Dictionary of Techniques of Famous Painters in Chinese Painting Through the Ages. Landscape Series (Volumes 1, 2, and 3)

Author: None
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-08-01
Features: In the world, perhaps no other form of painting possesses a set of inherited, systematic yet flexible and diverse schematic norms as Chinese painting does. Whether it is renowned masters or eager students, none can bypass these schematic norms to achieve success. It can be said that are both creators and inheritors of these schematic norms. It is precisely the perfect combination of inheritance and creation that allows them to secure a meaningful place in the long chain of Chinese development. For this very reason, Chinese painting education adopts a "apprenticeship" method distinct from the Western approach. It trains and nurtures new generations of Chinese painters through a path of "applying method to reach the Dao," which involves first copying and then innovating, first accepting and then understanding, and first specializing before diversifying. However, due to historical conditions and limitations in thinking, people are often confined to very narrow schools or even the restrictive circles of a single sect, making this teaching method highly inflexible and yielding extremely low success rates. Today, with the widespread use of modern printing technology, people can access a vast number of painting albums and apprenticeship drafts. However, albums are often many times smaller than the original works, making it impossible to discern detailed techniques, while apprenticeship drafts continue to follow the teaching methods of a single school or sect. As a result, most people still lack a comprehensive and in-depth understanding of tradition, failing to establish a solid foundation for development. Instead, they easily slip into two extreme stances: either blindly revering tradition or hastily rejecting it. In light of this, we have selected representative schematic techniques from, categorized them, and compiled them into this book. We have also ensured that the illustrations are printed as large as possible to reveal their subtle local details, hoping that readers will gain a general understanding and grasp of the styles and evolutionary trajectories of various schools and sects. This will enable them to effectively learn from the past to understand the present, accumulate profound knowledge, draw from diverse sources, and ultimately forge their own unique styles. It goes without saying that this book also holds certain reference value for artifact appraisers, art historians, and general cultural researchers.