Art historian’s ink works focus on mountains and rivers

As a well-known art historian, Shao Dazhen has written lots of books on modern art of the East and West as well as done reviews of countless artists’ works for about half a century.

Shao, 82, is also fond of using ink paintings to reveal his inner thoughts.

He is now holding a solo show of his paintings at Beijing’s Gauguin Gallery. On display are 20 landscape paintings Shao has done in recent years.

“I think of nothing when I paint. I just follow my heart and paint freely,” says Shao.

Although he has done research on art history for decades and has produced many books, Shao says it is by experiencing painting himself that he understands art better.

It’s the second time that Shao is holding a solo show of his ink paintings. In 2004, he held his first show in the Chinese capital to celebrate his 70th birthday.

Shao has been fascinated by ink painting since the 1990s. Apart from reading and writing, he spends hours painting as a kind of relaxation every day.

The subject of his paintings are always mountains and rivers, which he says is a result of his personal experience and the “accumulation of ideas” in his mind.

His love for mountains and rivers comes from a city along the Yangtze River called Zhenjiang, in East China’s Jiangsu province, which is his hometown.

“I can only dedicate a small amount of time to painting in the course of a day as I need to read and write. That’s why my ink paintings are small in size,” the artist explains.

Yin Shuangxi, an art critic and historian, says: “Shao’s paintings are authentic literati paintings. They are simple, natural and reflect his spiritual world.”

“Literati painting” is a special term used to describe ink paintings by scholarly Chinese painters and official painters that lived after the Song Dynasty (960-1279). The works of many famous painters in ancient China like Dong Qichang and Mi Fu fall into this category.

Having spent years on research ofWestern and Chinese art, Shao says his paintings are also influenced by Western art. Water and ink for him are a “kind of pen”, but the more important thing is how to use that pen to express his emotions and ideas.

Zhu Qingsheng, an art critic, says Shao has seen lots of masters’ works and has made friends with many artists, and such interactions have given him a deep and unique understanding of art.

This is also visible in the details of his paintings.

Shao went to the former SovietUnion to learn art history in 1955. After returning to China in 1960, he taught art history at the Central Academy of Fine arts in Beijing. He has published many books on modern art, some of which are must-read for art students.

Beijing. 10 am-5 pm, through Sept 5. Gauguin Gallery, Room 1211, Tower 2, 10Wangjing Street, Chaoyang district, Beijing. 010-5707-6948.

10 am-5pm, through Sept 5. Gauguin Gallery, Room 1211, Tower 2, 10 Wangjing Street, Chaoyang district, Beijing. 010-5707-6948 Shao Dazhen’s landscape ink paintings

Shao Dazhen, painter and art historian.