During his trip to Europe in the 1920s, Xu Beihong drew thousands of free and easy European horses. In the late 1930s, when he gave lectures at the International University of India, he visited Kashmir in the west of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and Darjeeling in the foothills of the Himalayas. The wild horses on the plateau deeply touched him.
Since then, the horses written by Xu Beihong have not only graceful posture, but also brave vitality and tenacious endurance. They are lanky, not as fat as horses painted by ancient China masters Cao Ba, Chen Hong, Han Gan, Zhang Xuan and Zhao Mengfu, but they are also masculine. Their nostrils are very open, indicating that they have a large lung capacity and are good at running for a long time. Their long legs and wide hooves show that they are agile and fast when running.
Painting style
Good at sketching, oil painting and Chinese painting. He integrated western artistic skills into Chinese painting and created a novel and unique style. His sketches and oil paintings are permeated with the charm of Chinese painting. His creative themes are extensive, and landscapes, flowers and birds, animals, people, history and myths are all lifelike.
His oil paintings "Tian Heng 500", "Mourn for Me Later", Chinese paintings "Nine Square Heights" and "One Mountain in Gong Yu" are full of patriotic feelings and sympathy for the working people, showing the indomitable perseverance and indomitable spirit of the people, and expressing their anxiety about national peril and yearning for bright liberation.
His frequent paintings of galloping horses, lions and morning chickens give people vitality and strength, showing an exciting positive spirit. In particular, his "Running the Horse" is famous all over the world and has almost become a symbol of modern Chinese painting.