoning Provincial Museum. It is a silk painting, measuring 46.2 cm in height and 180 cm in length. The work depicts the leisurely activities of Tang Dynasty noblewomen in a courtyard. The lines are delicate and fluid, the colors rich and vibrant, artistically recreating the "glorious and plump" demeanor of Tang noblewomen while capturing their carefree yet subtly melancholic expressions. The painting features five noblewomen and one female attendant. This section of the work shows a noblewoman holding a flower and a female attendant holding a fan. Gu Hongzhong, a painter of the Five Dynasties and Southern Tang period, was a native of Jiangnan and served as a court painter during the Yuan, Song, and Later Zhou dynasties. He was particularly skilled in portraiture, especially in capturing the expressions of figures. "The Night Banquet of Han Xizai" is now preserved in the Palace Museum. It is a silk painting, measuring 28.7 cm in height and 335.5 cm in length. The protagonist, Han Xizai, a minister of the Southern Tang court, was originally from a northern aristocratic family. To avoid suspicion from Emperor Li Yu of the Later Zhou, he indulged in pleasure-seeking.