Chinese Paintings

Chinese Painting in the Song and Yuan Dynasty

In this period many painters created highly detailed scenes of daily life. Painting as an art form also reached a very high standard of quality during the Song, which is considered by many to be a high point in the development of the fine arts in China.  Landscape themes began to dominate painting during this period, and would continue to be a favorite subject of artists up into the modern period.

New culture Movement in Chinese painting

The New Culture Movement was a major revolution in the history of Chinese art. Chinese artists started slowly began to understand and adopt Western techniques. Oil painting was introduced to China thanks to this very movement.

People's Republic of China, encouraged artists to employ socialist realism in its early years. Socialist realism was imported without any modification, and painters commissioned subjects and were expected to mass-produce paintings. However things were considerably relaxed by 1953, and after the Hundred Flowers Campaign of 1956-57, traditional Chinese painting was somewhat revived. Peasant art also began to gain prominence and was encouraged. Idyllic depiction of rural China made for pretty pictures.

Modern China has Art schools teaching western technique of art and yet the artists of this country haven't forgotten their brilliant legacy and tradition. Modern Chinese painting is a perfect synthesis of tradition and modernity.