798 District Blog

Contemporary ink painting Utopia No. 57 Many ink painters find it hard to depict contemporary life with their traditional tools of rice paper, black soot–based ink and bamboo-handled brushes. To overcome the obstacle, artists young and old are devoting themselves to innovating the ancient art form, both in subject matter and technique.

There is a gradually growing interest in contemporary ink painting both within China and abroad, with the introduction of modern styles as a unique way to celebrate the old art form while acknowledging an ever-changing society and artistic style, according to independent art critic Liu Siyan.

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Wu Guanzhong, the father of modern Chinese art, died late on Friday in Beijing Hospital, aged 91.

Born in 1919, Wu was a native of Yixing in east China’s Jiangsu Province.

In 1947, he went to France to study Western painting and returned to China in 1950. He taught at the China Central Academy of Fine Arts and Tsinghua University.

Wu integrated the Chinese ink and wash technique with Western painting methods. He is now widely regarded at home and abroad as the father of modern Chinese painting.

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