Queensland Art Gallery Presscuttings Book 8 : Pressclippings, 1977-1981

.- .....a.a...-•.... -v...,. ........ •,:~.. ~tsc Dalla- ii= IO ....,...., = "'S'r«": -.'I IO . ..:.¥.-... :rt/.~or.:! ......,.. ..... . ~orrunlna ._ If. . . al ilnplr_lal . . '.......... • .... ,,, paint.I~ R ... hi 1IDP.,lllarlly, •= . .....,_by tllimiddle _.,,,II .. CINfllllen la :1 11r:,r• .., ....., IDMIIIIIII. that · tl h I r 1Nll lr atllll who were :!i =- ~a.ii ==- ~.:--16th •.., _, inlc lil1111,I became one .r ...,....,._. .,_. al Clib:.i lince the ........ &a. (1127-1279) and the , • ..,_ fl Hllrltl eel1tln1 .by the , . • Yau; pully rep1acln1 Nanklna • "II I Glllllril and artiltk: centre. - .:. , .Tllrltiiatnia11\liiii . ot:ipunlina-m " , ·' ,1....-. rmtali.t llt'lllcilt 1470 by',,, ; ..... :·Z'lclll (1427-1509), who was · E II rounder al the W • achool of • , Wu wa the ancient name of 'tbilld. prcwlnce wllete Suzhou wu . Altlialiah Shen Zhou re-atabli1hod , Suliau u a lcadlna centre or literati pallllllf. in the Ml111, It wu the style of 1111 plpl!, Wen•Zhelipnln1 (1470-1SS9), wlilcb dominated Suzhou Jn ihc 16th -tury. · · While the paintm of the Zhe school bued their palntinp on the coun -demk: llyla of the Sona pcriodl those • of the Wu 1ehool drew their inspiration from the scholar-amateur paintings or the Yuan period.- Bclonaing mostly lo the land-owning aenlry class, the scholar-amateur palntm of Suzhou lived in retirement and did not hold any official posts in the cMI bureaucracy. Wealth and leisure enabled them to spend their time in building gardens and libraries, collecting books and works of art, and engaging h1 painting, poetry, music, and calligraphy. Like the other arts, painting was regarded as a pastime, a means or sclr-ex.ercssion and communication with one's hke-mindcd friends. Paintings were given away as presents and were, theoretically, never for sale. Their paintings, mostly landscapes, renccted the secluded world of the scholars and arc characterised by a poetic blandness and a great refinement of taste. To the literary man, who had not undertaken any formal training in painting, technical facility was not held in high regard. Any deliberate or open display of skill and the desire to please was considered vulgar and offensive to the Confucian virtue that "brilliance must be concealed." • I Sunday Mall Colar, May 24, 1981 "The Heavenly Peak of Huang– shan" by Mel Ding (1623-1697). A steep, arduous palh leads from the bottom of the painting to a flat mountain top, where two tiny figures are talking beside a temple-like bulldlng which Is screened by a row of pine trees. The painting has a child-like simplicity and capriciousness. The composition Is developed from a simple theme of projecting peaks into a complex and rntrlcate abstract design. "Peony and Mandarin Fish" by Cheng Zhang (1869-1936). This composition, with arocky cliff and flowering peonies overhanging a stream with leaping mandarin fish, Is In the established Chinese tradition. However, the careful drawing and shading of the petals of the flowers indicates a determined attempt to represent volume and depth in the Western manner. The colorlng too, in soft tones of pink, white and green, echoes Western Influences. ABOVE: This handscroll by Zou Ylaul (1686-1772) refleels the Chinese appreciation lor works of ari of great virtuosity and technlcal excellence. It Is In complete contrast to the landscapes of Ille literati lradltlon. The precise and dellcate brushlines, which so studiously define Ille flowers, are a far cry from the varied and expressive strokes of landscapes In the scholarly tradition. "The Jlshu /Pile of Books\ Cliff" bv Zhao Zhlqlan (1829-1884). This peculiar rock structure Inspired Zhao to produce a·painting with atouch of htimor. Hidden within the busy and fragmented cliff face is a small hollow In which are placed neatly stacked piles of books, echoing the complex stratification of the rocks. The general restless– ness and energy of the painting Is matched In the easily flowing lines of the rippling water.