Wang Wei, the fourth generation descendant of Li Tingliang, the last court painter of the Qing Dynasty, told us about Li Tingliang’s palace past and the inheritance of court paintings after they were lost among the people. In November 1924, Puyi, who had abdicated, was forced to leave the Forbidden City. Only a few dozen palace maids, eunuchs and attendants accompanied him, including an old man in his 70s. This old man is Li Tingliang, the last generation of court painter in the Qing Dynasty. Later, he told his children countless times about this heart-breaking day. From this day on, the unique court painting skills that had been passed down for hundreds of years were lost to the people.
Wang Wei is the fourth generation inheritor of court painting skills. The court painter Li Tingliang is his aunt, his grandfather's uncle. "My grandfather Wang Zhuping learned painting from his uncle since he was a child. He was his book boy and went to the palace with him every day to serve, so he got the true inheritance from his uncle. My grandfather passed this skill on to my uncle and aunt, and I learned it from my grandfather since I was a child. Yes, now my children are also learning, and it has been passed down to the fifth generation. The skill of court painting will be passed down in our family."
Li Tingliang, courtesy name Yunxuan, was a painter in the Qing Dynasty and a native of the capital. He was good at it. Finger painting. Finger painting is said to be Li Tingliang's unique skill. He dips his fingers in ink and paint to paint. This is not a court painting technique, but something he used to entertain himself in his spare time. The only surviving painting of Li Tingliang preserved by Wang Wei is a finger painting. It is a very small painting on a wallet-like bag. It is a century-old item with stains and traces of time.
Now, Wang Wei is applying for national intangible cultural heritage for his family's court painting skills. He believes that court painting is a unique existence. "It has an artistic charm and spirit that is different from other paintings." Connotation, it is the unity of charm and power, which can not be accomplished only through the movement of palms. It includes: the use of heart, eyes, method, brush, ink and color. "Friends, who do you think it is?"