Chinese Art

Chinese art focuses on different areas among them landscapes, animals, and other natural aspects. The most popular style of Chinese painting is a traditional method that depicts various scenes and often incorporates calligraphy.

Travelers Among Mountains and Streams Fan Kuan

Chinese artist Fan Kuan is known for being a nature lover who enjoyed spending time alone in the mountains and other wilderness areas of mainland China. He created many paintings during the Song Dynasty shortly after 1000 CE

This artwork is among his best-known and depicts the southern Shaanxi area. It features a giant rock face that is surrounded by huge boulders at the foot.

Spring Festival on the River Zhang Zeduan

Chinese artist Zhang Zeduan is another painter who created during the Song Dynasty. This artwork was created during the late 11th or early 12th century. The painting depicts a scene from the daily life of the people of the dynasty’s capital, Bianjing. The artist has used great detail to show the figures.

The Spring Festival was also known as the Qingming Festival, It was a time of intense prayer and honoring the tombs of ancestors.

Emperor Taizong Receiving the Tibetan Envoy Yan Liben (Pictured above)

Chinese artist Yan Liben created this artwork on silk surfaces and it is considered among the most famous Chinese paintings ever created. Yan Liben created this artwork in the 14th century. It depicts a historic event in Chinese history that forever shaped the course of history for both China and Tibet.

The painting features the marriage of Emperor Taizong of Tang’s daughter to the Tibetan King Songtsen Gampo in 634. The Emperor is depicted as being carried upon a sedan with maids encircling him.

Nymph of the Luo River Gu Kaizhi

Chinese artist Gu Kaizhi was born in the 4th century and is one of the highly praised artists from early Chinese history. His best-known artworks are portraits and scenes from poems that were popular during the period.

This artwork was painted on a hand scroll and is an illustration of a Daoist poem, It was created in the classical pre-Tang Dynasty style. It depicts various scenes from the famous poem and exhibits the traditional dress and behavior of ladies of the Chinese court during this time. The painting closely correlates with the original text of the poem illustrated in each scene. The poem was considered to be a didactic Confucian work and one of the most historically significant works in Chinese history.

A Solitary Temple Amid Clearing Peaks Li Cheng

Chinese artist Li Cheng created this famous Chinese painting on a massive hanging scroll in the 10th century. This artwork features a lovely landscape scene with a mountain village flanked by a towering outcrop high above the traditional Chinese structures. It captures life in the remote mountainous villages of the time in which Cheng lived. He painted with incredible detail.

Noble Ladies in Tang Dynasty Zhang Xuan and Zhou Fang

Chinese artists Zhang Xuan and Zhou Fang created this artwork during the Tang Dynasty and it is considered to be the most iconic artwork in Chinese art history. This painting features women of high status engaged in various activities. This particular style of painting is considered to focus on the beauty, grace, and honorable life that was led by Chinese women of high status. The Tang Dynasty lasted from the late 7th century to the early 10th century.

Han Xizai Gives a Night Banquet Gu Hongzhong

Chinese artist Gu Hongzhong was among the most masterful painters in China during the Five Dynasties Period during which he lived from 907 to 960. This artwork is his most famous and was created on a large, silk scroll. It depicts a minister of the Southern Tang Emperor Li Yu known as Han Xizai. The painting was divided into five different parts. It features Xizai enjoying dancing and music with his guests.

Eagle Standing on a Pine Tree Qi Baishi

Chinese artist Qi Baishi created this famous artwork in 1940. This artwork is viewed as a response to the internal struggle among Chinese nationals, as well as the threat of foreign attack from nations such as Japan in the 1930s. The painting depicts a bold, strong design in a simple black-and-white image of an eagle perched on a pine tree branch.

Five Oxen Han Huang

Chinese artist Han Huang was a well-known prime minister of China during the Tang Dynasty as well as a celebrated and gifted artist. This artwork is among his most famous Chinese paintings. The painting features oxen regarded as sacred animals in Chinese culture during this time. The artist chose to paint a collection of oxen regarded as a symbol of strength and continuity in Chinese culture.

Water Village in Jiangnan Wu Guanzhong

Chinese artist Wu Guanzhong was one of the most influential artists of the modern era in China. He created artworks that launched a new style of modern Chinese artwork during his lifetime. This painting is considered to be among his most famous and was done in 1989. It depicts a village in intricate detail.