Huang Shen's landscape sketches. Poetry and calligraphy combined album

Author: Tianjin People's Fine Arts Publishing House
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-01-01
Features: Huang Shun (1687-1766) was a renowned painter of the Qing Dynasty, styled Gongmao, later changed to Gongshou and Juzhuang, styled Yeping, also known as Donghai Bùyī. He was from Ninghua, Fujian. He grew up in poverty and later resided in Yangzhou for a long time, earning a living by selling paintings. He often studied under the long-lasting candles in ancient temples and Buddhist halls. Initially, he learned fine-line figure and landscape painting from Shangguan Zhou. Later, he evolved into bold, sweeping brushwork, mastering simplicity with grandeur, with unrestrained yet vigorous brushstrokes, revealing refinement amidst roughness. His figures, apart from historical stories and divine statues, were mostly drawn from folk life, often depicting the images of the working class. He specialized in painting beggars, boatmen, and fishermen, often using just a few strokes to capture both essence and form. His landscapes, flowers, birds, insects, and fish were equally masterful. He was one of the "Eight of Yangzhou." He excelled in cursive calligraphy, learning from the "Two Wangs" (Wang Xizhi and Wang Xianzhi), achieving a transcendent level with the force of falling cliffs and the agility of a dancing phoenix. He skillfully used broken and bald brushes, balancing freedom with precision. He once wrote a couplet: "Do not open a world in poetry, but always reach the clouds beyond the ordinary." His poetry was also excellent, earning him the title of "Triple Perfection in Poetry, Calligraphy, and Painting." His representative works include: "The Gathering of the Eight Immortals," "The Peeling Pomegranate and Playing with a Child," "The Four Scholars of Shangshan," "The Wind and Snow on the Pass," "The Fisherman on the Turbulent Waves," "The Banquet on Dongshan," "The Heavenly Inkstone," "The Old Man Striking," and "Listening to Music in the Mountains." He also wrote "The Poems of Jiaohu."