The Development of Chinese Painting Is Closely Linked to China’s History and Culture.

Throughout its long history Chinese painting as a genre has different characteristics that serve as hallmarks of
different periods.
The earliest paintings in primitive societies were just symbols and pictographs on rock walls.
Looking back to as early as the WARRING STATES PERIOD, images and designs painted on silk fabric
appeared, followed by primitive rock paintings and colored pottery.
most well-known silk painting during the SPRING AND AUTUMN PERIOD AND WARRING STATES
PERIOD is yULong Tzi *
The QIN AND HAN ERA was the time when a unified multi-ethnic feudal state was being established.
PAINTINGS became an artistic activity to publicize achievements and showcase the grandeur of the emperors.
The PERIOD STRIDING THE THREE KINGDOMS, THE JIN DYNASTY, NORTHERN, AND SOUTHERN
DYNASTY, was particularly important in Chinese art history.
The paintings during that time not only inherited the achievements of the frescoes from the Qin and Han
Dynasties
But also brought in the elements of Buddhist culture, the representatives of which of which were the MaI-jishan
GrAttoes in GanSU province, the Muogao GrAttoes in Duan Huang, and KaZil Caves in Shinjang Province.
The landscape paintings and bird paintings also began to emerge into the artistic scene.
The Swey and Thang Dynasties, which at the time boasted some of the most advanced SOCIETIES,
ECONOMICS, AND CULTURES, created a rich fertile ground within which CHINESE PAINTING bloomed
and reached new heights. During this time, such notable artists as, YEN LI^BEN, WU^ TAO^ZI , and WANG
WEI, would leave their mark on CHINESE HISTORY.
What these paintings have in common is that they are SPLENDID and GRAND, showing the MAGNIFICENT
AND SPIRIT of the SWEI AND THANG DYNASTIES.
CHINESE PAINTING in five dynasties and ten kingdoms, and the northern and southern song dynasties were
more matured and prosperous. Where in figure painting turned to depict secular life while RELIGIOUS
PAINTING gradually dwindled leaving LANDSCAPE PAINTINGS, and FLOWER, and BIRD PAINTING
become the MAINSTREM.
The techniques of meticulous brushwork and freehand brushwork formed a complete technique system.
The LAMINATION, MOUNTING, AND FRAMING or PAINTINGS further improved, with ROLLING and
SCROLLING, BINDING, and SCREENING as the major formats. IN THIS PERIOD THE ACCESS… began
to commercialized which strengthen the connection of art and society.
The representatives are: SHINGMING SHANGHE TZU(ALONG THE RIVER during the Qingming festival),
SHIYUWAN YAJI TZU(ELEGANT GATHERING in west garden) ,and WENZHI GWEYHAN TZU(CAI
WENJI returning to han)
Let’s go back to the 2 techniques, the Shui-mo/“Freehand Painting” and Gongbi Painting/ “Meticulous
Painting”.
THE Shui-mo (水墨/“Freehand Painting - ”loosely termed “watercolor” or “brush” painting. The Chinese
character "mo" means ink and "shui" means water. Seeks to express the essence of the subject, rather than the
details of its appearance
while the Gongbi Painting/ “Meticulous Painting” - It is a traditional painting in China, Gongbi means tidy or
precise and is generally considered as descriptive than interpretative painting.

In the QING DYNASTIES several groups of outstanding PAINTERS come to public notice such as
JINGDONG BA JA^ (eight painters of east BA JIA), JINGLYING BA JA^ (eight painters of Nanjing),
YANGZHOU BA GWAI (eight eccentric painters of Yangzhou), SI SENG (4monks)
The paintings of this period were characterized by the painter’s unique personalities and styles symbolizing
their love of life and their rallying cry for the desire for art.
The representative work includes HUANG GONG WANG’S FUCHWEN SHAN JU TU (dwellings in the
fuchwen mountains)
poem describes the prince’s imaginary romantic encounter with the nymph, or goddess, of the Luo River in
central China. They fall in love but eventually part with one another
In terms of the theme and artistic form, Chinese painting embodies the ideology and aesthetic orientation of
the Chinese nation. It is also a reflection of the Chinese people’s understanding of nature and society as well
as the related politics, philosophy, religion, morality and art.