I have seen some of these before, take a look...
Chinese Qing Dynasty paintings, under the influence of politics, economy, thought, culture and other aspects at that time, showed specific The style of the times. Scroll painting continues the trend since the Yuan and Ming dynasties, with literati painting becoming popular, landscape painting flourishing, and freehand ink painting becoming popular. Literati paintings show two trends: admiration for antiquity and innovation. They have different pursuits in terms of subject matter, ideological interest, pen and ink skills, etc., and have formed a variety of styles and schools. Court painting also achieved great development during the Kangxi and Qianlong periods, and presented a new style that was completely different from the previous court styles. Folk paintings, with New Year pictures and prints being the most prominent achievements, are experiencing unprecedented prosperity. The historical process of the development of painting in the Qing Dynasty is related to the development and changes of the entire society, and can also be divided into three periods: early, middle and late.
[Early Painting]
Approximately from Shunzhi to the early years of Kangxi. During this period, literati landscape painting flourished, and two completely different artistic pursuits formed. The Four Kings School of Painting, which inherited the legacy of Dong Qichang in the late Ming Dynasty, aimed to imitate the past. It was valued by the royal family and occupied an orthodox position in the painting world. A group of Ming Dynasty painters who were active in the Jiangnan area were devoted to landscapes and expressed their feelings through paintings. They had a pioneering and innovative spirit in art. Said to be represented by: Shi Tao, Bada Shanren, Hongren, Shi Xi) and Xin'an sect.
The Four Wangs School of Painting mainly refers to Wang Shimin, Wang Jian, Wang Hui and Wang Yuanqi. Sometimes Wu Li and Yun Shouping are also added, collectively known as the "Four Wangs Wu Yun" or the "Six Schools of the Early Qing Dynasty". Most of them regard Dong Qichang's artistic ideas as the golden rule, devote themselves to imitating the ancient times, admire the four schools of Yuan Dynasty, emphasize the technique of brush and ink, and pursue the implication of peaceful taste. Because the "Four Kings" had a prominent social status, extensive contacts, and many disciples, they had great influence among the scholar-bureaucrats, and their artistic interests were appreciated by those who regulated the law. Therefore, they were regarded as the orthodox school in the painting world, and their influence continued until modern times. They have accumulated profound skills in pen and ink in their artistic practice focusing on ancient times. They have also summarized some regular experiences in terms of pen and ink, composition, charm, artistic conception, etc., especially the development of dry brush and ink layer by layer. The dyeing technique enriches the artistic expression of Chinese painting. However, they ignore learning from nature, avoid real life, and lack concrete feelings. As a result, most of their works are monotonous, empty, lacking vitality and novelty, which hinders them from achieving higher achievements. Among the "Four Kings", Wang Shimin, Wang Jian, and Wang Yuanqi put more emphasis on pen and ink, and the main patriarchal lineage was Huang Gongwang. Wang Yuanqi is known as the leader of the Loudong faction. Wang Hui was able to understand nature and be compatible with various techniques. His appearance was quite diverse, and later generations called him the leader of the Yushan School. By the mid-Qing Dynasty, the influence of the Four Kings School of Painting spread throughout the government and the public. Among the Loudong School were Huang Ding, Tang Dai, Dong Bangda, Fang Shishu, Zhang Zongcang, Qian Weicheng and others. Those who belong to the Yushan School include Yang Jin, Li Shizhuo, Song Junye, Tang Jun, Cai Yuan, Gu □ and others. In addition, there are the "little four kings" (Wang Yu, Wang Su, Wang Chen, Wang Jiu), the "last four kings" (Wang Sanxi, Wang Tingzhou, Wang Tingyuan, Wang Mingshao), etc.
In the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, a group of painters who were survivors gathered in the Jiangnan area, showing artistic pursuits that were contrary to the orthodox school. The Eight Jinling Masters of Nanjing, headed by Gong Xian, include Fan Qi, Gao Cen, Zou Zhe, Wu Hong, Ye Xin, Xie Sun, and Hu Zhen. They lived in the mountains and forests, kept themselves clean, and valued learning from nature. They mainly described the scenery around Nanjing. Revealing the beauty of mountains and rivers, expressing true feelings, extensively learning from the predecessors, using solid skills, striving to break through conventions and create new ideas. Although the styles are different, they all have a fresh and pleasant interest. At the same time, those who praised Nanjing include Chen Zhuo, Wang Gai, Liu □, Zhang Feng and others.
Yun Shouping: "Landscape Axis"
The "Four Monks" refer to Shi Tao, Zhu Da, Shi Xi and Jianjiang. The first two are descendants of the Ming clan, and the latter two are survivors of the Ming Dynasty. All four have a strong national consciousness. They used paintings to express their feelings of life and depression, and to express their passionate feelings for the mountains and rivers of their homeland. In art, he advocates "borrowing the past to create the present", opposes the old and new, attaches great importance to the feelings of life, and emphasizes the independent expression of one's soul. They broke through the barriers of imitating the past in the painting world at that time, were innovative and innovative, and created a painting style that was bold, upright, high-spirited, non-conformist and unique in style. They revitalized the painting world at that time and had a profound impact on future generations. Among them, Shi Tao and Zhu Da achieved the most remarkable achievements. Shi Tao's landscapes are different from others, standing on their own suddenly, with lush and novel scenery, bold and novel compositions, wild and changeable brushwork, and high-spirited and majestic style. He was the most creative painter in the early Qing Dynasty. Zhu Da is famous for his flower and bird paintings. He inherited the tradition of Chen Chun and Xu Wei and developed the freehand brushwork technique of splash-ink painting. The works are often lyrical based on objects, using symbols, allegorical and exaggerated techniques to create unique images and express cynicism and the pain of the loss of a country and a family. The brushwork is clean and majestic, the composition is simple and ethereal, the scenery is dangerous, and the style is cold and solemn, achieving an artistic realm of concise and comprehensive brushwork. It had a great influence on the subsequent Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou and modern freehand flower-and-bird paintings. The landscapes of Shixi are derived from Huang Gongwang and Wang Meng. They are based on real scenes and depict mountains and rivers. They are dense but not crowded. They are stained layer by layer with thick brushwork. They are thick but not rigid, and are majestic and magnificent. , vast and vigorous momentum. Together with Shi Tao, it is called "Er Shi", and with Cheng Zhengkui (named Qingxi Taoist), it is also called "Er River". Ni Zan painted the landscapes of Jianjiang. He painted many famous mountains and rivers, and was especially good at describing the true scenery of Huangshan Mountain. His compositions are concise, the hills and valleys are strange and stubborn, his dry brush and ink are sharp and orderly, and the realm is desolate, full of freshness and tranquility, which truly expresses the famous mountains. of quality. Together with Shi Tao and Mei Qing, he is known as the Huangshan School, and together with Zha Shibiao, Sun Yi, and Wang Zhirui, he is known as the Haiyang Four Schools, forming the Xin'an School.
Shi Tao: "Landscape Album" Private Collection in the United States
Shi Tao (1630-1724), whose surname was Zhu, and whose given name was Ruoji, had many nicknames, such as Da Dizi and Qingxiang Old Man , Monk Bitter Melon, Venerable Blind, whose dharma names include Yuanji, Yuanji, etc. He is the tenth grandson of King Zanyi of Jingjiang of Ming Dynasty and the eldest son of Zhu Hengjia. He is 55 years old. In 1645 AD (the second year of Shunzhi), when he was sixteen years old, he was driven by the fate of ruining his country and his family, so he went from Guilin to Quanzhou, where he became a monk in Xiangshan Temple and changed his name to Shi Tao.
Mei Qing: Part One of "Huangshan Atlas"
Mei Qing, courtesy name Yuan Gong, also known as Qushan, was a native of Xuancheng, Anhui. He was born in the third year of Tianqi of Emperor Xizong of Ming Dynasty (1623) and died in the thirty-sixth year of Emperor Kangxi of Qing Dynasty (1697). In the 11th year of Shunzhi (1654), he was elected as a scholar. He had friendly relations with Shi Tao and learned from each other's painting skills. Shi Tao's early landscape paintings were influenced by him to a certain extent, and his paintings of Huangshan in his later years were also influenced by Shi Tao. Therefore, Shi Tao and Mei Qing are both known as giants of the "Huangshan School".
From the early Qing Dynasty to the Kangxi period (1662~1722), there were still some painting schools and painters who were good at each. Yun Shouping's boneless flower paintings are very similar but not similar. Their style is fresh and elegant, and they have a wide influence. They are called Changzhou School or Nantian School. Yuan Jiang's boundary paintings have subtle structures and majestic momentum. He was a famous boundary painter in the Qing Dynasty. His nephew Yuan Yao inherited his painting style and is known as the Yuan School of Painting. Other local schools include Luo Mu’s Jiangxi School, Lan Meng’s, Lan Shen’s Wulin School, etc. In addition, there are Yu Zhiding, Wang Shu□, Xie Bin, Shangguan Zhou and others who are good at painting figures and portraits. Zhou □ and Zhang Mu were good at painting dragons and horses, and Fu Shan, Pu He, Fa Ruozhen, Huang Xiangjian, etc. were good at painting landscapes, and they all bear time names.
[Middle Period Painting]
The Kang, Yong, and Qian years were a period of social stability and prosperity in the Qing Dynasty. Painting also showed a prosperous scene, and Beijing and Yangzhou became the two major painting centers. The palace painting in the capital was very active for a while, with rich content and forms. In the Yangzhou area, where the commercial economy is developed, the Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou emerged, forming a new artistic trend.
Court painting in the Qing Dynasty. During the Kangxi (1662-1722) and Qianlong (1736-1795) years, with the unification of the country and the consolidation of political power, the royal family not only recruited some professional painters to serve the inner court, but also used disguised forms to In this way, some literati painters were attracted to serve them. In addition to setting up institutions such as the Ruyi Pavilion to accommodate imperial painters, the palace also used the form of a "South Study Room" to accommodate painters who were bachelors and court officials. There are many bachelors and court officials who have actually become court painters. They often paint works that are commissioned or dedicated to the emperor. Most of these works are signed with the word "Chen" and are collectively referred to as palace paintings. Its contents mainly include: portraits depicting emperors, ministers, and upper-class leaders of ethnic minorities; palace life paintings showing the lives of emperors and empresses; historical documentary paintings recording major contemporary historical events; landscape, flower-and-bird paintings for decoration and appreciation, etc. The styles and appearances are quite diverse. Figure paintings include the traditional meticulous brushwork and line drawing methods, as well as more realistic painting methods that absorb Western methods; flower and bird paintings include the patriarchal Huang Quan's meticulous sketching and Yun Shouping's boneless method; landscape paintings mostly belong to the "Four Kings" faction, with only large freehand brushwork The rules of painting were not spread in the palace. During this period, the most famous figure painters included Jiao Bingzhen, Leng Mei, Cui □, Jin Tingbiao, Ding Guanpeng, Yao Wenhan, etc. Landscape painters include Tang Dai, Xu Yang, Zhang Zongcang, Fang Cong, etc. Flower and bird painters include Jiang Tingxi, Zou Yigui, etc. There are also a group of foreign painters dedicated to the inner court, such as Lang Shining, Wang Zhicheng, Ai Qimeng and others. They brought in the light and shade and perspective methods of Western painting and created a new style of painting that combined Chinese and Western styles. They also trained many disciples and were highly regarded by the emperor. Since the Jiaqing period (1796-1820), court painting in the Qing Dynasty has declined day by day, and there are no painters worthy of praise.
Lang Shining: "Eight Horses" Lang Shining was good at animal paintings. During the reign of Emperor Gaozong of the Qing Dynasty, he paid tribute to many horses, and Lang created many horse pictures. This is a painting of eight horses under misty clouds and green willows, with different postures, and is deliberately realistic. It can be said to be a masterpiece of horse paintings.
In the middle of the Qing Dynasty, Yangzhou, a southern commercial city, was home to wealthy businessmen and humanities. Its economy and culture developed rapidly, and it became a metropolis in the southeastern coastal area. Painters from all over the country also come here to sell their paintings and show their skills, among which the Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou are the most famous ones. The "Eight Eccentrics" are not limited to 8 people, but represent a group of painters with distinctive artistic personalities and weird styles. They took over the banner of Shi Tao and Zhu Da, attaching great importance to the feelings of life and emphasizing the expression of the soul. Their works mostly wrote about plums, orchids, bamboos, and stones. They were good at freehand brushwork with splash ink, and had profound thoughts and passionate feelings. The forms were also informal. Wild and weird, unique and innovative in the painting world. The main painters include Jin Nong, Huang Shen, Wang Shishen, Li Xian, Zheng Xie, Li Fangying, Gao Xiang, Luo Pin, Hua Yan, Gao Fenghan, Bian Shoumin, Min Zhen, Chen Zhuan and others. Most of these painters have similar life and social experiences. They may have been frustrated in their official careers, demoted or deposed, or they may not have achieved fame and have lived in commoner life. Or they were born in poverty and made a living selling paintings. They have a deep understanding of the corrupt officialdom, the cold world, and the people. They all have personal experience of suffering, and their characters and behaviors are also relatively unique. They may be weird, wild, arrogant, or withdrawn. They put their feelings in paintings, thus forming "weirdness" in art. They mostly used plums, orchids, bamboos, chrysanthemums, rocks, wild flowers, fruits and vegetables as their themes, and used allegorical techniques to compare noble character, aloof character, and wild ambitions, making the works have deeper ideological and stirring emotions. .
In terms of art form, he inherited the freehand tradition of ink and wash by Chen Chun, Xu Wei, Shi Tao and Zhu Da. He was informal, vigorous and free-spirited, and further developed the technique of broken brush and splashing ink, forming a style with distinctive personality and unique charm. Among the "Eight Monsters", Jin Nong's ink paintings of plums, bamboos, figures, and landscapes, Zheng Xie's orchids and bamboos, Wang Shishen and Li Fangying's ink plums, Li Wei's freehand flowers, Huang Shen and Luo Pin's figures, Hua Yan's small freehand paintings of flowers and birds are the most outstanding and have a profound impact on later generations.
[Qing Dynasty] "Pictures of Ladies" by Jiao Bingzhen
The year of birth and death is unknown. Qing painter. A native of Jining, Shandong. During the reign of Emperor Kangxi, the official Qin Tianjian had upright facial features and was worshiped in the inner court. He is good at painting figures, absorbing Western painting methods, emphasizing light and dark, painting the boundaries of buildings and terraces, and meticulously sculpting.
Also famous in the painting world during this period were the Dantu School (also known as the Jingjiang School and the Zhenjiang School) founded by Zhang Yin and Gu Heqing in the Zhenjiang area, Gao Qipei’s own finger painting school, and Ding who was good at portraits. Gao, Shen Quan, Zhu Sheng, Zhang Xining, Zhang Ao, etc., who are famous for their flowers, birds, bamboos and stones, as well as landscape painters Huang Yi, Xi Gang, Zhao Zhichen, etc. who also specialize in epigraphy.
[Late Painting]
From Jia and Dao to the late Qing Dynasty, with the decline of feudal society, China gradually became a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society, and new changes took place in the field of painting. . Court painting, regarded as an authentic school of literati painting and supported by the royal family, gradually declined. Shanghai and Guangzhou, which were established as treaty ports, had become new painting centers, and the Shanghai School and the Lingnan School emerged.
In the past century, Shanghai has become China's largest industrial and commercial city, with literati and painters gathering here. In order to meet the needs of the emerging citizen class, painting formed a new trend in terms of subject matter, content, style and techniques, which was called Shanghai Style. Its representative painters include Zhao Zhiqian, Xu Gu, Ren Xiong, Ren Yi and Wu Changshuo. As literati painters, Zhao Zhiqian and Wu Changshuo have made significant progress in freehand flower-and-bird paintings. They inherited the tradition of their predecessors and integrated calligraphy, seal cutting and other artistic expressions into painting. With their vigorous and smooth brushwork, dripping and rich ink, The bright and intense colors and the layout of calligraphy and stone create a grand, bold and uninhibited artistic image of painting. Together with the organic combination of poetry, calligraphy and painting, it opens up a new world for literati painting. Ren Xiong and Ren Yi are professional painters who make a living by painting. Together with Ren Xun and Ren Yu, they are known as the "Four Rens". They have made outstanding achievements in figures, portraits and small freehand flower and bird paintings. The works draw on a wide range of materials, have novel ideas, ingenious conceptions, and flexible pen and ink. They have won the favor of the general public with their fresh, lively, elegant and popular style. Among them, Ren Yi has comprehensive skills and rich changes, and is the most famous among the Shanghai style. Xu Gu is famous for his paintings of flowers, birds, grass and insects. He is good at using dry brushes with bare edges, dry ink and light colors, with many bold lines. His style is clear, cool and unique, which makes him unique. Their paintings had a great influence on modern times.
Ren Yi: Part of the "Three Heroes of the Wind and Dust"
The Lingnan School of Painting in Guangdong was formed relatively late. It was pioneered by the brothers Ju Chao and Ju Lian in the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China. Gao Jianfu, Gao Qifeng, and Chen Shuren founded the new school. They absorbed the Chinese and Western painting styles formed by drawing and watercolor painting, and made useful attempts for the new development of Chinese painting.
Starting from the Daoguang period, the Qing Dynasty gradually went downhill and gradually became a semi-colonial and semi-feudal country. With the decline of politics, the paintings of scholar-bureaucrats, which focused on pleasing the mood and nourishing the soul, gradually declined. In the newly opened treaty ports of Shanghai and Guangzhou, more and more painters settled here. In order to meet the needs of the emerging citizen class, new changes have taken place in the subject matter, content, style and techniques. The famous ones include the "Shanghai School" in Shanghai and the "Lingnan School" in Guangdong.
1. Paintings of Ladies in the Late Qing Dynasty
During the Jiaqing and Daoguang years, two famous figure painters appeared, namely Gai Qi and Fei Danxu. They are good at painting figures and Buddha statues, especially ladies, and are known as the "Gai School" and "Fei School".
Gaiqi (1774-1829), whose courtesy name was Boyun, also known as Xiangbai, also known as Qixiang, and also known as Yuhuwaishi, his ancestors were from the Western Regions and later lived in Songjiang. He is good at painting ladies, as well as landscapes, flowers and plants. The ladies painted are slender and handsome, with gentle and smooth brushwork, creating the typical style of lady paintings in the late Qing Dynasty. The woodblock version of "Ode to a Dream of Red Mansions" he painted was widely circulated and well received by people at the time. The characters and portraits are also very concise and vivid. His representative works handed down from generation to generation include the scroll of "Mysterious Poetic Intentions" collected in the Palace Museum. His grandson Gaizhen passed down the family education and was also a good lady.
Fei Danxu (1801-1850), also known as Zitao, also known as Xiaolou and Huanxisheng, was a native of Wucheng, Zhejiang. His father, Fei Yu, grew up in landscape painting and received a family inheritance at a young age. Because his family was poor, he had to rely on a wealthy family to paint for people to enjoy. Famous for his paintings of beautiful ladies, he is also known as "Gai Fei" together with Gai Qi. The images of ladies in his paintings are beautiful, with loose lines and light colors, giving them a unique style. The representative work is the "Twelve Golden Hairpins" collection in the Palace Museum, which depicts the portraits of the Twelve Golden Hairpins in Dream of Red Mansions. He is also good at portrait painting. His later painting "Old Pictures with a Feeling of Orchards" is in the Zhejiang Provincial Museum, and his skills have become more mature. He can also paint mountains and rivers, such as Dharma Wang Hui and Yun Shouping. Those who inherited his art were his younger brothers Fei Dancheng, sons Fei Yigeng and Fei Yiqun. His painting style had a great influence on modern ladies paintings and folk New Year paintings.
Landscape paintings in the late Second Qing Dynasty
The factional power of the Four Kings gradually declined during the Daoguang and Xianfeng years. There were not many accomplished painters. Only the landscape paintings of Tang Yifen and Dai Xi were famous. The breakthroughs he made were valued by people of the time, and the landscapes of Qian Du, Hu Yuan, Wu Guxiang, Wu Qingyun and others were also praised for a while.
◆Tang Yifen (1778-1853), named Ruoyi, nicknamed Yusheng, later nicknamed Zouweng, was born in Wujin, Jiangsu Province. He once served as the deputy commander-in-chief of Wenzhou Town and later lived in Nanjing. When the Tianping Heavenly Kingdom conquered Jinling, he threw himself into a pond and died. He is a man of many talents and has attainments in hundreds of schools of thought. He is good at poetry, calligraphy and painting, and is good at landscapes, flowers, pines and cypresses. His landscape paintings were influenced by Dong Bangda and inherited the mantle of the "Loudong School". Later, he developed the light ink dry brush rubbing method, which showed moistness in dryness, created his own style and a plain realm. At that time, he was as famous as Fang Xun, Xi Gang and Dai Xi, and was known as "Fang Xi Tang Dai". His wife Dong Wanzhen and their children were also good at painting.
◆Dai Xi (1801-1860), whose courtesy name was Chunshi and whose nickname was Yuan, called himself Jingdong Jushi and Lulin Jushi. He was a native of Qiantang, Zhejiang (now Hangzhou). Minister of the Ministry of Officers and Soldiers. He is good at landscapes, flowers, grass, bamboo and rocks. Landscape artists belong to the "Yushan School". Due to the influence of Xi Gang, their painting style is also close to that of the "Loudong School". His landscapes are mostly painted with brushes, dry and wet dyeing, and the layout is appropriate, but a little plain. The volume "Recalling Pine Pictures" collected by the Palace Museum is his representative work. His younger brother Dai Xu and other disciples were all good at landscape.
◆Qian Du (1764-1845), courtesy name Shumei and nickname Songhu, was born in Qiantang, Zhejiang (now Hangzhou). The official is in charge of affairs, and his nature is free and easy to travel. The works of landscapes, flowers, birds, and figures are composed of the father and son of Wen Zhengming in the Landscape Patriarchal tradition. They have many fine brushstrokes, which are elegant and quiet, but too delicate. The axis of "Moon Walking in the Autumn Forest" collected by the Palace Museum reflects his typical appearance.
◆Hu Yuan (1823-1886), courtesy name Gongshou, also known as Xiaoqiao, Shouhe, and Hengyunshanmin, was born in Huating and lived in Shanghai. Make a living by selling paintings. Works on landscapes, orchids, bamboos and flowers, especially plum blossoms. The landscapes are elegant, and the paintings are made with wet brushes, such as the scroll of "Summer Mountains Are Raining" in the Palace Museum, which has a charm close to that of Dong Qichang. The flowers he painted are relatively bold and unrestrained, such as the scroll of "Pine Trees and Peach Blossoms" in the Palace Museum, which is close to Chen Chunyi.
◆Wu Guxiang (1849-1903), courtesy name Qiunong and nickname Qiupu, was born in Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province. He lived in Shanghai and made a living selling paintings. The landscape is close to Dai Xi's, but far away is Wen and Shen, with a green, elegant and melancholy style.
◆Wu Qingyun (? - 1916), courtesy name Shixian and Pomo Taoist, was born in Shangyuan (Nanjing) and lived in Shanghai. When painting mountains and rivers, we can refer to Western methods and depict smoke, clouds and rain scenes, which can create new ideas. The handed down works include the axis of "Jiange Clouds and Deep Pictures" collected by the Palace Museum, and the four-striped panoramic screen of "Haizhou Panorama" collected by the Central Academy of Fine Arts.
[Folk Painting]
It was most developed during the Qianlong and Jiaqing years, and was especially active in small towns where the industrial and commercial economy was prosperous. Folk painters also organized various guilds. There are mainly murals, prints, New Year pictures and other types of paintings. Mural paintings are not as developed as those of the previous generation. There are many relics left in temples, Taoist temples, ancestral halls, and guild halls in various places, but not many can represent the level of the times. Folk portraits have improved compared with the Ming Dynasty, and have further developed in terms of realistic techniques and expression forms. There are also quite a few surviving works. The creation of prints flourished during the Kangxi and Qian dynasties. The "dianban" prints under the control of officials appeared in many large-scale productions, and most of them were drafted by famous painters. Typical representative works include the "Farming and Weaving Picture" by Jiao Bingzhen, the "Qianlong Pingding Quanbu Huibu Battle Picture" painted by foreign painters such as Lang Shining, the "Southern Inspection Ceremony Picture" mainly painted by Wang □ and the "Emperor Qing Tribute Picture", etc. Folk printmaking is also very prosperous. There are dozens of woodcut portraits and paintings drawn by famous painters. The famous ones include Liu Yuan's "Images of Heroes of Lingyan Pavilion", Shangguan Zhou's "Wanxiaotang Painting Biography", Wang Gai's " "The Mustard Seed Garden Painting Biography", Ren Xiong's "The Swordsman Biography", "The Sage Portraits of Yu Yue", "The Biography of Gao Shi" and "The Liquor Brand of Immortals", etc. At the same time, there are also many excellent woodcut illustrations in novels, operas and other books.
[Qing Dynasty] New Year Pictures "A Picture of Harmony"
Woodblock New Year pictures in the Qing Dynasty were the most prosperous and achieved unprecedented development. The production areas cover some towns and villages in the north and south of the Yangtze River, and New Year pictures with local characteristics have been formed in Yangliuqing, Taohuawu, Yangjiabu, Mianzhu, Foshan and other places. Yangliuqing in Tianjin is the center of New Year paintings in the north. It was founded in the mid-Ming Dynasty and became popular in the early and mid-Qing Dynasty. It mainly inherits the traditions of the Northern Song Dynasty woodblock printing, Song, Yuan and Ming paintings and the Qing Dynasty painting academy. Most of the paintings are about festive and auspicious themes, with popular content, eye-catching pictures, full compositions, bright colors, concise shapes and rich decoration. Yangjiabu New Year paintings in Weixian County, Shandong Province belong to the Yangliuqing painting system, focusing on primary colors, sharp contrast, and simple style, which are more suitable for the needs of rural areas. Taohuawu, Suzhou, Jiangsu Province is the center of southern New Year paintings. It was produced in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties and remained prosperous from the early Qing Dynasty to the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. The works not only depict traditional festive and auspicious themes, but also express the bustling urban scene. The style includes both the traditional look of antiques and the imitation of Western painting techniques that emphasize perspective and light and shade. Sichuan Mianzhu New Year paintings were created in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties and became popular during the Guangxu period (1870-1908), with simple shapes and bright colors. Foshan New Year paintings in Guangdong began in the Yongle period of the Ming Dynasty (1404-1424) and flourished from the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty to the Anti-Japanese War. They mostly painted door paintings and were sold in South China, Southeast Asia and other places. In addition, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom also attached great importance to the creation of paintings, leaving many mural relics in some areas south of the Yangtze River, including landscapes, flowers and birds, and figures. The famous ones include "Fangjiang Watchtower" and so on.
In terms of New Year paintings, there are works such as "Swallow Rock" handed down from generation to generation.
[Painting treatises]
The number of treatises on the history of painting in the Qing Dynasty exceeds that of any previous dynasty. There are hundreds of works, and there are no less than 20 to 30 works of important value. . Theoretical works that talk about painting theory and painting methods mostly discuss literati paintings since the Yuan Dynasty, focusing on landscape painting and exploring its historical development and artistic characteristics. Many works on painting techniques are often accompanied by pictures and texts, and appear in the form of diagrams. The most important painting theory is Shi Tao's "Bitter Melon Monk Painting Quotes", which uses the philosophical language of Taoism and Zen to systematically discuss the principles of painting creation, and contains many simple materialist and dialectical thoughts. Fang Xun's "Mountain Quiet Residence on Painting", Da Chongguang's "Hua Qian", Shen Zongqian's "Gate Zhou Xue Hua Bian", Qin Zuyong's "Tongyin On Painting", etc. are also famous works on painting theory. The main ones that talk about painting techniques include Wang Gai's "Biography of Mustard Seed Garden Painting" and the "Brief Introduction to Painting" attached to the following three volumes, as well as the painting techniques of landscapes, plums, orchids, bamboos and chrysanthemums, grass, insects, flowers and birds, and figures. Ding Gao's "Secrets of Portraits" specializes in portrait techniques. Zou Yigui's "Hill Painting Manual" is the earliest monograph on flower painting. Gao Bing's "Finger Painting Theory" specializes in finger painting. Jiang Song's "Miscellaneous Notes on Writing Bamboo" discusses painting bamboo. Many other painting postscripts, painting tips, criticisms, miscellaneous essays and other works also contain content on painting theory.
The important books on the history of painting are in various formats, including general history, chronological history, special history, and local history; there are biographies of painters arranged by era, and biographies of painters arranged by surname, similar to a dictionary of names.
In terms of chronological painting history, biographies of Ming Dynasty painters include Jiang Shaoshu's "History of Silent Poetry" and Xu Qin's "Ming Painting Records". Among the biographies dedicated to painters of the Qing Dynasty are Zhang Geng's "Records of Paintings of the Guo Dynasty", which includes more than 450 painters from the early Qing Dynasty to the middle of Qianlong; Feng Jinbo's "Knowledge of Paintings of the Guo Dynasty" and "Knowledge of Paintings of Mo Xiangju", which collects works from the early Qing Dynasty to Jiaqing There were more than 1,800 painters at that time; Jiang Baoling's "Mo Lin Jin Hua", followed by "Mo Xiangju Painting Knowledge", included 1,286 painters in the Qian, Jia, Dao and Xian dynasties; Zhang Mingke's "Hansong Pavilion Talks about Art", which was continued by "Mo Xiangju Painting Knowledge" "Lin Jinhua" includes more than 330 painters from the Xian, Tong and Guang dynasties, and is the final chapter of the chronological history of the Qing Dynasty.
Special historical writings, discussed by region, include Yu Yi's "Haiyu Painting Garden" and Shao Songnian's "Supplement to Yushan Painting Chronicles", which specialize in recording the painters of the past dynasties in the Changshu area; Wang □'s "Yangzhou Painting Garden Records" ", dedicated to the painters of the Qing Dynasty in the Yangzhou area; Cheng Tinglu's "Records of Mountain Painting Practice", an album of painters from the Jiading area of ??Shanghai; Tao Yuanzao's "Information on Yue Painting", dedicated to painters from the past dynasties in the Shaoxing area; Zhou Lianggong's "Records of Painting Reading", collected A painter with whom the author got to be friends during the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. There are also works written by category, such as Hu Jing's "Guochaoyuan Painting Record", which is dedicated to the court painters of the Qing Dynasty; Tang Shuyu's "Jade Terrace Painting History" is a collection of women painters in the past; Li Fang's "Eight Banners Painting Record" is a collection of Manchu painters; Tong Yiju's "List of Plum Blossom Painters" is a special account of the famous plum painters of the past dynasties. Among the biographies based on the stroke sequence of the painter's surname, Peng Yuncan's "History of Painting" is the most famous, and it also created a precedent for a dictionary of painters' names.
During the Qing Dynasty, many painting treatises and calligraphy treatises were integrated, and a comprehensive series also appeared. "Pei Wenzhai Calligraphy and Painting Manual" is the most important masterpiece, with 100 volumes, cited There are 1844 kinds of books with complete information and precise style. It is a masterpiece of the history of calligraphy and painting.
The Qing Dynasty had a very rich collection of recorded books. The collections of the Imperial Household have been documented in a relatively systematic and complete manner. The Secret Hall of Pearls and the Shiqu Baoji, compiled by Feng during the Qian and Jia years, are almost completely documented in three volumes. Some editors also compiled works based on their own notes. Such as Ruan Yuan's "Essays of Shiqu", Hu Jing's "Notes of the Western Qing Dynasty", etc. Private collections and books compiled by connoisseurs are also common. The famous ones include An Qi's "Mo Yuan Hui Guan", Gao Shiqi's "Jiangcun Sales of Summer Records", Sun Chengze's "Gengzi Sales of Summer Records", Gu Fu's "The Spectacular Life", Wu □'s "Da Guan Lu" and so on. At the same time, a series of compilations also appeared. Bian Yongyu's "Shigutang Calligraphy and Painting Collection" can be regarded as a culmination of records from all previous dynasties.