Appreciation of Classical Landscape Paintings Series. Wang Lihua

Author: Wang Lihua
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-01-01
Features: A series of appreciations of classical landscape paintings by Wang Lihua, a renowned contemporary Chinese landscape painter. The collection includes 20 of his classical landscape works for everyone to admire. The traditional theories and techniques of landscape painting are a precious legacy left by our predecessors, fully exploitable and applicable in creation. However, they are ultimately limited. The world's famous mountains and rivers are diverse in form and style, offering endless sources of innovation. Today's talented landscape painters, while inheriting tradition, seek inspiration from nature to find new themes, compositions, and artistic expressions, creating innovative approaches.
To give my works a fresh touch and better align with audience appreciation, I have explored new techniques. For instance, "emptiness" holds a special place in landscape painting. It is not only common in the works of past masters but also extensively discussed in painting theories. It is a crucial element in landscape composition, and I have paid great attention to its application in my creations. However, traditional approaches to emptiness often lack expression. Over the past decade, I have conducted research and experimentation on how to make emptiness more dynamic and expressive.
Life is the best teacher, so I have observed and studied the representation of emptiness in daily life. In landscape painting, emptiness primarily refers to clouds, mist, sky, or water, with clouds and mist being particularly prominent. After rain, I climb mountains to observe clouds, noting their movement, posture, and dynamics, as well as the relationships and changes between ink, white, and gray tones. In spring and autumn, when morning fog is common, I often visit fields and mountains early to witness its transformations. Through countless observations, sketches, and creative attempts, I have experimented with using a large goat-hair brush and light, damp ink to depict clouds or mist in empty spaces. This approach preserves the overall sense of emptiness and its importance in composition while infusing it with vitality and dynamism, seamlessly blending with the painting's overall effect.
Another example is the depiction of flowing waterfalls. Traditional landscape painting often relies on lines or, lacking variation and formulaic in capturing the spray and movement of water. In Mount Siming, streams and springs are abundant, flowing ceaselessly with countless forms, which are difficult to express through traditional techniques alone. Therefore, I employ a combination of lines, strokes, dry and wet techniques, and selectively borrow some Western methods to depict water waves and flowing streams, fully showcasing their texture and fluidity. The integration between waterfalls and rocks is also tightly realized.
Additionally, based on the characteristic of southern landscapes being rich in forests, I have explored and applied new techniques in depicting forests. I have come to realize that creating landscape paintings that appeal to both refined and popular tastes requires constant nourishment from life. In the new era, while maintaining distinct national characteristics, landscape painting should embrace new content, perspectives, forms, and techniques—all firmly rooted in the fertile soil of life. Only then can landscape painting bloom more vibrant flowers in the garden of art.
Wang Lihua
September 20, 2003