Three Heroes of Western Fujian: Shangguan Zhou, Hua Yan, and Huang Shen
Huang Shen (1687-?), unknown year of death, was a famous painter in the Qing Dynasty and a native of Ninghua, Fujian.
His first name was Sheng, with the courtesy names Gongshou, Gongmao, Gongmao and Juzhuang, his nickname was Yinglaozi, and his nickname was Donghai Buyi.
He visited Yangzhou three times, stayed there for a long time, and had friendly contacts with Zheng Banqiao, Li Xian and others. He was one of the "Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou".
Huang Shen is good at poetry, calligraphy and painting, especially figure painting. His calligraphy and painting works were already famous in the world during the Yongzheng period. He once "traveled to Yuzhang, In Wu, Yue, and Weiyang, people competed for it, and those who obtained the pieces of it were regarded as treasures.
"(Xu Ke's "Qing Barnyard Notes" Art Category 6) Huang Shen's Characters. The painting style is mainly reflected in the freehand brushwork technique of cursive calligraphy. Zheng Banqiao has a very insightful comment on this - "The spirit of the painting is lost, and there is no real soul."
Hua Qi ( 1682-1756), whose original name was Desong, whose courtesy name was Qiuyue, and whose names were Xinluoshanren, Dongyuansheng, Buyisheng, Baisha Taoist, Liguo Jushi, etc., and he was a native of Shanghang, Fujian.
After he became an adult, he lived in Hangzhou and Yangzhou, selling paintings for a living. He was good at poetry and calligraphy, and worked on figures, landscapes, flowers and birds, and grass and insects. He was one of the representatives of the Yangzhou School of Painting and the author of "The Collection of Li Gu". , "Collection of Poems of Jiezanguan".
In the history of Chinese painting, Hua Qi is more famous for his flower and bird paintings. In fact, his figure paintings are also unique. In his early years, he appeared with line drawings. In his middle age, he learned from Chen Hongshou. In his later years, he developed his own style with simple brushwork.
The style of Huaqi's figure paintings lies in "interest", and he pays more attention to brushwork and charm than ordinary folk painters.
Just as Zhang Geng commented on Hua Qi in "Guo Chao Painting Collection", "Good people, landscapes, flowers, birds, grass and insects can all break away from the habits of the times, and strive for ancient methods, not beauty, sincerely for the recent empty valley. sound".
Shangguan Zhou (1665-?), a native of Changting, Fujian Province, was originally named Shixian, but later changed his name to Zhou, with the courtesy name Wenzuo and the name Zhuzhuang.
A famous folk painter in the Qing Dynasty, he was diligent and studious since childhood. He was good at poetry, calligraphy, seal cutting, and was especially proficient in painting.
According to "Fujian Tongzhi Zhiguanzhi", "Yan Yiming, the prefect of Tingzhou, was dismissed in the 33rd year of Kangxi's reign, and he took Shangguan Zhou Dong to Suzhou.
"His paintings It is very popular in Suzhou and has been praised as the "folk magic pen in the south of the Yangtze River".
The court of the Qing Dynasty also appreciated Shangguan Zhou's figure paintings. He once issued an edict to let him work with the famous painters Wang Hui and Wang Yuanqi at the time to paint the 12 volumes of "Kangxi's Southern Inspection Map", which mainly painted figures. There are nearly 10,000 painted figures, all of them lifelike and with realistic expressions.
Shangguan Zhou's figure painting style is characterized by "expressiveness", free and unrestrained brushwork, both form and spirit, and is unique.
He has many figure paintings, including "The Return of the Woodcutter", "The Longevity Star", "Su Wu Shepherding the Sheep", etc.
In his later years, he created "Wanxiaotang Painting Biography" based on historical data, depicting 120 famous historical figures in ancient my country. A copying model for people to learn figure painting.