Freehand grape technique

Author: Sun Ji'an
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-07-01
Features: Chinese flower-and-bird painting has a long history and an excellent tradition. Since it became an independent genre during the Tang Dynasty, it has achieved remarkable accomplishments, boasting generations of renowned masters and successors. Artists from various periods have continuously innovated while inheriting tradition, enriching the form and content of flower-and-bird painting. Grapes are a beloved fruit, belonging to the vegetable-fruit vine category of flowers. They are one of the favorite themes for flower-and-bird painters. The author has a particularly strong bond with grapes, the origins of which can be traced back to childhood. The author was born in a small, remote village in Song County, Jilin. The wildflowers and birds of the Changbai Mountains, as well as the fish in the streams, were the author's companions in childhood. The chirping of mountain sparrows and the croaking of grasshoppers intertwined, accompanying the author through summer nights. All this made the author feel the vitality of nature at a very young age.
During the mid-autumn season, when the leaves gradually turn from green to yellow and red, the author's older brother would take them into the mountains to pick grapes. The grapes, ranging in shades of purple, green, and half-purple-half-green, exuded a subtle fragrance. The lush grape leaves, intertwined with the vines and trees, created a breathtaking scene. They would fill a basket and carry it home to store, enjoying them during the Mid-Autumn Festival. If they picked too many, they would make grape cakes, which often stained their teeth purple. Every Mid-Autumn night, households would arrange grapes, watermelons, and mooncakes in their courtyards. As they savored the delicious fruits, they would collectively envision a prosperous future.