[Dissertation] China's Response to the West in Art: 1898-1937

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CHINA'S RESPONSE TO THE WEST IN ART: 1398-1937

A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF ART AND THE COMMITTEE ON GRADUATE STUDIES OF STANFORD UNIVERSITY IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

By Mayching Margaret Kao August 1972

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I certify that I have rear: this thesis and that in my opinion it is fu]ly adequate, in scooe and quality, as b dissertation for the derree of ^octor of Philosophy.

(Pr .in c i oa 1 A d v1 s s r )

I certify that I h=*ve rer d this thesis and that in my opinion it is fully adequate, in score and qua lit??*, a? a dissertation for the decree of Poetor of Philosophy.

I certify that I have read this thesis and that in my opinion it is fu'jly adequate, in score and quality, os a. dissertation for the decree of footer of Philosophy.

nron^yj

Approved

r

for the University Committee on Graduate studies

Lean of Graduate Studies

xii

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The literature on the subject of contemporary Chinese art is scattered and fragmentary.

I am grateful

for the assistance given at the various institutions where the source materials for this dissertation have been collected.

In particular, I would like to thank

the New Asia Library of New Asia College in the Chinese University of Hong Kong, the Fung Ping-shan Chinese Library in the University of Hong Kong, the Institute of Research in Humanistic Studies in Kyoto University, the Institute of Oriental Cultures in Tokyo University, and the Tokyo University of Fine Arts.

A special note of

appreciation is due to Wang Yfl-ch'ing, Director of the National Historical Museum, Taipei, for allowing me access to their files on contemporary artists.

To Miss

Jean Finch of the Art Library and Mrs. Linda Tsou of the Hoover Institute Chinese Library here at Stanford, I would like to express thanks for their patience and cooperation. I am grateful to the many artists whom I have

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had the opportunity to meet.

I am

indebted to Prof. Wang

Ya-ch'en, Madame Fang Chun-pi, and especially to Prof. Wang Chx-yuan, for sharing with me their invaluable ex­ perience in the New Art Movement.

Thanks are due also

to my former teachers at the Art Department of New Asia College, who are themselves active participants of the artistic movements under study. I xvould like to express my gratitude to the members of my Advisory Committee at Stanford:

Dr. Albert

Elsen, Dr. Lyman van Slyke, and Dr. James Cahill.

To

my advisor, Dr. Michael Sullivan, I acknowledge a special debt for his scholarly guidance throughout the preparation ox this dissertation.

I am also grateful to Dr. Lorenz

Eitner, Chairman of the Department of Art, for his assistance. Finally, I wish to thank the Center for Research in International Studies, Center for East Asian Studies, and the Department of Art at Stanford for research and dissertation grants which enabled me to conduct extensive research in the Far East, leading to the completion of this dissertation.

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table

of

contents

Page INTRODUCTION ........................................ China's Response to Western Art

.................

Statement of P u r p o s e ........ • ........... . . . .

1 3 5

China's Teachers in Western Art: Japan, Europe, and Russia • • • • • • • • • ...................

11

A Few Words on Research Methods

20

• • • • • • • • •

Chapter 1.

WESTERN ART IN CHINA BEFORE 1898 ............... The Seventeenth Century

2.

.......... . . . •

23 25

The Eighteenth Century .......................

29

Influence on Chinese Artists of the 17th and 18th Centuries • • • . • • • • • • • • •

31

The Nineteenth Century • • • • •

41

........

• •

REDISCOVERY AND INITIATION: FROM THE HUNDRED DAYS REFORM TO THE MAY FOURTH MOVEMENT ( 1 8 9 8 - 1 9 1 9 ) ................................. Historical Background

• • • • . • •

59

........

60

Reforms in Education and Early Art Education in C h i n a ........................

61

Teaching of Western Art in S h a n g h a i ........... 66 Art Education in the Second Decade:

Theory

.

Art Education in the Second Decade • • • • • •

vi

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72 75

Contribution of J a p a n .........................

80

Chinese Art Students in Europe

83

...............

Western Paintings and Theories Introduced into C h i n a .................................... 84 Reforms in Traditional Painting ............... 3.

DISSEMINATION AND CONSOLIDATION: FROM THE MAY FOURTH MOVEMENT TO THE FIRST NATIONAL ART EXHIBITION ( 1 9 1 9 - 1 9 2 9 ) ..................

89

95

Historical Background . . • * • • • . . . . • •

96

Western Art and the May Fourth Movement (1919)

97

Direct Contact with Europe Art Schools

in Shanghai

Art Associations in Shanghai

• • • • • • • • • •

100

.................. 109 ............ 113

Art Schools

and Associations inPeking

Art Schools

in Naking

Art Schools

in Hangchow . . . . . . .

. . . .

115

............

Other Centers of Activity

117

........

................

118

. 119

Western Art and Theories in C h i n a .............. 120 The First National Art Exhibition (1929) 4.

...

130

POLARIZATION AND REORIENTATION: FROM THE FIRST NATIONAL ART EXHIBITION TO THE SI NO-JAPANESE WAR (1929-1937) .......................

136

Historical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . .

137

Polarization of the New Art M o v e m e n t .......... 139 Reorientation of the New Art Movement • . • • • 141

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The Resurgence of Traditional A r t .............. 142 The Official Policy of the Kuoraintang G o v e r n m e n t ................................. 142 The Growth of Nationalism . . . . .

........

The Reexamination of the National Heritage

144 . 144

Recognition of Traditional Art from Abroad . . 1 4 6 Reform Activities of the Traditional Artists

148

The Ling-nan S c h o o l .............................152 Lin Feng-mien

..........

154

Hsu P e i - h u n g ............

155

Liu H a i - s u ..................

157

Other A r t i s t s ..........

157

The Nexv National Painting M o v e m e n t ............ 158 Western-style Painting in This Period (19291 9 3 7 ) ........................................

161

The Opposing F o r c e s ............

164

Opposition from the ICuomintang Government . . , 181 Alternatives of Some Artists

5.

..............

184

Chinese Artists in E u r o p e ..................

188

Art Associations and Exhibitions

..........

191

The Second National Art Exhibition (1937) . . .

196

CONCLUSION

..........

The Chinese Point of View • • . • • • • • • • •

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201 202

China’s Response to Western Art in the East-West Confrontation of the Twentieth C e n t u r y ................................... 206 What Chinese Artists Learned from the West Chinese Artists in the Twentieth Century

.

• 215

..

• 225

NOTES TO THE T E X T .................................230 P L A T E S ............................................... 281 List of Plates Plates

•

•

•

APPENDICES

•

. . . . . . . . . o . . a

*

.

282

•

286

..................................... 325

A.

Typical Curriculum of an Art S c h o o l ....... ... 326

B.

List of Major Art Schools Before 1937 o • • •

C.

List of Chinese and Japanese N a m e s ........337

• 331

B I B L I O G R A P H Y ......................................... 352 Periodicals

« . . .

Books and A r t i c l e s .......................

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353 357

IN T R O D U C T IO N

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Western art was first introduced into China in the sixteenth century by Jesuit missionaries.

It made

available new elements of shading and perspective to pro­ fessional portraiture and popular genre painting in the late Ming and Ch'ing dynasties, but the extent of its influence on Chinese painters of the same period is still debated among scholars. In the early years of the twentieth century, Western art was again introduced, this time through the newly-founded educational system modelled on the West.

This foreign art

was recognized by some of the Chinese artists as a possible force to revitalize Chinese art, which by the end of the Manchu dynasty had become stagnant from the meaningless imitation of ancient masters.

With this purpose in mind,

Chinese artists actively imported and studied Western art. In the subsequent three decades, it established itself in Chinese soil and became an important force in the world of Chinese art. The second introduction of Western art took place at a time when many aspects of Chinese life were shaken to the roots by the impact of Western civilization.

In

politics, social structure, and intellectual thought, the great questions were:

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What of the old (or traditional) is worth keeping? Can we keep it and survive in the modern world? What of the new (or foreign) is desirable? Must we take the undesirable too in order to survive? . . . These questions were of mounting importance, for the Chinese state was prostrate and Chinese life seemed to be disintegrating.1 Chinese artists shared the dilemma of the Chinese intelli­ gentsia in seeking a future path for the country.

They

attempted to resolve the conflicting forces of the old and the new, the native and the foreign.

In doing so, they

broke away from the traditional confines of art and changed the course of Chinese art in this century.

China’s Response to Western Art Western art involved different materials, different techniques, different subject matter, and indeed a different artistic attitude from anything required by the native tra­ dition.

The Chinese response to it was controversial, to

say the least.

Even among those artists who generally

thought Western art worthy of emulation and study were groups with varying degrees of acceptance.

One group included

artists trained in China and abroad who had totally accepted the Western medium and aesthetic.

They reached the peak of

their influence in the twenties, when anything Western was considered modern and therefore useful to the progress of China.

But their number dwindled as saore artists realized

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that blind acceptance of Western art would not result in the creation of a new art for modern China.

Another group

of artists recognized the need to revitalize Chinese art and acknowledged the superiority of the Western artistic tradition.

They hoped to achieve a new art by the

synthesis of Chinese and Western art. Those artists in favor of Western art found an pioneer theoretician in Ch'en Shu-jen, one of the founding members of the Ling-nan School.

He wrote as early as 1912

in defense of learning from the West: No art can fail to be influenced by its time, painting is not an exception. Now that the material and spiritual civilization of the East is entirely dependent on the West, how is it possible to maintain an isolationist policy in art? . . . Unless we in the Orient do not wish to spread Oriental painting in glory, but if we do, it would be poor judgment not to adopt the Western way of training as foundation. . . . It is wrong to accuse anyone using oil paints and watercolors of imitating Western painting. If we hope to express our emotions, we have to use Western colors and techniques (it is a well-known fact to anyone acquainted with painting that Oriental colors are inadequate). . . Since national characteris­ tics have an uniqueness, they are not easily removed by merely adopting a foreign medium and [foreign] techniques. Have we not seen paintings of Germany, England, France, Russia? These countries each have a different artistic style, and yet they learn the best from each other.2 Opposing the spread of Western art in China were a large number of traditional artists of both the Northern and Southern Schools.

Lost in the glories of the past,

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they clung to the decaying tradition more stubbornly and looked upon themselves as the keepers of the ’’national quintessence.”

A few talented painters, notably Huang

Pin-hung, were also aware of the sterilizing influence of the early Ch'ing academicians.

Huang Pin-hung de­

scribed his feelings: Formerly Huang Kung-wang (1269-1354] wrote on painting, saying that it is most important to avoid being unorthodox, sweet, vulgar, and false. From the time the Lou-tung School (school of Wang Yuanc h ’i (1642-1715)} first became popular to our present time, many changes have taken place, but none can be said to be free of the above mistakes. The masters of the Hsin-an School (school of K'un-ts’an (c., 16101693)} attempted to improve the arts. After Ch'ienlung (1736-1795} and Chia-ch'ing (1796-1820) , the literati painters were mostly influenced by the Four Wangs. The decline of (our} art is to be lamented.3 Instead of turning towards Western art for help, Huang Pinhung proposed the reexamination of the brush and ink techniques of Yuan or earlier masters and the reinstatement of nature as the source of inspiration. who

Those

traditionalists

shared Huang Pin-hung’s feelings were able to

injectnew

life into the ancient pictorial form and thus made a sub­ stantial contribution to twentieth-century Chinese art.

Statement of Purpose It is surprising to note that to many Oriental art historians, Chinese art ceases to exist at the fall of the

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Manchu dynasty (1911).

A brief survey of the published

histories of Chinese art both in China and the West demonstrates the prevalence of this assumption.

4

By

omitting any consideration of the present epoch, these historians imply a decline as well as a departure from tradition in twentieth-century Chinese art. One can deny neither the revolutionary change nor the confusion into which the present century cast the painters of China.

But one must, at the same time, question

the perspective of historians who choose on such grounds to ignore an epoch perhaps even more momentous to Chinese culture than the introduction of Indian Buddhism in the Han dynasty. On the other hand, volumes of studies on modern China have been written on the political, economic, social, and cultural upheavals brought about by the impact of Western civilization in the last hundred years.

5

They give

valuable insights into the slow and tantalizing evolution of China from a Confucian empire into a modern nation. However, they fail to probe one important aspect of China's cultural change:

her art as it has assimilated the in­

fluence of the West.

This assimilation involved the bitter­

est possible struggle between conflicting forces of conser­

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vative traditionalism and progressive modernism.

Many of

the resulting works of art, though not always aesthetically satisfying, illustrate dramatically and visually the problem of cultural continuity which concerns such scholars as Joseph Levenson and Benjamin Schwartz. Therefore, a study of the Western impact on Chinese art is an essential first step towards the writing of a history of twentieth-century Chinese art, as it would explain the crucial factor in the development of Chinese art from the stagnant tradition of the nineteenth to the diversity of the present century.

It is also important in the full under­

standing of China’s problems in coping with the challenge from the West. For these reasons, I hope to examine the introduc­ tion of Western art into China in the twentieth century. Why was Western art considered worthy of study in this cen­ tury but not in the previous ones?

What was the situation

of China during the process of introduction?

What channels

were utilized in the importation of Western art?

What kind

of examples were available for study by interested Chinese artists?

How did the Chinese respond to this intrusion of

an alien art form?

What elements in the national cultural

heritage were considered inhibiting to the progress of China?

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What did Chinese artists hope to learn from the West?

As

a result of the Western impact, what had become the role of art and artist in Chinese society? The year of 1898 has been chosen as the starting point because the Hundred Days Reform at that time repre­ sented the culmination of a new attitude toward the greater acceptance of Western civilization which Chang Chih-tung summarized as "Chinese learning for the fundamental principles,

6 Western learning for practical application."

In the same

year, Kao Chien-fu, the most important founder of the Lingnan School of painting left for Japan to study Western and Japanese art.

7

My study ends with the outbreak of the Srno-

Japanese War in 1937.

The learning process which began with

Kao Chien-fu was interrupted when China directed all her re­ sources to save the country from foreign aggression. The forty years between 1898 and 1937 are divided into three periods conveniently punctuated by historical and artistic events.

Each of these periods will be found

to represent new trends in the development of Western art in China. Chapter 2 contains a brief examination of Western art in China before 1898.

Missionaries and trade embassies

were the agents in bringing Western art into China.

Its

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influence in China is examined in light of extant examples and documents. Chapter 3 deals with the period from the Hundred Days Reform to the historic May Fourth Movement (1898-1919). Described as a period of rediscovery and initiation, these years see the second introduction of Western art into China through the newly-founded educational system.

It came along

with other fruits of Western civilization which China felt the need to assimilate.

Chinese artists at the turn of the

century began to question the adequacy of the traditional range of artistic expression in coping with the new experiences which now confronted their country, and so they looked toward the West for assistance.

The modest beginnings of the New

ff Art Movement (Hsin i-shu yun-tung) and the New National Paint­ ing Movement (Hsin kuo-hua yun-tung), both under the tutelage of Japan, stem from this period.

The former is distinguished

from the latter by its acceptance of both Western materials and techniques. Chapter 4 covers the years between the May Fourth Movement and the First National Art Exhibition (1919-1929). Traditional artistic values came under severe attack as Western art grew in popularity in China.

Numerous art

schools and art societies were founded, and students

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were sent abroad to study, marking the beginning of direct contact with Europe.

Reproductions and writings on Western

art were imported in unprecedented numbers, mostly from Japan.

With the opening of the First National Art Exhibition

of 1929, Western-style art (art produced by Chinese artists in the Western manner), sharing equal ranks with traditional painting, had firmly established itself as an important force in the Chinese art world. No sooner had Western-style art consolidated its forces in China when signs of polarization and reorienta­ tion began to appear. Chapter 5.

These developments are the subject of

In the period between the First National Art

Exhibition and the Sino-Japanese War (1929-1937), ideologi­ cal differences in politics polarized the New Art Movement: a group of artists, under the influence of Marxist-Leninist theories, formed the Left-Wing Movement, which advocated a realistic art closely associated with the struggles of the proletarian class.

At the same time, with the surge of

nationalism, tradition reasserted itself in many aspects of Chinese society, and in art we see the Movement for the Renaissance of Chinese National Art (Chung-kuo min-tsu iIT

shu yun-tung), which loosely put the two movements discussed in Chapter 3 under a more nationalistic aim.

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With the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese War in 1937. Chinese artists put aside their ideological conflicts to join arras with other factions of the society to fight for national survival.

As nationalism and the defences of the

motherland took precedence, Western influence ceased to be the determining factor in the development of Chinese art. It is appropriate, therefore, to end this study of China's response to Western art in 1937. The conclusion in Chapter 6 is an attempt to place the phenomenon of the East-West confrontation in art in a larger historical framework.

Drawing upon valuable

insights from the works of Joseph Levenson, Benjamin Schwartz, and Mary Wright, I hope to probe the various historical limitations which conditioned the Chinese response to Western art.

This chapter will also contain

an assessment of the Western impact on Chinese art and a discussion of the changing role of the artist in the society of contemporary China.

China's Teachers in Western Art;

Japan, Europe, and Russia

Japan had been for centuries the recipient of Chinese cultural influence until the influx of Western civilization into Japan following the Perry Mission of 1854.

8

The success of the Meiji Restoration (1868) impressed

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the Chinese intellectuals of the necessity to follow suit. Thus, at the turn of the century, Japan became China’s mentor in Westernization. The reasons for going to Japan instead of directly to Europe are made clear by Chang Chih-tung, who in his it

"

famous book Exhortation to Study (C h ’uan-hsueh p ’ien) of 1898 advocated study in Japan.

He pointed out the relatively

shorter distance between China and Japan, the smaller expenses involved, and the similarity of language used; but most important, he emphasized the fact that it would be easier for China to learn from Japan, since Japan had already eliminated and modified irrelevant elements in the Western civilization.

9

The two decades following the Meiji Restoration have been described by some Japanese historians as a period of intoxication.

10

The craze for Western things and Western

ideas threatened to eradicate traditional culture.

In art,

the official Technological Art School was founded (1878) with the aim of introducing the Western art methods.

Foreign

artists and advisors were invited to Japan (Italian artists Fontanesi, Ragusa, and Cappelletti).

This overenthusiasm

for Western art dealt a heavy blow to traditional Japanese art.

Imaizume Yusaku wrote of the sorry state of the

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Japanese art which resulted in social and economic losses for traditional artists.

In the words of Imaizume, "it was

really a matter of surprise that either of these masters [Kano Hogai (1828-1888) and Hashimoto Gaho (1835-1908)) was able even to keep alive. With the arrival of the American Ernest Fenellosa in 1878, traditional Japanese art began to revive.

Largely

through his efforts and those of Qkakura Tenshin, ancient treasures of traditional Japanese art were reexamined and solutions were found for assimilating the Western impact on traditional art.

Both Ernest Fenellosa and Okakura Tenshin

advocated an eclectic style, combining the Western naturalis­ tic techniques of light and shade and perspective with tradi­ tional subject matter and techniques.

The most prorainant

masters of this synthetic style are the aforementioned Kano _

Hogai and Hashimoto Gaho.

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Japan provided China her earliest art instructors in the modern educational system, trained a large propor­ tion of Western-style artists in China, and (through publi­ cations and reproductions) nourished the New Art Movement in China.

Japan’s contribution was pivotal; but it cannot

be denied that having a teacher already trying to resolve the conflicts of traditional and foreign art put China in a

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position sure to inherit some of that teacher's problems and solutions. It is not surprising that Japan helped to form the ideas of the pioneers of the New Art Movement, including their conviction that Chinese art must adopt Western realism and scientific method in order to keep pace with the modern world.

The synthesis of traditional style and Western

naturalism advocated by Fenollosa and Okakura found expres­ sion in the art and theory of the Ling-nan School, whose founders were all trained in Japan in the early years of this century. It must be noted that Chinese artists first studied Western art under Japanese teachers, both in China and in Japan.

What they acquired could be called a Japanized ver­

sion of Western art.

Moreover, no matter how hard the

Japanese tried to imitate Western art, they could only arrive at a cultural copy.

Western-style art was as much

a transplant in Japan as in China.

There was no substantial

collection of Western art to speak of, and certainly not those cultural monuments that money cannot acquire.

As

Sino-Japanese relations deteriorated, the initial enthusiasm for further study in Japan gradually dwindled.

After the

First World War, the Chinese artists turned their attention to Europe, the true source of Western civilization.

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Only after Chinese art students had arrived in Europe did they came face to face with genuine Western art. There were the monumental frescoes of the Renaissance masters, the seemingly inexhaustible treasures of the Lourve and other museums, and more than one thousand galleries in Paris alone. The current trends of modern European art could be observed in galleries and annual salons (Salon des Artistes Indepen­ dants, Salon des Tuileries, Salon d'Automne, etc.). Lui Hai-su, the champion of new art in China, wrote of his experience in Paris (1929): My days in Paris, a great part is spent on visiting museums and galleries. From Giotto to Botticelli, from Titian to Fragonard, from Pousin to David, from Ingres to Cezanne, . . . I walk from the Spanish Gallery (in the Louvre) to where the Netherlandish artists are exhibited . . . After visiting the Louvre, I even go straight to Luxemberg Palace to look at the modern paintings . . . Every time I visit several galleries, inevitably I feel an infinite change in my heart; sometimes I feel lost, other times I feel enlightened. This is very mean­ ingful. ^ An important mission of the Chinese artists studying in Europen was to copy the works of Western masters for the benefit to those less fortunate Western-style artists in China.

Again Liu Hai-su wrote:

I have arranged with a dozen of comrades studying art here (Paris), to visit the Louvre every afternoon and to copy the masterpieces from Renaissance on. I

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am now copying a representative work by Delacroix, a great French eighteenth-century (should be nineteenth) master, the giant of Romanticism, Dante and Virgil. It is a huge painting, two feet long. Its theme comes from Dante's Inferno. In expressing the melancholy of life and the beauty of-the human body, this painting is supreme. There are some artists who go to other museums to copy more recent works. After two or three years, we may be able to gather one hundred or more paintings to contribute to the (Chinese) Ministry of Education for the purpose of establishing a national museum. 14 Chinese art students began to arrive in Europe after the end of the First World War. all over the art centers of Europe. and to Italy.

They soon scattered A few went to England

Germany and Belgium were chosen by some

because of their relatively lower living standards after the war.

But France attracted by far the largest number

of Chinese artists, because France, especially Paris, was considered the mecca of Western art, and also because they could take advantage of a work-study program sponsored by the Society for Frugal Study through Labor (Ch'in-kung chien-hsueh hui) which allowed students with little money work their way through school. No census has ever been taken of the Chinese artists in Europe, and it is difficult to gauge their num­ ber.

The Shanghai College of Fine Arts made a study in

1936 of those alumni who had gone abroad to study since the time of its founding in 1912.

Of approximately ninety

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17 students, about 45% went to Japan, 30% to France, and the remaining 25% were divided among Italy, England, Germany, Russia, and America.

15

(As can be seen from the figures,

America was not highly regarded as a place of art study.) It is significant to note that just from the figures given by Shanghai College of Fine Arts (figures probably reflect the trend of the time), Europe had practically re­ placed Japan as a place for study.

The reason is obvious:

Chinese artists were now looking for direct influence from Europe. This direct contact influenced Western-style art in China.

Trained in the academies of Europe, the Chinese

artists generally achieved a firmer grasp of Western technique than those trained in Japan. greater prestige at home too.

And they enjoyed

The more important contribu­

tion of the European experience, however, was the awakening of an interest in the national cultural heritage of China. As will be seen in Chapter 5, the European teachers urged their Chinese students to reexamine their own heritage to find new directions for the future, whereas in Japan Chinese students would probably be influenced by the blind partiality to the West which was prevalent in Japan ever since its first contact with the Western civilization.

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Russian art, though considerably influenced by Eastern traditions, remained part of the European civili­ zation.

During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries,

Russian art underwent stylistic changes that paralleled those of Western European art.

But the unique feature of

Russian art from 1840's was the association of the arts wi-i.n the most advanced currents of social thought.

Conse­

quently, critical realism developed more vigorously in Russia than anywhere else."^ A few years before and after the October Revolu­ tion (1917), a movement towards abstract art developed side by side with realism.

Artists like Malevich, Lissitsky,

Kandinsky, and Tatlin also believe in the profound influence 17 that art could have on individual and social development.' However, their exclusive concern with technique and the cult of form--considered in the socialist world as symptoms of a cultural crisis and of ideological disintegration— brought about government interference and thus caused the collapse of modern tendencies in Russian art.

Socialist Realism

triumphed, emphasizing the authentic production of revolu­ tionary events, of the toil and way of life of the Soviet people. In view of the close association of Russian art

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with political policy, it is understandable that Russia's role as China's teacher in art has several characteristics distinct from Japan and Europe.

First of all, Russian

influence became apparent only after the spread of Communism in China in the late twenties, and the two of them worked hand in hand for the struggles of the proletarian class. This trend in art is actually called the Left-Wing Art Movement. The kind of Russian art which attracted the atten­ tion of the progressive Chinese artists was not created by the abstract artists nor by the realist painters.

Rather,

it was done by such graphic artists as Alexey Kravchenko, Pavel Pavlinov, and Nikolai Kupreyanov, who sent their works to China in exchange for Chinese painting paper. Some of the Russian cartoons and posters found in China were highly propagandistic, these works influenced the social-conscious Chinese artists to use their art to com­ ment critically on the ills of the society. Further, Russian influence came at a time when Western-style art had become established in the art world. Artists practising Western-style art had attained a certain degree of maturity, if not originality.

Consequently,

Russian influence in China lay less in its technical achieve-

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20 ment than its Communist aesthetic theories.

The details of

this aethetics will be studied in Chapter Five, it is sufficient to say that works by G.V. Plekhanov, A.V. Lunacharsky, and other theorists of materialistic aesthetics were introduced by 1929, contributing to the ideological basis of the Left-Wing Art Movement in the thirties.

A Few Words on Research Methods My task of tracing the course of Western art in China has met with many difficulties, for the documentation on this subject is inconsistant and fragmentary.

Since

there has been almost no detailed study of twentieth-century Chinese art, I have had to turn to articles, unpublished memoirs, recollections of those artists still living (often contradictory), and exhibition catalogues.

The piecing to­

gether of this incoherent information dealing with a period of such historical importance has been difficult. has taken me to Japan, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.

My research

As more

materials come to light (which is sure to happen because of the gradual opening of the People's Republic of China), many places in this dissertation could easily be improved and even revised. My work is further complicated by the absence of original Western-style art by Chinese artists outside of

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21 mainland China.

I would have liked to include more works

of art and discussions of stylistic changes.

But the un­

availability of works of art forces me to rely on reproduc­ tions, which often leave much to be desired. At this point, a few words of explanation about some of the terms used in the dissertation may be helpful. The adjective "traditional” is used in a short-hand way to deal with the whole past experience in China before the impact of the modern West.

"Traditional art" refers to art

which follows basically the same materials and techniques in the past centuries.

"Chinese art" of this century in-

eludes both traditional and Western-style art.

18

"Western art," hsi-yang hua in Chinese, is used categorically to describe the Western artistic tradition. It should be distinguished from "Western-style art," which is the Chinese version of Western art.

The various "isms"

introduced in to China, for example, Impressionism, PostImpressionism, and Fauvism, are taken for their surface value.

Their complex theories and significance in the

development of modern painting in the West are largely ignored.

Sometimes they were misunderstood.

example is the case of Futurism.

A good

Futurism, translated

into Chinese as Wei-lai p'ai (lit, art of the future),

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when it was first introduced into China in the 1920’s, came to be identified with distorted and fragmented figures which were not at all in accord with the progressive ideals of the Futurists.

19

Since most of my sources are written

in Chinese, Western terms are often used with meanings derived from their Chinese contexts.

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CHAPTER 1

WESTERN ART IN CHINA BEFORE 1898

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24

During a history that spans about two hundred years, from the arrival of Michael Ruggieri (1579) to the perse­ cutions at the end of the Ch'ien-lung era (1736-1795), the introduction of Western arts and sciences in to China was closely related to the activities of the Catholic missionaries. Western art was brought into China in the form of Bibles, illustrated books, and devotional images, which the mis­ sionaries used to their advantage in the propagation of their faith.

20

Later, in the courts of K'ang-hsi, Yung-

cheng, and Ch'ien-lung, those foreign missionaries with skills in painting, sculpture, and architecture were especially well received and enjoyed imperial patronage. These examples of the foreign art-forms could not fail to arouse the interest of Chinese artists who had a chance to see them.

There is sufficient documentary

evidence, as well as works by Chinese artists, to show Western influences in the works of those artists who studied under the missionaries or worked closely with them--notably Ting Kuan-p'eng, Chiao Ping-chen, Leng Mei, Tsou I-kuei, and Shen Ch'uan--while close study of Paintings by Wu Pin, Kung Hsien, Fan Ch'i, Tseng Ch'ing, and others might yield even more indication of Western influence.

21

However, in this brief account I cannot

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25

hope to establish Western influence in individual painters or to conduct extensive research into material evidence available to Chinese artists in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

22

As a prelude to a study of

the twentieth-century Chinese response to Western art, my concern must lie in delineating the circumstances under which Western art was introduced and the consequences of that introduction.

The findings will underscore the

unprecedented impact of the West on Chinese art in the twentieth century.

The Seventeenth Century Western art was first brought into China by Ruggieri in 1579 when he arrived in Canton.

Four years

later, he was granted permission to build a church in Shao-ch'ing in which he placed an oil painting of the Madonna for worship.

23

Matteo Ricci came in 1582, and

when he went to Peking in 1601 he included in his gifts to the Wan-li Emperor an oil painting of the Virgin and Child, as well as other devotional paintings. Among the Jesuits to follow were Father Buglio (1606-1682), who first taught the Western art of perspec­ tive (after his arrival in Peking in 1648), Giovanni Gherardini

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26

(1654-?), who spent four years (1698-1702) in China, taught oil painting in palace studies, and decorated the ceiling of the new church in Peking with illusionistic frescoes, and astronomer Ferdinand Verbiest (1623-1688), who supposedly taught Chiao Ping-chen the art of perspec­ tive while they were serving at the Imperial Observatory. It should also be noted that, for the practical reason of establishing a local supply of religious images, Ricci and his fellow missionaries made attempts to transplant Western art into the Far Eastern soil through education and through the training of young converts.

Giovanni Niccolo,

for example, was a Jesuit painter in Japan who administered a small academy for Japanese seminarians at Shiki and later at Arima.

24

One of his pupils, Jacopo Niva (of Chinese-

Japanese parentage) joined Ricci in 1602 and spent the rest of his life painting devotional pictures and frescoes in Jesuit churches in China.

Niva, who had at least two

Chinese assistants, was (according to Prof. Michael Sullivan) the first Western-style painter working in China.

25

At this point, we may stop to ponder the examples of Western art available in seventeenth-century China and of the reactions of the Chinese.

Both Ricci and Du Halde

recorded that a large number of Chinese visitors came to

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27 see the works of Niva and Buglio and were impressed by 26 the illusion of space and depth they presented.

Besides

the gifts to the Wan-li Emperor, Ricci had on display an oil painting of Christ by the same Giovanni Niccolo.

But

the main source of contact seems to have been in engravings and books, both of which by 1623 had already amounted to 27 7,000. Prof. Sullivan has made an extensive study of such materials that need not be repeated here.

It will

be sufficient to say that the materials encompass a wide range of subjects, including illustrations of Biblical scenes, portraits, artichitectural drawings, landscapes, and maps of countries and cities.

28

Some of these designs were copied by the Chinese, who transferred the engraved lines into the traditional wood-cut medium.

Examples are the four designs found in ff

Ch'eng-shih mo-yuan (1606), of which three were adapted from engravings produced in a famous European studio and press (Plantin’s Press in Antwerp), while the fourth one was copied from an engraving made in 1597 in Niccolo's academy at Arima, Japan.

29

Another example by Yang Kuang-

hsien may be found in Pu-te-i..

It included three designs

copied from an album presented by Joannes Adam Schall von Bell to the Ts'ung-cheng Emperor in 1640.

30

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28

At the same time, the Jesuits published books in China with illustrations copied from European works by Chinese wood-engravers.

Later, these included not only

devotional books but also such diverse themes as an atlas, the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, and perspective drawings.31 Faced with such evidence, it is important to see how the Chinese

reacted.

In written records, we find two

good examples which tell us which elements in Western art the Chinese painters found most enlightening.

Ku Ct^i-

IT

yuan, writing in 1618, gave a detailed (if not totally correct) account of Matteo Ricci, after which he added: The Heavenly Lord that he painted was a child carried in the arms of a woman, said to be the mother of the Heavenly Lord. The painting was painted on a copper plate with colors spread on it, making the image life-like. The body and the arms looked as if rising from the background. The projections and depressions on the face were no different from those of a real person. People asked what made the painting this way, he (Ricci) answered: "In Chinese painting only the light side (of the figures) is represented, but not the dark side, and consequently the face and the body seem frontal and flat. Painters in my country paint the shadows as well as the lights, thus the face is in relief and the arms are round. Whenever a human face confronts the lights, it is bright and white; if it turns sideways, then the side towards the lights should be white, while the side away from the lights, the depressions formed by the eyes, ears, nose, and mouth should be dark. Portrait painters in our country understand and use this method, consequently, they are able to make the portrait the same as a real person." He brought with

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29 him quite a large number of books and albums from his country . . . in them are pictures of figures and houses, with lines as thin as hair.32 In addition to this passage, there is the popular Wu-sheng shih-shih by Chiang Shao-wen.

Writing circa 1646,

the author said: Li Ma-tou (Ricci-) brought with him an image of the Heavenly Lord of Western Regions which showed a woman carrying a child in her arms. The eyebrows, the eyes, and folds of the garments were just as in a reflection in a bright mirror, they seemed to be moving. It surpassed in solemnity and beauty anything that the Chinese painters could do.33 In both accounts, the Chinese were impressed by the life-like appearance of the figures achieved by shading and chiaroscuro.

Ku Ch'i-yuan even used the words of Ricci to

explain the technique which rendered Western painting different from the Chinese.

He was further impressed by

detailed representations of houses and figures in the illustrated books.

The Eighteenth Century The eighteenth century was marked by an increase in communication between China and the European countries. Among the missionaries who came to China, there were some trained in art.

Their talents were appreciated by the

emperors, who appointed them to positions in the imperial studios.

Again it must be remember that they embarked on

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30

their journey to the East not because of artistic ambition or curiosity but as representatives of the Catholic Church, and their artistic accomplishments were regarded merely as means to bring greater glory to God.

On the other hand,

their status in the imperial studios was no better that of a craftsman or an artisan.

They worked under the close

supervision of the emperors, particularly Ch'ien-lung.

It

was at his command that some of the Jesuit court painters had to abandon their former training to adopt a synthetic style combining the art of the East and the West. The records of their employment by the emperors are relatively well-known, because of the published accounts which they sent to their superiors in Europe. active we must mention four:

34

Among, those

Guiseppe Castiglione (Lang

Shih-ning, 1688-1766), arriving in Peking in 1715, Jean Denis Attiret (Wang Chih-ch'eng, 1702-1768), arriving in 1738, Ignace Sichelbarth (Ai Ch'i-meng, 1708-80), arriving in 1745, and Augustinian father Jean-Damascent Sallusti (An Te-i).

Paintings by Castiglione and Sichelbarth, work­

ing in similar styles, can still be seen in the Palace Museum Collection, Taipei, while those by the latter two have not been positively identified. Using Chinese implements and Western techniques, Lang Shih-ning came to be identified with a distinct style

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31

in which figures and landscapes, flowers, birds, and animals were depicted in bright colors with great faithful­ ness to nature.

His style represents the first attempt on

the part of a Western painter in China to harmonize the arts of China and the West.

However, the intention behind

this art differs greatly from the intention behind the synthetic style of the twentieth century.

Lang Shih-ning's

style came as a result of imperial commands, it did not spring from an inner need or a conscious desire to unite the two.

Influence on Chinese Artists of the 17th and 18th Centuries As indicated in the passages from literary sources (Ku Ch'i-yuan and Chiang Shao-wen) already cited, what im­ pressed the Chinese most in Western art was the plastic modelling which gives the human figure a life-like appearance. Therefore, it is most likely that the figure and portrait painters would be the first to feel the Western impact. the portrait paintings by the Fukienese portraitist Tseng Ch'ing (1576-1658), the artist added to his ink outlines several scores of layers of color wash, achieving a lifelike resemblance to his objects.

35

Tseng Ch'ing's style

became quite popular, finding adherents especially among the professional portrait painters.

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In

32

As foreign missionaries were employed at the imperial observatory and the imperial studios, the court painters, being within their direct sphere of influence, gradually incorporated certain elements of Western painting into their work.

A typical example was Chiao Ping-chen

(active e. 1680-1720), who learned Western perspective from some of the foreign astromomers, possibly Verbiest. Chang Keng wrote in Kuo-ch'ao hua-cheng l u : Chiao Ping-chen from Chi-ning ("Shantung) served as an official in the imperial observatory and was skilled in figure painting. His compositions give the effect of distance, the objects decrease in size from near to far with perfect accuracy without the slightest mistake, because he represented them according to the Western manner. i

His use of Western scientific method received commendation from the K'ang-hsi Emperor and can be seen in his version of the K'eng-chih t'u (Illustrations of Rice and Sericulture).

37

His eclectic style was not accepted by the

scholar-painters, and his influence on later court painters declined after the reign of Ch'ien-lung.

38

However, hxs

influence (as well as that of Lang Shih-ning) filtered down to the professional and folk artists, who were attracted by the novelty of the new style. In the eighteenth century, Tseng Ch'ing's borrow­ ings from the West were taken one step further by several ft

painters, namely Mang Ku-li, Ting Yun-kung, hxs daughter

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33 tt

Ting Yu, son-in-law Chang P'eng-nien, Chang Shu, and Chin Chieh.

39

Though there is hardly any extant work

to serve as evidence, these professional painters were recorded as having abandoned the traditional ink outline and adopted the Western manner of modelling.

Nonetheless,

their small number only serves to emphasize the reluctance of the Chinese artists to learn from a foreign art-form. The Western influence on landscape painting was more difficult to determine.

It has been said that some

of the fantastic and illusionistic elements found in the works of late Ming and early Ch'ing painters--for example, Wu Pin, Kung Hsien, and Fan Ch*i--were brought about by the possible contacts of these artists with Western paintings and prints.

40

It is highly possible that these artists,

who were active in the Nanking area, had had opportunities to observe the Western prints being circulated there.

It

is also likely that they might find certain affinities between the Northern Sung landscape tradition, in which they were involved, and the European prints:

"strong

contrast of light and dark, repeated turret-like mountains, rough textures of rocks created by strong shading, deep recession into space along winding paths and streams, and 41 hard-edged clouds covering parts of the peaks."

However,

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34

the evidence gathered so far is still tentative and con­ jectural: further study must be conducted before any conclusions can be drawn. We may add here that during this period the art of engraving was also introduced by the Jesuits into China. While the illustrated books published in China still made use of traditional wood-engraving techniques, Father Matteo Ripa (1682-1754), who reached the court of K ’ang-hsi in 1711, was forced to teach himself copperplate engraving. He reproduced the Thirty-Six Views of Jehol, which had been painted by Chinese artists at K ’ang-hsi's command between 1711 and 1713.

He left China in 1723, after having

taught engraving to two Chinese pupils.

They and their

pupils carried on the art, producing between 1778 and 1830 seven sets of engravings of Chinese Victories, modelled after the original series made in Paris in 1767.

42

The interest in Western art of the emperors and the circulation of religious engravings by the missionaries stimulated response from a different direction.

Some ele­

ments of Western painting and engraving were absorbed by the painters of New Year Pictures in Yang-liu-ch’ing and Soo-c'now.

Called nien-hua, it developed simultaneously

with the advances made in color wood-engraving techniques

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35

and enjoyed tremendous popularity in the eighteenth century.

43

Unfettered by the scholarly taste of the pre­

dominating traditional school, these roin-chien (folk) artists responded to the West by capitalizing on the novelty of the new technique.

Some attempted to copy Western prints

exactly, as in Hsi-yang chu-chfang t'u (Illustration of a Western Theater).

But a greater number of New Year Pictures

appeared with their Chinese figures in light and shade, showing Chinese houses and landscapes in perspective.

44

These were often inscribed with the characters fang t'aihsi pi-fa, which has the meaning Min imitation of Western brush methods."

45

Though the traditional painters were hesitant to incorporate Western elements into their artistic expres­ sions, they were more outspoken in their writings.

In

these statements, they inform us of their attitude towards Western art, thereby giving clues for the absence of Western influence in the main stream of traditional paint­ ing in this period. Tsou I-kuei, who was active a court painter at this time as Guiseppe Castiglione, might have met this Jesuit painter, or at least have become acquainted with his paint­ ings.

In his Hsiao-shan hua-p*u, Tsou I-kuei wrote:

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36

The Westerners are skilled in geometry, and consequently there is not the slightest mistake in their way of rendering light and shade fyin yang) and distance (near and far}. In their paintings all the figures, buildings, and trees cast shadows, and their brush and colors are entirely different from those of Chinese painters. Their views (scenery) stretch out from broad (in the foreground) to narrow (in the back­ ground) and are defined (mathematically measured). When they paint houses on a wall, people are tempted to walk into them. Students of painting may well take over one or two points from them to make their own paintings more attractive to the eye. But those painters have no brush-manner whatsoever, although they posses skill, they are simply artisans (chiang) and can consequently not be classified as painters (i.e., artists) Tsou I-kuei, himself a painter, gave an observant account of the Western painting he was acquainted with.

He

had an open eye for the advantages of scientific knowledge when applied to painting, but had to relegate it outside the realm of art because of its reliance on technical skill.

On the other hand, Chang Keng in his Kuo-ch'ao hua-

cheng lu gave a description of Matteo Ricci clearly derived from Ku Ch'i-yuan.

In addition, he said:

Master Chiao (Chiao Ping-chen) grasped this idea and modified it to some extent. It did not, however, correspond to the scholarly taste, consequently connoisseurs (those who admire antiquity) have not accepted it. Chang Keng points out clearly that the main current in traditional Chinese art at that time was dominated by scholarly taste and antiquity.

Indeed, in the seventeenth

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37 century we see the full-flowering of wen-jen hua, the painting of the literati.

These scholars argued about the

distinction between art and craft, refined and vulgar taste. Steeped in the intellectual tradition, they aimed not to re­ present nature but to reach into the spirit of nature in emulation of the Yuan masters.

Tung Ch'i-ch'ang, together

with the Four Wangs and their followers, represented the orthodox school which dominated Chinese art for three cen­ turies.

In the later phase of this school, most painters

sought to substitute for true inspiration a meticulous adherence to the past.

Within the main currents, but

opposed to the imitative restrictions of the orthodox school, were a group of individualists, represented by Chu Ta and Tao-chi, who painted an inner vision with originality and freedom. Using criteria for traditional painting, Chinese critics of Western art arbitrarily considered Western painting, as well as attempts to incorporate Western scientific method, not true art.

Literal resemblanced to

natural objects and over-reliance on technique are the points often criticized.

Furthermore, Chinese artists

were still sufficiently confident of the superiority of their traditional values not to seek help from the Westerners,

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38

and that included both the orthodox school and the in­ dividualistic forces against it. The case of Wu Li (1632-1718) further strengthens this point.

Considered one of the Six Great Masters of

the early Ch'ing period, this landscape painter spent the years between 1681 and 1688 in Macao.

He was baptised and

ordained there, then he returned to Kiangsu to spend the rest of his life as a missionary.

Whether his conversion

to Christian faith had any influence on his artistic activity is still a point hotly debated, but we need only to point out his basic attitude towards Western art to realize what he hoped to attain in his art. As a Jesuit missionary, Wu Li would have had access to Western pictures and books and may even have shown them to other painters.

He added to his account

of life in Macao a brief note on the differences between Chinese and Western painting, saying: Our painting does not grasp formal likeness or fall into ready-made patterns, it may be called spiritual and unrestrained fsheng-il . In their painting they only labor over lights and shadows, and bodily relief, formal likeness, and ready-made patterns. As to the signatures, we place them at the top, but they write them at the bottom of the pictures. And our way of using the brush is quite different. These are on1^ some of the points; I could not state them all.

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39

It is evident that Wu Li adhered to the traditional values of Chinese painting and that in doing so he found them equal if not superior to the Western manner.

And it

has been clearly shown by Osvald Siren that the work of Wu Li was not influenced in spite of his familiarity with Western art.4^ Criticism comes from another direction to explain further the problems of Lang Shih-ning and his colleagues at the Manchu court.

John Barrow came to China with the

Macartney mission of 1783.

In Travels in China, Barrow

recorded his impressions of Yuan-ming-yuan: At Yuen-ming-yuen I found two very large paintings of landscapes, which, as to the pencilling, were done with tolerable execution, but they were finished with a minuteness of detail, and without any of those strong lights and masses of shade, which give force and effect to a picture; none of rules of perspective were observed, nor any attempt to throw the objects to their proper distances; yet I could not help fancying that I discovered in them the hand of an European. . . . I found the same name (Castiglione) in the corner of each. . . . On enquiry, I found that Castaglione was a missionary in great repute at court, where he executed a number of paintings, but was expressly directed by the Emperor to paint all his subjects after the Chinese manner, and not like those of Europe, with broad masses of shade and the distant objects scarcely visible, observing to him as one of the missionaries told me, that the imperfections of the eye afforded no reason why the objects of nature should also be copied as imperfect.50 Barrow's criticism of the work of Lang Shih-ning is an indication of its lack of artistic merit according to

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40

eighteenth-century Western artistic standards.

It also

serves to reveal the author's lack of understanding of Chinese principles.

He points out correctly that the

strange style was actually a concoction of the Emperor. But the work of Castiglione and Attiret had been criticized by the imperial supervisor C h ’ien-lung for the lack of ,T 51 ch* i-yun, spiritual resonance.

Consequently, this

synthetic style actually fell between two stools. The artists themselves were not happy with their work either.

Attiret described the tight control

exercised by Ch'ien-lung, complaining that they were compelled to abandon their former training to adopt new techniques to please the Emperor.

52

Paintings were

rejected and corrected at the wish of the Emperor, and the artists had no choice but to comply.

Evidence shows

that the synthetic style was a strange mixture which pleased nobody but the Emperor who was responsible for its creation.

It existed only in the confines of the

palace studios and died away when the reason for its existence was no longer present. China in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries still maintained a functioning political, social and intellectual tradition highly regarded by scholars and

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41

philosophers in Europe.5^

It was an empire whose

feeling of self-sufficiency was well expressed by the famous letter to George III in which the Emperor Ch'ienlung wrote: . . . the stores of goods at the Celestial Court are plenteously abundant, there is nothing but what is possessed by us, so that there is really no need for the products of outer barbarians . . . remembering, however, that thy kingdom occupies an obscure corner in the distant wilderness, and is far removed from us by ocean upon ocean, . . . we . . . command our ministers to make all this plain to thine envoys, instruct their minds, and dismiss them back to their country.

The Nineteenth Century In the two centuries of contact between China and the West, China maintained an upper hand over the foreigners.

But now, as China progressed into the nine­

teenth century, the situation underwent a complete reversal in favor of the foreigners.

The Opium Wars (1839-1842,

1856-1860) and the revolt of the T'ai-p'ings (1850-1864) quickly changed the patriarchal face of the land.

With

their salvoes foreign cruisers broke down the doors of an empire that was isolating itself.

In the great social

upheaval that followed, one feature commands our attention. This was the rapid growth of Chinese coastal towns which the foreigners manipulated as the bases for the economic

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42

and religious penetration of China.'*'*

Commercial and

financial capital flowed into these coastal towns, and with it came the bourgeoisie and some bureaucrats and landowners and other types of the new social conglomera­ tion.

The congregation of wealth provided a great market

for culture and new stimulus for artistic ventures. Calendar painters and portraitists in the style of the West were given opportunities to develop.

Even traditional

artists responded to the liberalizing atmosphere and tried to find a new path for Chinese painting. All these forces combined to precipitate a kind of semi-colonial culture flourishing in the peculiar environment of the large cities.

And these large cities

gradually became the scene of many changes in art and culture to take place in the twentieth century. Western art came to China in the nineteenth century mainly through the religious and commercial activities of the foreigners.

The missionaries, both

Protestant and Catholic, were as aware of the merits of religious pictures in propagating the faith as their Jesuit predecessors.

Using the opened ports as bases,

they preached (in addition to religious doctrines) a kind of social gospel of schools and hospitals.

Their

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43

evangelical zeal took them even to the remote parts of China.5^

Local presses were established in the

larger cities and students were trained in engraving and printing technique.

An unprecedented quantity of

religious literature and pictures poured out from these presses, often at the expense of quality.5^

These were

circulated among the Christian converts, which by 1890 CO

had reached half a million. The trade missions and political embassies which came to China were equipped with their own artists, professional or otherwise, to serve as journalists and illustrators of the negotiations and battles that took place between China and the European envoys.

The Chater

Collection of 430 oil paintings, watercolors, drawings, engravings, and 54 books on China provides a wealth of evidence for this period of Western economic aggression.5^ Among the journalist-artists was T. Hickey, official artist of the Macartney Expedition, whose portrayal of a Chinese mandarin Van Ta-jin in 1793 is a good example of portraits in Western style seen by the Chinese.

60

William Alexander (1767-1816) also accompanied Lord Macartney to China as draftsman to the Embassy.

He was

an excellent artist, who caught with vividness the scenery

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44 and the people of C h i n a . ^

W. Huggins (1781-1845)

came with the ships Imogene and Andromache, which were engaged in the Battle of the Bogue in 1834.

The French

artist A. Borget visited China in 1838 and produced many fine sketches of the country.^2 Evidently these journalist-artists did not restrict their artistic responsibility to recording the negotiations and battles.

They also busied themselves

in sketching the country.

Their subjects included

panoramic views of river fronts in

Macao, Hong Kong,

and Canton, where the foreigners were allowed to live, the Factories, which were the center of activity during the trading season, and Chinese businessmen and officials connected with foreign trade.

The main interest of the

artists, however, lay in the common people, whether they were engaged in their daily labors or seeking pleasure.

Many

of these artists were keen observers and excellent draftsmen (Alexander later became the first Keeper of Prints at the British Museum, London, and Borget was the recipient of a third-class medal at the Salon of 1843, Paris).

They presented China and its people in picturesque

engravings and drawings of adequate quality with a more credible setting than the rococo fantasies of the last

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45

century. These artists had visited China and drawn and painted what they had seen.

Their activities in China

must certainly have aroused the interest of their Chinese counterparts.

Unfortunately, other than the volumes of

drawings and engravings left to us, these artists remain obscure figures in the meeting of China and the West. Whether their work was appreciated by the Chinese artists or whether they had taken any Chinese pupils are questions answerable only after much delving in contemporary records and memoirs. George Chinnery (1774-1852) became the only Western artist who made his home in the East, coming to Macao in 1825 after he had spent twenty-four years in India.

Until his death in 1852, he painted ceaselessly

the life and scenery of Macao and Canton.

He earned his

living as a painter of portraits of Chinese and foreign celebrities in Macao and Canton, some of which were exhibited at the Royal Academy.

But in his watercolor

landscapes and his sketches in pen, pencil and sepia, Chinnery demonstrated his artistic sensitivity.

He

recorded the scenes along the Praya Grande, food stalls and mobile kitchens, the smith at his forge, the stonemason,

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46

the itinerant barber, and the sampan girl. Chinnery had a school of painting in Macao, and among his students were the Chinese Lamqua and Protinqua, and the Portuguese Baptista.

His pupils used to copy

the master’s work or finish those which he had started, they also sold copies and sometimes their own work as Chinnery paintings at much lower fees than Chinnery demanded.^ Tbogood Downing, writing in 1838, gave a vivid description of Chinnery and his pupil Lamqua: The only foreign painter in China resides in this town (Macao) . . . He is very much esteemed by the Europeans who visit this part of the world and is well-known to stand high in his profession. His portraits of the Chinese are often sent over to this country, where they may generally be seen at the yearly exhibitions of the academy . . . Many of the Chinese have sat for him already; one or two have been his pupils, and have made a very fair progress. The best of them, Lamquoi (Lamqua), is in practice as a portrait painter in Canton, and is always happy to take your likeness for the small consideration of twenty d o l l a r s .**4 The academic style of Chinnery's formal portraits and panoramic landscapes was transmitted to his pupils, who, as we noted before, made careful copies of his work. His best pupil Lamqua even exhibited in the Royal Academy tv/ice, in 1835 and 1845.^”* As representatives of the influence of Chinnery’s long presence in Macao and Canton,

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47 these Western-style painters were the nucleus of what has been loosely called the ’’Chinnery School” of painting.^6 They manipulated the adopted medium with great proficiency, often to depict Chinese men and women with a borrowed exoticism that charmed both the foreign visitors to the treaty ports and the growing Chinese merchant class. One of the Western-style painters was photographed by John Thomson in 1873 (Plate 1).

He is in his shop in

Hong Kong, seated in front of a desk.

The painting he

works on is propped up by a frame, as if placed on an easel.

On the wall behind him are three pictures:

a Chinese gunk,

(1)

(2) a portrait of a Chinese woman, seated

and holding a fan, and (3) another portrait of a Chinese woman.

The accompanying note by Thomson gives a detailed

account of the nature of his work, his painting methods, and his patrons: Lumqua (Lamqua] was a Chinese pupil of Chinnery, a noted foreign artist, who died at Macao in 1852. Lumqua produced a number of excellent works in oil, which are still copied by the painters in Hong Kong and Canton. Had he lived in any other country, he would have been the founder of a school of painting. In China his followers have failed to grasp the spirit of his art. They drudge with imitative servile toil, copying Lumqua?s or Chinnery's pieces, or anything, no matter what, just because it has to be finished and paid for within a given time, and at so much a square foot. There are a number of

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48

painters established in Hong-Kong, but they all do the same class of work and have about the same tariff of prices, regulated according to the dimensions of the canvas. The occupation of these limners consists mainly in making enlarged copies of photographs. Each house employs a touter, who scours the shipping in the harbour with samples of the work, and finds many ready customers among the foreign sailors . . . The painters divide their labour on the following plan. The apprentice confines himself to bodies and hands, while the master executes the physiognomy, and thus the work is got through with wonderful speed. Attractive colours are freely used; . . . These pictures would be fair works of art were the drawing good, and the brilliant colours properly arranged; but all the distortions of badly taken photographs are faithfully reproduced on an enlarged scale. The best works these painters do are pictures of native and foreign ships, which are wonderfully drawn. To enlarge a picture they draw squares over their canvas corresponding to the smaller squares into which they divide the picture to be c o p i e d . 67 The above account points out sharply the commercial purpose of these Western-style artists, the slavish imitativeness of their work, as well as the absence of artistic merit in their paintings.

However,

there are exceptions to be found among the works produced by these "artisans."

One of these is a charming oil

painting executed around 1860 (Plate 2).

The Portrait of

a Young Woman shows a half figure of a girl, seated in a casual manner.

The painter combined the oil technique

with certain characteristic features of Chinese figure painting.

The soft contours of the face are unmarred

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49

by brush lines, while the shading in the drapery folds of her garment are suppressed to achieve an almost twodimensional effect.

There is no strong contrast of color,

the dark olive green background blends well with the coloring of the face, and the color combination helps to create a sense of composure and tranquility (without the brilliant colors mentioned by Thomson).**8

It is this

type of painting that had an immense influence on the folk art of calendar and New Year pictures. The Western-style painters were indicative of the tastes that were being cultivated in the treaty ports. Another manifestation of this popular culture was in painting on glass, which had its modest beginning in the latter half of the eighteenth century and flourished in the nineteenth.

Its subject matter included figures,

both Chinese and Western, landscapes, religious and secular themes (mostly copies of Western examples). Some were painted in the Western manner, while many were painted in an eclectic style adopting the novel elements 69 in Western art. 7 Until fifty years ago, these professional artists enjoyed a thriving business supported also by native patronage, especially in Canton, which has had a long

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50

history in export art and in foreign trade (as the 7CS

only port in which foreign trade was allowed after 1757). w Many a visitor to this city, calling the traditional

71

painting dull and monotonous, with many defects in design, x praised the artistic accomplishments of the Cantonese.

72

They rambled about and purchased souvenirs from the "painters upon glass, the fanmakers, workers in ivory, Japanners, jewellers" who congregated in the rows of native houses adjoining the English Factory.

73

This

district was later developed into Ta-hsin Chieh, where the portrait painters were the most popular with local Cantonese.

Painted in oil or charcoal, these Western-

style portraits were used in a particularly Chinese aspect of life.

They made representations of the deceased and

were needed in ancestor worship rituals.74 New Year Pictures continued to develop with traces of Western influence.

Of particular interest to

us is one titled T*ang-shan chen-chi ch'uan't'u (An Authentic Picture of T'ang-shan; Plate 3).

T'ang-shan,

situated near Tientsin, Hopei, is the first mechanically operated coal mine in China.

Produced in the Kuang-

hsii era (1875-1908), the print reflects the curious mixture of Eastern and Western material culture which

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51

came to characterize the last hundred years of Western contact.

In it, we see factories, ships, locomotives,

gigantic drills, parasol-carrying Western ladies, and cane-carrying Western gentlemen, existing side by side with Chinese temples, pagodas, bridges, and Chinese. The picture further indicates the development of folk artists’ ability to represent contemporary scenes and activities, which inevitably made them reliant on Western technique to portray the imported material culture. New Year pictures declined, gradually to be replaced by prints produced from the more up-to-date imports of printing methods and machinery. In the second i half of the nineteenth century, the center of foreign commerce shifted to Shanghai.

Lithography was first

introduced there in 1876 with the establishment of tT

T ’u-shan-wan Press in Hsu-chia-hui (Zicawi) by a Frenchman and a Chinese by the name of Ch'iu Tzu-an. was limited to Catholic propaganda.

75

Its early output

This press also

operated the T ’u-shan’wan Arts and Crafts Center, which was among the earliest schools to offer courses in Western painting.^

The Tien-shih Chai Press, founded by

Englishman F. Major, was the first to make use of the lithographic process to reproduce art books.

In 1884, the

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52

Tien-shih Chai Pictorial (Tien-shih chai hua-pao) was published, and for forty-eight years it enjoyed tremendous popularity.77 Looking through its contents, we feel as if the social history of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries were unveiled before us.

Activities of the

foreigners were recorded with bitter commentaries, the pleasures and sufferings of the common people were depicted vividly.

The artists borrowed heavily from the journalist-

artists mentioned previously, as witnessed in the almost completely Western composition of the depiction of a naval battle in the Sino-French War of 1884-1885 (Plate 4). Or in a typically Chinese landscape setting, a battalion of Japanese soldiers may be seen carting away to Japan two gigantic stone lions (Plate 5).

The chief contributor

was Wu Yu-ju, whose mastery over perspective shows in the accompanying illustration (Plate 6).

In addition, he

was noted for his willowy ladies in the style of Ch'iu Ying.

His work can also be found reproduced as New Year

pictures. Our discussion of the Western impact at this time would not be complete without mentioning the calendars produced toward the end of the nineteenth century, which

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53

became popular in the twentieth until the interruption of the Sino-Japanese War.

These can be regarded as the

prime example of the semi-colonial culture that radiated influence from the treaty ports.

At first, prints were

imported (with other kinds of merchandise into China) featuring such famous art works as the Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci, the Angelus and the Gleaners by Jean Francois Millet, as well as landscapes, battle scenes, Western beauties, animals, and flowers by anonymous artists.

But some changes had to be initiated because

of poor response, and the calendars with traditional New Year picture themes and Chinese beauties gradually replaced imported prints, becoming the most powerful salesmen of Western goods. Hsu Yung-ch'ing (1880-?) studied Western painting at the T'u-shan-wan Arts and Crafts Center under a Brother Liu.

He painted the landscape background in watercolor

for another calendar painter, Cheng Man -t’o, to add his 78 representations of beautiful women. Cheng Man-t'o was often credited with the growing popularity of the calendar pictures.

He was a meticulous draftsman, adding to the

delicate frame of classical beauties the high fashion of the day, while paying special attention to details and a

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54

smooth gradation of light and shade.

His style is typically

shown in his Girl Holding a Telephone Receiver of 1916 (Plate 7).

The figure has an unreal quality and conveys

a charm and delicacy quite far from its source in Western art.

We can say that it has its source in the sinicized

portraits in oil and on glass which were popular in the nineteenth century and that it bears a distinct relationship to the representations of ladies attributed to Lang Shih79 nxng. The subject matter of these calendar paintings was dictated by the taste of the import merchants, who would place the orders and hand them out free to the purchasers of their merchandise.

In style, they aimed

at a superficial prettiness and sensual appeal, qualities which have made calendar painting a synonym of artistic degradation. Printed in gaudy colors, the finished product appears strange to any Western eye; but the calendars have found great popularity among the Chinese, and in their prime they penetrated remote villages as well as big cities.

Therefore, their significance in this study

lies not in their artistic achievement but in their immense popularity among the people, thereby making them

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55

receptive to a distorted representation of art in general and Western art in particular.

When some artists in the

twentieth century came into contact with real Western art, they discovered to their dismay how "successful” the calendars had been in conditioning the public taste.

After

studying the masterpieces of Western art in art schools or abroad, the artists were unanimous in their condemnation of the vulgar and degenerate taste of the calendar painters and their superficial grafting of Western techniques. It is important to bear in mind that the development of the aforesaid Western-style portraits, paintings on glass, New Year pictures, and calendar paintings was stimulated by the strange environment of the coastal cities.

Painters

engaged in any of these activities were slighted for their commercialism and poor taste, and their names were seldom found in biographies of Chinese artists.

80

They had no

place in the mainstream of traditional painting, which in the nineteenth century remained in the hands of literati painters.

Their strict adherence to the canons established

in the seventeenth century--antiquarian and scholarly taste, non-professional status--reduced traditional painting to a set of lifeless conventions and produced many dry imitations. In the middle of the nineteenth century, Shanghai

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56

became an important cultural center at the expense of patriarchal and imperial Peking.

In the fantastic environ­

ment of this coastal metropolis, new feelings and unusual experiences had a liberalizing effect on the traditional painter.

They turned away from the stagnant orthodox

school to seek new inspiration in the free and hsieh-i expressions of the individualists of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

Further, they were all interested

in calligraphy and seal-engraving.

Jen Hsiung (1820-1857),

and his brother Jen Hsun (1835-1893), Chao Chih-ch'ien (1829-1884), Jen I (1840-1896), and later Wu Ch'ang-shuo (1842-1927) were the representative painters of this Shang­ hai School, and their strong and vibrant style usurped the authority of the orthodox school to become the main trend in twentieth-century traditional painting.

81

In the foregoing pages, we have seen the Chinese response to Western art at two levels.

For three hundred

years, the influence of Tung C h ’i-ch'ang and the Four Wangs dominated the mainsteam of Chinese painting.

The indivi­

dualists of the seventeenth century and the eccentrics of the eighteenth revolted against this limitation through an intensely personal style of freedom and spontaneity. The Shanghai artists of the nineteenth gave fresh inter-

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57 pretations to this hsieh-i style while searching for new directions to satisfy their new artistic impulses.

It is

apparent that opposing forces are vital to any advances in art, and China is no exception.

It is significant to note

that during this period of three hundred years the opposing forces were still seeking directions within the tradition. This was true even in the case of the Shanghai painters, who were living in a cosmopolitan city.

We can only say

that the environment did no more than provide a new stimulus for their artistic endeavors.

To both schools, Western art

appeared to be too life-like and too technical even to be considered art, which to them meant a spiritual and unres­ trained (shen-i) expression. On the other hand, elements of Western painting found their way into a popular culture, including portraits, New Year pictures, and calendar paintings.

These artists

(thought more often referred to in China as artisans) should be commended for their openness and curiosity.

However, they

were not prompted by artistic necessity; rather they were attracted by a desire for material gain and their work became part

of the fabric of a semi-colonial culture that sprang

out of the large cities.

And the hybrid nature of their

art only serves to testify to the superficial grafting of

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58

Western art and culture to a traditional way of life characteristic of the last hundred years. In conclusion, before 1898, Western art came to China but did not take root.

It maintained its relatively

marginal existence until Chinese artists began to feel the inadequacy of the traditional artistic idiom to express new feelings and new experiences and began to develop a greater awareness and a better understanding of Western art.

The time for that would come in the twentieth century.

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CHAPTER 2

REDISCOVERY AND INITIATION

FROM THE HUNDRED DAYS REFORM

TO THE MAY FOURTH MOVEMENT

(1898 - 1919)

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60

Historical Background On June 11, 1898, the Emperor Kuang-hsu issued his first reform decree, recognizing the need for changes in China.

With the advice of K'ang Yu-wei and other liberal

officials, Emperor Kuang-hsu issued scores of reform decrees, dealing with important scientific studies, the adoption of Western military drill, the improvement of agriculture and education, the abolition of the eight-legged essay in the official examination and other things. These reforms were hastily drawn'up, and many of them were as yet impossible to enforce.

After a mere one

hundred days, the reform movement was suppressed by the Empress Dowager.

Emperor Kuang-hsu was imprisoned for the

rest of his life, and his advisors were executed or went 82 into exile. In spite of its short duration, the Hundred Days Reform remained a landmark in China's response to the West.

It helped to form a new attitude to Western learning,

which was articulated best in Chang Chih-tung's famous phrase:

"Chinese learning for the fundamental principles,

Western learning for practical application."

83

The years which followed the Hundred Days Reform were marked by turbulant events.

China suffered the

xenophobic Boxer Uprising (1900) and the assault of the

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61

Allied Forces.

Revolution brought an end to the old

empire, which was replaced by the new Republic of China (1912).

In addition to internal strife, the period under

discussion (1898-1919) was marked by incessant demands by foreign powers,particularly Japan.

This may be illustrated

by the Russo-Japanese War of 1905, which was fought on Chinese soil.

Reforms in Education And Early Art Education in China Reform in education--including the establishment of a modern educational system, the sending of students to study abroad, and the reliance on Japan as the transmitter of Western learning--had a direct consequence in the re­ discovery and appreciation of Western art in China. The Chinese defeat in the Sino-Japanese War of 1895 made China realize the inadequacy of the reforms undertaken only to improve China's military strength, and Japan's vic­ tory clearly demonstrated its success in achieving moderni­ zation.

As a result, a series of domestic reforms was

initiated, especially in education, through the great efforts of Chang Chih-tung, who correctly observed that "the strength of Western countries lies in the strength of their schools."

84

Japan took the place of other countries

as the mentor of China's westernization, and the first two

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62

decades of the twentieth century saw an amazing total of almost fifty-four thousand young Chinese being educated in Japan.

85

Japan became the breeding ground of China's

political and intellectual unrest, which ultimately over­ threw the Manchu dynasty and brought about political, social, literary, and artistic changes still going on today. By 1909, there were already 52,918 schools modelled on a Japanized Western system in existence, including 415 normal colleges, 254 engineering schools, and 111 universities and special training schools.

86

Art, or more properly called

drawing (t'u-hua), was promoted in China as a branch of Western technology, called hsi-i by Chang Chih-tung, in the company of mathematics, minerology, medicine, physics, and chemistry.

87

The year 1902 was important because drawing

was formally written into the curriculum of schools of all levels, while formerly it was carried only by a few schools.

88

It is important to bear in mind that at this time Western painting techniques developed in China as a result of the wholesale importation of Western technology from Japan.

The

government, as well as the military academies and engineering schools, acknowledged the advantages of Western drawing techniques for drafting, cartography, and illustration. Western art inevitably accompanied the drawing techniques

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63

and, for the first time, reached China’s educated class not as a curiosity but as something for practical application, contributing to the progress of China.

89

This utilitarian

interest dominated until 1912, when T s ’ai Yuan-p'ei (in his capacity as the minister of education in the newly founded Republic of China) proposed aesthetic education as one of the five aims of education.

Then painting and drawing gradually

assumed aesthetic significance in China’s educational system. In 1906, a painting and handicraft department opened at the Kiangsu-Kiangsi Normal School (Liang-chiang ssu-fan hsueh-1 *ang) in the South and Pei-yang Normal School (Pei„ 90 yang ssu-fan hsueh-t’ang) in the North.

These two were

the earliest institutions to train art teachers for the fast growing number of schools throughout China. The Kiangsu-Kiangsi Normal School was under the en­ lightened directorship of Li Jui-ch'ing, himself an artist of the traditional school.

91

Students in this department

majored in painting and handicrafts and minored in music; at the same time, they were required to attend classes in the theory of education. and Western painting.

The curriculum included Chinese

It is evident that the Western

method of representation predominated, and the emphasis on technical drawing or drafting reflected the importance

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64

of practical applications of the Western method.

There

were courses in oil painting, watercolor, pencil and charcoal drawing, design, and technical drawing consisting of such subjects as plane and three-dimensional geometric diagramming, perspective drawing, various forms of projection, etc.

92

Chinese painting was taught only by Hsiao

Chun-hsien, a prominent traditional artist, and the rest of the courses were divided among several Japanese teachers, including Shiomi Kyo and Watari Hironosuke.

93

In light of its pioneering status, the department was dependent on Japan not only for its teacher, but also for art supplies and textbooks.

94

Two classes of about

thirty-five each were admitted, and these became the first generation of art teachers in China.

Upon graduation they

were assigned to positions in nearby high schools, and many of them became prominent figures in art education and aided 95 in the spread of the study of Western art in China. The painting and handicraft department was closed in the winter of 1910, and the school stopped operation at the fall of the C h ’ing dynasty.

But in 1913, the school

was reorganized by the Republican government into the National Nanking High Normal School (Kuo-li Nan-ching kaoteng ssu-fan hsueh-hsiao) and the painting and handicraft

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65

department was resumed in about 1915.

96

This school later

grew into the National Central University, which until 1949 had a flourishing art department. The Pei-yang Normal School in Pao-ting followed the example of Kiangsu-Kiangsi Normal School in establishing a similar program.

The department was also closed after only

one class of graduates of about thirty-five students.

97

The civil service examination was abolished in 1905. It was replaced by an examination to confer the titles of chu-jen and chin-shih upon returned students.

Later, this

examination system was expanded to include graduates of high normal schools.

It is interesting to note that art

(i-shu) was among the subjects tested.

In the first decade

of the present century, only graduates from the two normal schools which had painting and handicraft departments were elegible.

Chiang Tan-shu, who was among the few to take

the examination, wrote of his experience.

He reveals to

us the concept of art and art education at this early period. Naturally, he was examined in traditional painting and he painted two hibiscus blossoms. was much more demanding.

The Western painting section

He was required to present a com­

position of watercolor from the description:

"this is a

night scene, a gigantic battleship floating on the sea, the

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66 distant shores foggy and misty, buildings can vaguely be seen."

In addition, his skill in geometry was tested by

drawing hyperbolic and parabolic lines and explaining the principles behind them.

76

Before the majority of the Chinese art world was even aware of its potential influence, Western art had already attained a firm standing in the modern educational system and was included in a national examination.

From

the content of the examination we know that the candidate was trained in both Chinese and Western painting; the em­ phasis was not on creative imagination but on technical perfection.

Symbolically speaking, this was the seed which

had been planted by a foreign hand.

These early artists

trained in the Western method had as yet to realize the significance of their newly-acquired techniques, because they came with the wholesale transplantation of a borrowed system.

But a new generation would grow from them.

They

would be more aware of the advantages of Western methods, and their exploration initiated a new art movement in China.

Teaching of Western Art in Shanghai The founding of the Republic of China coincided with a new awareness of Western art.

This originated in

Shanghai, where a cosmopolitan atmosphere was more recep-

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67 tive to foreign influences.

As mentioned in Chapter 2,

Western art was taught at the Catholic T'u-shan-wan Arts and Crafts Center at Zicawei by a Borther Liu and probably dated back to the last years of the Manchu dynasty.

Soon

after the revolution of 1911, the Jesuit fathers teaching in L'Universite Aurore in the same area started an informal art institute in which instruction in the European manner 98 was given, mainly landscape painting and drawing from casts. These two schools attracted quite a number of Chinese, tt

ti

notably Chou Hsiang, Chang Yu-lcuang, and Hsu Yung-ch'ing. Around 1911, these three were important figures at this early stage of development.

Hsu-Yung-ch1ing utilized

his training at the T'u-shan-wan Arts and Crafts Center to paint landscapes in watercolor for calendars, making a name for himself.

Chou Hsiang and Chang Yu-kuang were known as

teachers of Western art methods, and under them came the first generation of Chinese artists to learn Western art in order to revitalize the Chinese tradition (Liu Hai-su is the most prominent example). Chou Hsiang founded the Sino-Western Painting Academy (Chung-hsi t'u-hua hsueh-hsiao) in Shanghai.

He

was a Ch'ing official who took part in the Hundred Days Reform of 1898 and at its failure fled Peking to find

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68 refuge in Shanghai.

99

As a traditional artist, he painted

in a highly simplified style reminiscent of Pa-ta Shan-jen of the seventeenth century.

In his capacity as a Western-

style painter, he apparently did not rely on the lessons from the Jesuit fathers at L'Universite Aurore (Zicawei). The Sino-Western Painting Academy was more like a training center for painting of stage settings and photographic back-drops than an art academy.

Chou's teaching involved

copying from illustrations in foreign magazines, and his 100 copies were in turn copied by his students. Therefore, his approach to Western art was no different from the painters of New Year pictures and calendars.

Though no

work by Chou is extant, his style probably resembled the Western appearance of the calendars and New Year pictures. Among his students were Liu Hai-su and Wu Shihkuang.

Liu founded (1912) the Shanghai Art Academy

(Shang-hai mei-shu yuan) and Wu opened (1914) the Institute of Pictorial A r t s.^*

Both of these were art schools:

and

Liu's academy developed into the first art academy organized along the lines of the European academies. The most influential painter of the three was Chang t1

Yu-kuang.

He taught Western art methods at the Y.M.C.A.

and in addition, he maintained a private studio which became

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69

the training ground for the majority of young aspiring artists in Shanghai.

102

He was also one of the founders

of the Shanghai Art Academy.

His work in Western-style

is not extant, but examples of his drawings (satirical cartoons) can be found in People’s Stand Daily (Min-li pa o ) of which he was the pictorial editor.

103

In the cartoon

illustrated here (Plate 8), Chang juxtaposed a starving straw-clad peasant with an over-fed Manchu mandarin and a tall and imposing foreigner.

Behind them stood a huge

cannon, threatening to explode.

Produced in 1911, these

images presented a sharp criticism of the abnormal situa­ tion during the last years of the C h ’ing dynasty.

Stylis­

tically, the artist used elements of the Western technique of sketching (the cartoon is basically am imported artistic expression).

He made use of Chinese brush techniques, with

great freedom, rendering the cartoon a particularly Chinese flavor.

However, the lines were far from disciplined and

the forms were loosely drawn. Attracted by the opportunities in the big cities, Liu Hai-su, Wang Ya-ch'en, and later Wang Chi-yuan came to Shanghai from the neighboring towns (circa 1911).

All

three of them were in their teens (Wang Ya-ch'en, born If

1893, Lxu Hai-su and Wang Chi-yuan, born 1895), full of

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70 venturesome spirit.

They all had had some training in

traditional painting and had become interested in Western art methods.

But the teaching of Western art in Shanghai

at that time was far from satisfactory. Wang Ya-ch'en has supplied us with a detailed account of his personal observations of Western art in Shanghai in the first years of the Republic.

Retrospec­

tively, on the occasion of his fortieth birthday, he wrote (circa 1932): At that time, there was absolutely no Western painting in Shanghai. (The situation) was pitifully elementary. Those who wished to learn Western paint­ ing looked for color reproductions in periodicals from the second-hand book stores on Peking Road. Once they saw some, whether these be designs or advertisements, they bought them for the purpose of copying them. Since there were no original Western paintings, or proper places to study, I and my friends even made up model books to fool (the ignorant). That motivated me to change from traditional painting to Western painting. At that time in Shanghai there were two Western book stores: I-wen-ssu and P'u-luhua, which sold reproductions of Western paintings. (We) bought those reproductions for imitation and pretended to be the best example of Western painting. Now in recalling, that was really l a u g h a b l e ! ^ 4 In 1912 (or 1913 according to Wang Ya-ch'en), Wang Ya-ch'en met Liu Hai-su through Wu Shih-kuang, a fellow student of Liu at Chou Hsiang's Sino-Western Art Academy.

Together with Ting Sung and others, the six of

them considered establishing a painting academy for the

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71 study of Western art.

A house was rented on Cha-p'u

Road, which became the location of Shanghai Art Academy and the home of the ambitious young teachers and their students?-^

In the beginning (later joined by Wang Chi-

TT

yuan), there were only twelve students taking courses in Western a r t . ^ ^

In ten years' time, its enrollment multiplied

many times to include seven hundred to eight hundred students. The teaching method at the Shanghai Art Academy thebeginning was probably not Hsiang's academy.

in

much better than at Chou

The young teachers were probably just

as ignorant and confused as their students.

Wang Ya-ch'en

admitted that he and his colleagues were often at a loss as how to approach the visual arts.

But these young

teachers in art were determined to find a way to study Western art, because they saw a new light in Western art. Their intention is well illuminated by the following para­ graph found in a special publication issued in celebration of the

twenty-five anniversary of the school:

The art of our country is now in an extreme state of decline. Not only that, it is actually on the verge of destruction. A few artists imitate the "dregs” of the ancients . . . without any understanding . . . Consequently, the style of art degenerates to such a degree that it has no means to save itself. In the past few decades, Western learning has come to the East. New ideas are imported vigorously; since then art has also begun to accommodate foreign elements. However, there is no discrimination, no selection . . .

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72 no understanding of various styles, and only blind imitation of formal characteristics, therefore, a new destiny (tendency) has not been attained . . . Liu Hai-su, living in this environment of "artistic famine," . . . vowed, on the one hand, to discover as much as possible the treasures of the art history of our country, on the other hand, to assimilate as much as possible the new art from abroad, with the hope of turning about the destiny of history and to blaze a new path for the future. The passage shows that these artists xvere responding to the introduction of Western learning and Western art. They turned away from a tradition that was beyond salvation by itself, and they acknowledged that the new stimulus must come from outside:

the West.

Such an attitude marked

a turning point in the introduction of Western art into China.

From this time on, the process acquired a new

dimension and a new mission, making it possible for Westernstyle art to become an important force in twentieth-century Chinese art.

Art Education in the Second Decade:

Theory

Art education evolved from the lingering influence of practical drawing of the previous decades and acquired new meaning and status in the 1910's.

n 109 Ts'ai Yuan-p'ei

published his five principles (1912), in which aesthetic education (mei-kan chiao-yu) ranked equally with universal military education, utilitarian education, moral education,

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73 and education for a world view.

We quote his words on

aesthetic education (or education for artistic apprecia­ tion) : Mei-kan is a conception combining beauty and solemnity and is a bridge between the phenomenal world and the world of reality. This concept was originated by Kant. . . In the phenomenal world every person feels the passions of love, hatred, fear, surprise, happiness, anger, sadness and pleasure, and these feelings vary according to the phenomenalof departure, reunion, life, death, disaster, good fortune, and catastrophe. As for the fine arts, such phenomena are used as sources of inspiration, and make those who look at representa­ t i o n s of them have no other feeling than that of artistic appreciation . . . The blazing red volcano or a strong wind wrecking a boat are terrible and dreadful scenes, but when they appear in a painting they turn out to be worth exhibiting and appreciating . . . Therefore, if an educator wishes to lead the people from the phenomena world to the conception, the world of reality, he must adopt aesthetic educa­ tion.111 Under the influence of Western aesthetics, T s ’ai Yuan-p*ei intepreted art in Kantian terms.

Its nature

and function had far exceeded the boundaries of the tradi­ tional attitude of regarding art as a kind of ink-play the literati.

His

for

concept of art had no national boundaries.

Ctoviously the traditional mode of expression was no longer sufficient to fulfil the needs of modern society in general and of the modern artists in particular.

With the examples

he cited, he pointed to the West as a source of inspiration, thereby giving the introduction of Western art into China

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74 a helping hand. Ts'ai Yuan-p'ei's ultimate goal in aesthetic education was to substitute aesthetics for religion.

In

a speech delivered at Sheng-chou Society, Peking, in 1917, he proposed his "Theory of Substituting Aesthetic Education 112

for Religion."

He divided the mental functions of man

into knowledge, will, and emotion. tions were serviced by religions.

Formerly, these func­ But later development

in science and philosophy had taken the place of religion in satisfying man's desire for knowledge and control of will.

At the same time, art, which religion depended on

in soliciting religious emotions in its followers, had shown tendencies to separate from religion and to develop in more humanistic terms (especially since the Renaissance). Therefore, religion ceased to be the guiding force in man's mental functions. of

other

Further, religion thrived on exclusion

faiths, as witnessed in the Crusades and Holy

Wars, whereas the universality of aesthetic feeling put it in a better position than religion to cultivate refined sentiments.

He repeated what he said in 1912, that

aesthetic feeling occupied the unique position of uniting the phenomenal world and the world of reality. The arguments in this speech seemed forced and

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75 hazy at times, but Ts'ai Yuan-p'ei must be credited with the initiation of a new attitude, that art could become an important moulding force in the creation of an ideal society.

This attitude inspired in Chinese

artists a sense of importance and social responsibility in the years to come.

It also served to give a coherent

meaning to the divergent trends in the development of Western-style painting in China. 71 To Ts'ai Yuan-p'ei, art was not bounded by reality or by national differences, therefore, both Chinese art and Western art were capable of eliciting aesthetic feeling, With his characteristically liberal attitude, he encouraged the close study of Western art and aesthetics, and his contribution in this respect can hardly be exaggerated, especially in this early period.

At Peking University,

he started an art society, the Painting Method Research Association (Hua-fa yen-chiu hui), in 1918, he lectured on European art.

114

113

to which

One of his art teachers

was Hsu Pei-hung, a young artist of great promise who had just returned after spending nine months in Japan.

Art Education in the Second Decade 7f With the influential Ts'ai Yuan-p'ei as its eloquent campaigner, art education began to flourish in

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76 the second decade of this century.

Painting and handicraft

departments were formed in most of the national and provin116 cial normal schools throughout the country.

Of particular

interest is the Chekiang First Normal School (Che-chiang ti-i ssu-fan ta-hsueh) in Hangchow.

A painting and handicraft

department was opened in 1912 at the suggestion of the director Ching Heng-i.

117

He was able to enlist the help of Li Shu-

t'ung, who had returned from Japan the year before. Li Shu-t'ung, together with Tseng Yen-nien, were two of the earliest Japanese-trained artists in Western painting.

Both graduated from the Tokyo School of Fine

Arts in 1911 and returned to their homeland.

118

Tseng Yen-

nien soon abandoned his artistic training for revolutionary work in Szechwan.

119

He died in 1921.

120

Li Shu-t'ung,

better known by his Buddhist title, Hung-i Fa-shih devoted his time to art and art education.

He exerted a tremendous 121

influence in the promotion of Western art in China. At the Tokyo School of Fine Arts (1906-1911), Li Shu-t'ung studied under Kuroda Seiki (1866-1924), whose style of oil painting was the detailed naturalism of the academic painting and early Impressionism.

122

Lx learned

his lessons well and brought back to China a large number of canvases demonstrating his technical skill.

He was one

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77 of the few Chinese artists who had completely mastered a foreign idiom, but what placed him above his fellow artists was not his technical excellence but the spiritual expression and mysterious quality we find in his paintings (Plate 9).

It was perhaps these qualities in him which led

him to become a Buddhist monk in 1919. As a teacher, Li was remembered by his students both for his clear, painstaking way of teaching and for 123 his high example of seriousness and probity.

But his

contribution to the development of Western-style painting in China was the adoption of teaching methods he acquired as a student at the Tokyo School of Fine Arts.

Formerly,

the general practice was to imitate the works of teachers, whether Japanese or Chinese, and to copy directly from textbooks published specifically for this purpose.

Models

for Pencil Drawing and Models for Watercolor Painting, published by the Commercial Press in Shanghai, were the most popular, and we include two examples from a similar 124 series (Plates 10 and 11). Li taught his students to draw from plaster casts and from still lifes.

Then, in

1914, he introduced the nude model, and we are fortunate to find a reproduction depicting the first class painting from a nude model (Plate 12).

125

In addition, Li took his

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78 students outdoors and sought inspiration in the scenic beauty of the West Lake.

In sum, he taught his students

to use their eyes and their minds, and in a remarkable way he was able to communicate his enthusiasm for painting and other arts to the students.

His recognition and encourage­

ment of Feng Tzu-k'ai's talent led directly to Feng's choice of art as a career. Meanwhile, in Shanghai, the Shanghai Art Academy was launched (1912).

In 1914, draped models were employed

in the European manner.

In 1915, it was officially re­

gistered with the Shanghai Municipal Council as the Shang­ hai t'u-hua mei-shu yuan, and in July of that year an exhibition featuring drawings of draped models was held. It was openly denounced by the principal of a certain girl's school, and Liu Hai-su was branded the "Rebel of Art" from then on.

126

The school expanded again in 1917, and

such influential figures as Ts'ai Yuan-p'ei and Liang Ch'ich'ao were added to the board of directors.

127

From 1918

on, painting excursions were organized for the students twice a year.

The first was to scenic West Lake, Hangchow.1

In 1915, Ch'en Pao-i returned from a visit to Japan. He introduced drawing from plaster casts as the basic train­ ing in the study of Western painting.

In the same year he

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79 f! founded with Wu Shih-kuang, and Yu Chi-fan the first association of Western-style painters in Shanghai.

Called

the Eastern Art Association (Tung-fang hua-hui), this group 129 had more than twenty members.

The founding members

hoped to advance Western-style painting in China through group discussions and painting excursions.

It was brought

to an abrupt end by the departure of many of its founding 130 members, who all went to Japan for further study. Ts'ai Yuan-p'ei's activities in Peking were beginning to bear fruit.

As minister of education, he set up in 1912

an office for social education to administer cultural insti­ tutions and activities, and he put museums, galleries, theaters, and exhibitions under its care.

131

In 1918, the

first national academy of art was established in Peking. Called the Pei-ching mei-shu hsueh-hsiao, it was but a modest response to the rising tide of sympathy towards introducing Western learning.

Compared to the Shanghai

Art Academy, it indicated the conservative atmosphere of Peking.

The school was headed by Cheng Chin, a traditional

painter who was much influenced by Japanese-style painting, having been studying Japanese painting in Kyoto Industrial Arts School and the Japan Painting Institute, Kyoto.

133

It

began with a preparatory class of two years in traditional 134 painting and design.

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Contribution of Japan In this initial period, Japan stood almost exclusively as China's teacher in Western art.

A new

generation of artists were trained in the Japanese art schools, and countless numbers went to Japan but chose to study outside of the formal art academies.

At this time,

a large number of artists returned to Japan from study abroad, mainly in France.

With them came the atmosphere

of inquiry, stimulation, experimentation that was to characterize the Taisho period (1912-1925).

They intro­

duced Post-Impressionism into Japan, and Cezanne, van Gogh, Gauguin, as well as Rodin, became idols of Japanese art students.

Together with the academic style and the

impressionism introduced in the previous years, Westernstyle painting in Japan represented liberalism and individualism in art.

135

It was in this atmosphere that the

Chinese students studied art in Japan.

They transmitted

to China a style of Western painting very much colored by the Japanese taste for decoration and smooth technique. Upon return they spread their new experience by teaching, some in schools, while many set up their own studies modelled at second hand on the Paris atelier, in Shanghai and Hangchow.

136

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81 From 1911 to 1919, twenty-eight Chinese were listed by Saneto Keishu as graduates of seven art schools in Japan, but the survey conducted was far from complete.

137

During

the same years at the Tokyo School of Fine Arts alone, thirty-eight Chinese students were registered, of which eleven graduated. Normal School.

138

Li Shu-t’ung taught at Chekiang First

Chiang Hsin, better known as Hsiao-chien,

graduated in 1917 and returned to teach at the flourishing center of Western-style painting, the Shanghai Art Academy. C h ’en Pao-i, who visited Japan long enough to learn the method of drawing from plaster casts, returned to Japan in 1916 and graduated from the Tokyo School in 1921.

A

large number of young painters stayed outside of formal academies, which required rigorous examinations and language ability.

As early as 1898, Kao Chien-fu went to Japan and

joined such organizations as the White Horse Society, the Pacific Painting Society, and the Watercolor Study Association.

139

»» In 1917, Hsu Pei-hung was in Tokyo for nine

months, spending most of his time in book stores and exhibition halls.

140

The next year Liu Hai-su visited Japan for

several months, pursuing similar activities.

141

At the founding of the new educational system modelled on Japan, Japanese teachers were employed to

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shoulder most of the teaching load.

At the same time,

short courses were designed in all subjects to train teachers in normal schools organized by Japanese in China and in Japan.

142

Their art teachers came with the system

and thus became the first to spread Western art in China. In a survey conducted in 1909, 16 were listed as art teachers (out of a total of 461) in China.

143

Again the

number is incomplete, and further research would inevitably yield more names.

These art teachers were scattered all

over China, in Peking, T'ai-yuan (Sahnsi), Sian (Shensi), Nanking, Foochow, and Chengtu.

In the letters they wrote

home, describing their life and work in China, we note in particular the emphasis on practical drawing and the sur­ prisingly large number of courses taught at this early period.

144

Courses were taught in the same way as at

Kiangsu-Kiangsu High Normal School described earlier: students were very interested and showed improvement.

the

145

The number of Japanese teachers in China dropped sharply after 1912, partly because of the unstable political situation and also because their responsibility was relieved by the returned students and graduates from normal schools. A good example can be found in the replacement of Yoshikae Shuji, teacher of drawing at Chekiang First Normal School,

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83

by Chiang Tan-shu (1911), a graduate of the painting and handicrafts department at Kiangsu-Kiangsi High Normal School.14^

In 1914, there were only sixty-three Japanese

teachers left in China, and two years later the number stood at twenty-seven. 147

Chinese Art Students in Europe In accordance with reforms in education, students were sent abroad to acquire Western learning.

Sometimes

their interest changed, as in the case of Wu Fa-ting (1883-1924).

Wu was sent to Paris in 1911 by the Honan

Province to study law, but he soon abandoned it for painting, which he studied until he returned to China in 1919. '*'4 ®

Li Ch'ao-shih left for Paris in 1912.

For

/

seven years he studied Western painting at l'Ecole des Beaux Arts and at private ateliers in Paris.

149

Also

ft

in France was Fang Chun-pi, who went with her relatives to Paris at the age of thirteen (1912).

She started to

study art at l'Ecole des Beaux Arts (1917).

During a

recent interview, she could recall three other Chinese *

art students at l'Ecole des Beaux Arts.

One of them

was Li Ch'ao-shih, with whom she was well-acquainted. The other two died young; one was by the name of Fan

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84

and the other was probably Wu Fa-ting, who died at the age of forty.15® The earliest student of art in England was Li Ishih who, prior to his return in 1918-1919, had been in England for more than ten years, studying physics and painting. f?

Fang Chun-pi attaches no significance to her study of Western art.

As she was brought up in France,

she would naturally study Western painting if she were interested in art.

But the other Western-style painters

in Europe were exceptional cases.

They must have

discovered something in Western art to make them abandon their original studies to take up Western painting. Documentation on these artists is almost non-existent; but a few of their paintings are extant.

They would

exert influence in the next decade after they returned home from Europe, therefore their work will be discussed in the next chapter.

Western Paintings and Theories Introduced into China As interest in Western art increased, periodicals began to print such "Masterpieces from Europe" as Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, Michelangelo’s The Last

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85 Judgment, and Decamps’ Watering Camp.

B

y

1916, the

Commercial Press had published in color four volumes of Selections of Famous European Painting, which included a wide range of examples of European styles, from Renaissance masters to nineteenth-century Barbizon painters. However, the choice was at best random, depending on what materials were available.

No attention was given to

historical development, and the color printing certainly left a great deal to be desired.

These albums were

enthusiastically bought by young artists, who eagerly anticipated each shipment of books and periodicals from Europe and Japan.

1 5^

During this period, hundreds of books on Western learning were translated, the majority from Japanese.'*'^ Books on law, education and sciences predominated, while those on art would have to wait until after the May Fourth Movement in 1 9 1 9 . Eiut it is natural to think that the Japanese art teachers and the large number of Chinese art students in Japan would havebrought art books with them from Japan, since many who went to Japan considered buying books an important part of their mission. Between 1912 and 1917, among the articles which appeared in Chinese periodicals four were most instrumental

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86 in introducing new ideas into China.

The first

article, discussing the similarities and differences between Chinese and German painting, appeared in the Eastern Miscellany (1912).

1 S7

The writer, Yao Pao-ming,

was apparently a student in Berlin.

From the standpoint

of traditional painting, he extolled the spiritual forcefulTT

ness of Albrecht Durer, and compared the imitative style of the nineteenth-century historical paintings to the traditional artists in China.

He described German

expressionism for the first time in Chinese, and he particularly noted the thick impasto of greens and reds on human faces.

He concluded by hoping that ’’students

of painting in China (would) look at more Western paintings and study their theory, while retaining China's traditional technique."^58 The second article was actually a series by Ch'en Shu-jen published in Chen-hsiang hua-pao (The True Record), the first pictorial magazine in China (1912).

159

Entitled ’’New Painting Methods," the articles briefly traced the histories of Oriental and Occidental art.

The

writer correctly observed the two main tendencies of nineteenth-century painting, realism and idealism, mentioning Jacques David, Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres,

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87 Theodore Gericault, Eugene Delacroix, John Constable, the Barbizon landscape painters, Gustave Courbet, Edouard Manet, James Whistler, and the Impressionists.

He wrote

extensively on the properties of the materials of Western painting and drawing (pencil, charcoal, pastel, watercolor, and oil) and on fundamentals of composition and color harmony.

Furthermore, he gave detailed directions

for painting from nature (how to render clouds, trees, water, river banks, etc.) and described equipment for painting outdoors.

In sum, the purpose of these articles

was not only to introduce Western methods of painting, but also to enable the reader to learn these techniques on his own.

The publication of these articles was an

important step towards understanding Western painting techniques, and was probably the first and most comprehen­ sive writing of its kind.

It is remarkable that the

writer advocated the "education of the eye!"--that is, the ability, to draw what the eye sees.

This kind of

basic training was conspicuously missing in traditional painting methods, which consist of mainly copying old paintings and manuals such as the Mustard Seed Garden (Chieh-tzu yuan hua-chuan).

But to help the beginners

(whose eyes and hands were as yet untrained to depict

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objects in nature), Ch'en recommended published models of pencil drawings by famous Japanese Western-style artists Asai Chu, Kuroda Seiki, and others (another indication of influence from Japan). ^ ° In his TTBrief Notes on New Styles of Painting" Tf

(1917), Lu Ch'in-chung wrote that the various new styles of painting had been popular in Japan for nearly ten years, but were not even known in China.

Therefore, he introduced

the theories of Impressionism, Post-Impressionism, Neo1^1

Impressionism, Futurism, and Cubism. Lu Hsun noted in his "Draft for Opinions on the Propagation of Art" (1913) that the term "art" (mei-shu) was imported.

Art was interpreted by Lu Hsun according

to the Western concept of painting, sculpture, architecture II

music, and literature (poetry).

As early as 1913, Lu Hsun

already recognized the social function of art; therefore he proposed a program to spread art among the people through the founding of museums, galleries, music halls,

.

as well as preservation of ancient sites and relics. I!

As for aesthetics, T s ’ai Yuan-p'ei was decidely the first one to introduce this Western learning to China, as indicated by his theories of aesthetic education.

It

took three years, however, for the first article to

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89

appear (1915), providing a basis for systematic study of aesthetics.

In "On Aesthetics," Hsu Ta-shun gave a

brief history of the study of beauty, including the major scholars and their theories.

Aesthetics developed

in China, even though it never attained a prominence equal to what it enjoyed in the West.

It became in the

next decade an indispensible part in the curriculum of the art schools and provided the theoretical basis for the artistic movements.

Reforms in Traditional Painting Meanwhile, voices for reform were also being heard in the realm of traditional painting because of the impact of the West.

A group of traditional artists

later known collectively as the ling-nan p'ai, represented by brothers Kao Chien-fu and Kao Ch'i-feng and by C h ’en Shu-jen, initiated this reform movement.

They sought

to revitalize and modernize traditional painting by a synthesis of Chinese and Western art. Kao Chien-fu studied Western painting in 1895 with a French artist at Canton Christian College, Macao, the predecessor of Lingnan University.

164

He went to Japan

twice, spending a total of thirteen years there, studying

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90 both Western and Japanese painting.

165

Upon his return,

he established with his brother the Sheng-mei shu-kuan (Sheng-mei Publishing Co.), which published Chen-hsiang hua-pao (The True Record; 1912), the first pictorial periodical in China. A revolutionary in both politics and art, Kao Chien-fu advocated reform in tradition painting.

His

proposal was to combine the vitality of spirit of the Chinese painting with such Western ideas as shading, perspective, and atmosphere.

He argued that the new

Chinese painting, which came to be called hsin kuo-hua, should emphasize not only form and technique but also the subject matter and motive for painting.

To illustrate

his point, he painted in 1915 a traditional-style hanging scroll, Two Monsters of Heaven and Earth, which depicted an airplane and a tank,1^ for "artistic revolution."

clearly demonstrating his zeal In 1916, he had founded the

Ch'un-shui School of Art in Canton to realize his revolutionary aesthetic principles.

It became a flourishing

center for the new national painting, attracting many talented young artists who are still active today.

The revolution of 1911 overthrew the Manchu dynasty and established the Republic of China. At

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91 that time, young people interested in art looked emaciated, as if suffering from a famine. Hungry for any kind of food, they groped in the dark. They discovered the ray of hope from Western painting; their eyes were refreshed. Subsequently, they established schools, organized art Associations, and thus initiated a reform movement in Chinese art. With enthusiasm and determination, they were undaunted by the various interferences from the conservative forces of the society. In the conflicts of the old and the new, Eastern painting and Western appreached each other. The meeting became the starting point for the Chinese painters to join the international world of a r t . ^ ^ The above account was written by Wang Chi-yuan, one of the pioneers who advocated the acceptance of Western art in China.

Even though it is riddled with hyperboles

and metaphors, the account dramatically demonstrates the new awareness on the part of the Chinese artists of what Western art could undertake for China: to revitalize Chinese tradition and to bring China towards the inter­ national trends of modern art. Chinese artists were impressed by the Westerners' ability to depict objects directly from nature.

Thus,

they believed that the revitalization of Chinese tradition must come from reinstating nature as the source of inspiration.

To achieve this aim, they adopted the basic

training methods of Western art: drawing from casts, still-lifes, nude studies.

These training methods, termed

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the "education of the eye" by Ch'en Shu-jen (1912), would enable the Chinese artists to grasp the outward world of reality.

Inspired by the example of the plein air artists

(the Barbizon landscapists and the Impressionists), they went out to the countryside to paint.

Wang Chi-yuan

re­

called an episode in which, during the first years of the Shanghai Art Academy, he and Liu Hai-su decided to seek inspiration from nature.

They walked for hours to look for

a good spot, but finally had to give up.

168

It is incon­

ceivable that there were no suitable scenery to depict.

It

only shows that their former training in traditional art (as well as for all other traditional painters) consisted of copying from old masters and practising type-forms from the Mustard Seed Garden Painting Manual.

Such training had

removed the artists from the necessity of learning from nature, or observing nature.

Once confronted with real

nature, their eyes were as yet untrained. The general public was also unfamiliar with this kind of artistic training.

As we noted before (Art Education

in the Second Decade), Li Shu-t’ung took his students at Chekiang First Normal School (Hangchow) to paint from nature.

As one of his students was looking for a good

spot near the West Lake, he was arrested by a police officer

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93 169

for suspicious behaviour.

He was eventually released

after questioning, but the incident illustrated the ignorance of the Chinese public to the methods of Western art. Most traditional painters at this point (1898-1919) were indifferent to the group of Western-style artists. They did not feel that their authority had been challenged by these young artists, who had hardly established them­ selves in the art world.

This is demonstrated by the re­

jection of all of the Western-style paintings submitted by the students of Li Shu-t’ung for the World’s Fair to be held in San Francisco (1915).

170

Apart from the fact that Western art was unacceptible in the eyes of chauvinistic traditional artists, the rejection of Western-style paintings could possibly be explained by their poor quality.

Even in the second decade

of this century, the Chinese artists were still groping for the fundamental techniques of Western painting.

An oil

painting (1918) done by Hsu Tun-ku, who was attending the Tokyo School of Fine Arts at that time (1914-1920), shows an original composition of a Scene in the Park (Plate 13). The painting clearly shows that the artist was still a novice in the Western artistic techniques.

The brush

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94 strokes are undisciplined and hesitant; there is hardly any concept of form and space. Art schools modelled on European (or rather Japanese) academies were founded and Western art was being studied in earnest at home and abroad.

Articles and books began to

appear to aid in the introduction process.

In sum, this is

a period marked by the rediscovery of Western art and the beginning of many new developments in the art world.

These

new developments can hardly be considered a cohesive force at this moment, but they would within a few years assume a unity of purpose and thus become a movement to change the course of Chinese art.

In this respect we call these years

the period of rediscovery and initiation.

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CHAPTER 3

DISSEMINATION AND CONSOLIDATION

FROM THE MAY FOURTH MOVEMENT

TO THE FIRST NATIONAL ART EXHIBITION

(1919 - 1929)

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96 Historical Background The Chinese political situation became increasingly unsettled after the founding of the new Republic.

China

was torn by the power struggles of the warlords at home and was defenseless against the encroaching influence of foreign powers.

171

A growing movement for social and

intellectual reforms was led by students returning from various countries and by the new intellegentsia being produced by the Western-style educational system.

Triggered

by the imminent threat of further national humiliation, the agitation exploded into the historic May Fourth Move­ ment (1919). 172 With the May Fourth Incident as its focal point, the turbulence known as the May Fourth Movement was ex­ plained as a complicated phenomenon which included various activities betxveen 1917 and 1921:

the ’’new thought tide,"

the literary revolution, the student movement, the merchants’ and workers' strikes, and the boycott against Japan, as well as other social and political activities of the new intellec. , 173 tuals. More important to us, the years were marked by intensive activities to disseminate Western thought.

The

new intellectuals claimed that in order to achieve moderni-

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97 zation China must be Westernized--hsi-hua--even to the extent that China’s philosophy, ethics, natural sciences, social theories, and institutions should be thoroughly reexamined and modelled after those of the West.

They

were advocating neither half-hearted reform nor partial renovation, rather a vast and fervent program to undermine the very fundamentals of the old tradition and replace it with a completely new culture.

174

Within this quest for a new culture, Western art attained a new prestige.

Western art and theories were

vigorously introduced into China and developed rapidly in an iconoclastic and liberalizing atmosphere, and this new trend made the third decade of the twentieth century a period of dissemination and consolidation of Western artistic influence in China.

This period would culminate

in the First National Art Exhibition of 1929, at which the nearly-acquired status of a school of Western-style paint­ ing in the world of Chinese art was publicly declared.

Western Art and the May Fourth Movement (1919) In this great upheaval of cultural values, T s ’ai 11

Yuan-p’ei continued to campaign for art which (according to him) was capable of stimulating interest in the New Culture Movement.

Further, the kind of interest stimulated

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98 by art, he argued, would transcend personal gain and at the same time help to maintain a perpetually tranquil state of mind (the source of his idea is probably Kant's theory of disinterestedness).

He cried, "Do not forget

175 aesthetic education in the culture movement.1"

His

theories struck a sympathetic chord in Ch'en Tu-hsiu, another leader in the New Culture Movement, who wrote in the spring of 1920 to define the New Culture Movement (Hsin wen-hua yun-tung).

He saw it as a movement to

instill new elements in science, religion, morality, literature, art, music, and the like in Chinese culture. He lamented the neglect of art and music by the participants of this new movement and expressed his fear that human existence would be reduced to a mechanical condition.

17ft

In spite of all this, art was sadly neglected in the face of more pressing political, social, and literary reforms.

The movement made no direct effort to bring

about the demise of the classical tradition and to replace it with a new art, as it had done in the field of literature. However, Western art benefitted from the iconoclastic mood of this period, in which tradition was under severe attack and Western ideas were exalted.

Hundreds and even

thousands of young men felt the inadequacy of the traditional

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177

99 expression in coping with the complex experience of a country in turmoil; they switched their allegiance to Western art and dedicated themselves to building a new art for China's modern society.

Large numbers of artists

left for Europe, mainly France, the mecca of Western art, while others with less means continued to flock to Japan. Upon their return, they were met with enthusiasm from the young movement, which was anxious for new knowledge, particularly from France. The rapid expansion of the art schools offered new battlegrounds for the participants in the movement. Centered chiefly in Shanghai, Nanking, Hangchow, Peking, and Canton, adherents of the new art consolidated their efforts by forming art societies and organizing exhibitions, thus opening new channels for the free exchange of ideas. In the new popular magazines which sprang into existence after the May Fourth Movement, they found their most useful vehicle to present new styles and theories to a greater audience.

Consequently, in a few years' time,

the movement gathered enough momentum to challenge the authority of traditional art and ultimately changed the course of Chinese art in the twentieth century.

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100 Direct Contact with Europe One significant development in this period was direct contact with Europe.

The first year of this period

was marked by the return of the earliest artists trained in France and England: Li I-shih.

Wu Fa-ting, Li Ch'ao-shih, and

Wu Fa-ting attended l'Ecole des Beaux Arts for

many years, and so he was familiar with Western artistic methods.

An example of his work, Portrait of a Manchu

Lady (Plate 14; before 1924) makes an interesting com­ parison with Portrait of a Young Woman (Plate 2; late nineteenth century).

Both depict a seated half-figure

of a Chinese woman in national costume.

The similarity

in subject matter only serves to accentuate the differences in form.

The smooth, flat figure of a young girl in the

earlier picture is replaced by the solid, three-dimensional form of the Manchu woman, whose figure is enlivened by vibrant brush strokes.

The delicate and pale face with

porcelain -like skin underscores the fragile beauty of the young girl: it contrasts sharply with the realistically fleshy face of the woman.

The earlier painting has an

exotic charm of its own; its creator has adopted some elements in Western painting techniques but has modified them according to his training in Chinese art.

In the

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101 later painting, the artist has mastered a foreign medium. He shows a firm sense of three-dimensional form which is absent in the earlier work.

His new achievement comes

from rigorous training in the Western tradition, something which the nineteenth-century Chinese artist had no opportunity to undertake and would probably have had no desire to understand. Li Ch'ao-shih was a fellow student of Wu Fa-ting at l'Ecole des Beaux Arts, Paris.

He also acquired a

firm foundation in Western art technique, enabling his to present a faithful representation of his subjects.

An

example of his later work is illustrated here: Portrait of a Young Boy (1947; Plate 15). Not much is known about Li I-shih's ten years in England (circa 1909-1918/9), but his paintings demonstrate that he was at ease with the Western medium of oil. His Portrait of Painter Wang Meng-pai (Plate 16) is probably dated before 1927, when both artists were teaching in Peking (Li I-shih went south to Nanking to teach Western painting at the newly-founded art department at National Central University).

The painting reveals Li's

knowledge of nineteenth-century portraits, possibly the early works of Eduoard Manet.

But his strict adherence

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102 to the academic tradition sometimes made his work uninteresting. The return of these artists brought European influence directly to the young movement, which formerly depended entirely on second-hand sources of reproductions and filtered versions from Japan.

By teaching at the art

schools, they pioneered serious study and disciplined training as opposed to the freer self-expression of the returned students from Japan.

They put the movement for

new art on a stronger foundation for later development. At the same time (1919), many young artists who ii had been inspired by Ts'ai Yuan-p'ei to look towards the West eagerly left for Europe.

Some of them were on

government scholarships, for at the founding of thi Peking National Academy it was proposed that some government scholarships should be reserved for the study of Fine Arts xn Europe.

17 ft

11

Hsu Pei-hung went to Paris in 1919,

170

Chang Tao-fan to England in 1920,^^ P'an Yu-liang to Lyon in 1921,^®^ and Lin Feng-mien to Paris in 1922. These were the more successful of the large group of artists who flocked to Europe in these years.

Some

pursued serious study, while many others led "an aimless existence on the fringes of Montmartre and the Quartier

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103 183 Latin." It

Hsu Pei-hung spent two years in Paris, during which he became firmly grounded in academic painting. He studied first under Pascal Adolphe-Jean Dagnon-Bouveret (1852-1929)--a student of Gerome and Corot at l'Ecole des Beaux Arts and the favorite portrait painter of the Parisian aristocracy--then he passed demanding courses in anatomy, perspective drawing, and art history, and was officially admitted to l'Ecole des Beaux Arts.

184

At the same time,

he attended the Academie Julien, where models were pro­ vided for those artists who paid the admission fee of one franc.

Between incessant financial worries and pressing

IV schedules, Hsu still found time to visit the numerous museums and galleries to learn from past masters.

185

Hsu went to Germany in 1921 and stayed for three years, studying in Berlin under Arthur Kampf (1864-?)--a painter in genres, portraits, and military subjects, and president of the Academie des Beaux Arts, Berlin, in 1907. He returned to Paris in 1923, where he exhibited at the Salon des Artistes Fran^ais and the Societe Nationale des Beaux Arts.

His work received favorable comments from 187

such artists as Albert Besnard and Jean-Auguste Dampt. He returned to China, first in 1925 and then in 1927, to

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186

104 head the Western painting section of the newly-founded art department of National Central University and gave the young new art movement a new direction. Chang Tao-fan studied painting at the Fine Arts Department of University of London

from 1921 to 1924.

188

After graduation, he left for Paris, where he attended l ’Ecole Nationale Superieure des Beaux Art for two years. He returned to China in 1926 to begin a highly successful career as the architect of cultural policies of the Nationalist Government.

189

P'an Yu-liang spent almost a decade in Europe, studying under Lucien Simon (1861-1945) and Conomardi in the art schools of Lyon, Paris and Rome.

She developed

into a mature artist, as a result of thorough training in the academic tradition, but added to it influences from the Post-Impressionists and a native sensitivity to line and rhythm (Plate 17).

190

She returned to China in 1928

to teach at the art department of the National Central University and added new impetus to the development of Western art in China. In contrast to these artists, Lin Feng-mien forsook the academic tradition for the powerful expression of the Fauves in Paris.

Using strong colors and semi-abstract

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105 forms, he produced huge compositions such as Groping in the Dark, Lust for Life, and Sad Tide, which illustrate his interest in literary symbolism and highly personal style.

191

These were works shown in his first one-man

exhibition (1926) held at Peking National Academy, where he had just assumed the directorship.

192

Groping in the

Dark (Plate 18), executed in 1924 for the first exhibition of Chinese art in Europe, depicts a group of shadowy figures. They are the great thinkers of all ages, who have devoted their lives to seek light in the darkness and to give meaning to life.

Done in dramatic contrasts of light and

dark and free use of the brush, this painting represents an important development in the art of Lin Feng-mien.

By 1924, Chinese art students were in Europe in sufficient numbers to organize a large exhibition of Chinese art in Europe.

The first of its kind, the exhibi­

tion was initiated by the two associations formed by Chinese art students in France:

the Ho-p’u-ssu hui by those studying

art history and aesthetics and the Mei-shu kung-hsueh she by those studying art and crafts.

The exhibition soon won

support from the Chinese art students in Germany, Belgium, England, and Italy.

Lin Feng-mien, Liu Chi-p'iao, Lin Wen-

tseng, Wang Tai-shih, Tseng I-lu, and others were elected

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106 from the students in Paris to be representatives for the gathering of Chinese art, ancient and contemporary. The exhibition was held from May to July in the Palais du Rhein, Strasbourg, and it featured painting, calligraphy, sculpture, ceramics, embroidery, and other crafts, amounting to over one thousand items. students abroad were particularly numerous:

Works by art the beaux-arts

tradition was represented by Hsu Pei-hung and Fang Chun-pi, Lin Feng-mien received the best reviews with his intensely personal style learned from the Fauves, and Liu Chi-p'iao presented a synthetic style combining the Chinese use of brushwork and Western attention to volume and space to depict a Chinese theme, as seen in his Yang Keei-fei after Bath (Plate 19).

Other contributors were painters Wang

Tai-chih, Tseng I-lu, and sculptors Wu Tai and Li Shu-liang. Again, T s ’ai Yuan-p'ei was the guiding force behind this extraordinary project.

As the honorary chairman of

the preparatory committee, he gave a speech emphasizing the harmonious coexistence of art and science.

He wrote

an introduction to the catalogue, in which he observed the need for cultural interchange between the East and the West.

Since the Renaissance, European artists had incor-

ported certain elements of Chinese painting, and the time

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107 had come for Chinese artists to absorb certain Western techniques and concepts.

In this introduction he also

made clear that China was in quest of a new art by learning from the West; and the art on display demonstrated clearly the Chinese students' ability to adopt European styles and to combine the new techniques they had acquired with their own tradition.

193

The exhibition enjoyed the cooperation of French government officials, who were shown with the Chinese organizers of this ambitions project in the accompanying plate (Plate 20).

It was a successful first attempt on

the part of the new artists to introduce ancient and con­ temporary Chinese art into Europe.

Moreover, this joint

venture brought the art students together under a common aim:

"the ancient art of China urgently awaits reorganiza­

tion, the artistic theories of the East and the West urgently await harmonious synthesis and study, the new art of the future of China urgently awaits creation."

194

Brief

as these words may be, they represented the essence of the art movement in twentieth-century China.

All three urgent

tasks became the concern of each conscientious artist. Two years later in 1926, Lin Feng-Mien, who had recently returned from France, explained how these goals

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108 could be achieved. follows:

His theories could be summarized as

the basic difference between Chinese and Western

art was between the expression of an idea and the represen­ tation of nature.

Western art, being objective, led to an

excessive development of form; therefore, it was deficient in the expression of emotion.

(Lin was discussing repre­

sentational art before the twentieth century, of course.) Eastern art, being subjective, led to an insufficient development of form; therefore, it was incapable of giving full expression to the emotions.

Because of this lack of

development in form, Lin argued, Chinese art had degenerated to ink-play, becoming useless in a society.

Therefore, in

order to revitalize Chinese art, the most important step was to stimulate the development of form, both by adopting the basic method of Western art and by understanding the historical development of Western art.

Further, Lin suggested

that the ancient art of China should be reorganized so as to make a contribution to the world.

195

It is significant

to note that Lin Feng-mien was not only thinking of China learning from the West, but also was suggesting that both Chinese and Western art would benefit from the meeting of the two traditions.

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109 More young artists migrated to Europe. Hsun-ch’in studied in Paris from 1925 to 1929.

P'ang 196

Wang

Yuan-po attended l'Etoole Nationale Superieure des Beaux Arts in the twenties.

197

Li Feng-pai was at the same

school from 1925 to 1927,

198

as was Wang Jih-chang in the

199 years between 1926-1929. departed for Europe:

In 1928, several more artists

painters Liu Hai-su, Wang Ya-ch'en,

Ch'en Shih-wen, Wang Ling-i, and sculptors Liu K ’ai-ch'u and Liu Ya-fan. Though Japan lost its leading place to Europe in the training of Chinese artists, it continued to attract many aspiring artists.

From 1920 to 1929, there were forty-

eight Chinese students registered at the Tokyo School of 200 Fine Arts (twenty graduated).

They represented an im­

portant force for establishing Western art in China, as will be seen by their active participation upon their return in art education, in artist groups, and in the introduction of theories.

Art Schools in Shanghai The increase in art students abroad was directly related to the rapid expansion of existing art schools and the founding of many more.

In Shanghai, the Shanghai

Art Academy opened its enrollment to girls in 1920 and

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110 changed its name to the Shanghai College of Fine Arts (Shang-hai mei-shu chuan-men hsueh-hsiao or Shanghai Meichuan for short) in 1921.

201

New courses were added to

include Chinese painting, Western painting, art education, design, sculpture, and handicrafts; and facilities became more complete.

202

Teachers of Western art in this decade

included Wang Ya-ch'en, who returned from Japan after graduating from the Tokyo School of Fine Arts in 1922, and Ting Yen-yung, a fellow student at the same school (1921-1926).

203

Most important, Shanghai Mei-chuan acquired

in 1920 the service of Li Ch'ao-shih and later Wu Fa-ting, 204 who were the first artists trained in France. Liu Hai-su, the director of Shanghai Mei-chuan, continued to be the champion of the New Art Movement in Shanghai.

In 1924, an exhibition was held by a graduate

of Shanghai Mei-chuan, Yao Kuei-chu, in Nan-ch'ang, Kiangsi. Some paintings of nude models were displayed in this exhibi­ tion.

The exhibition was immediately banned by the military

governor, but Liu came to the aid of his student by writing a strongly-worded open letter to the governor.

The minister

of education accepted Liu’s argument, and, as a result, the use of nude models spread to other schools which had been too timid to use them.

205

But victory was not complete.

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Ill In 1926, General Sun Ch'uan-fang, warlord of the Five Provinces, forbade the use of nude models in art schools. Liu took up the challenge and declared war in the newspapers. Much annoyed, Sun threatened to arrest Liu and close the school.

Danger was averted, however, when General Sun was

removed from power by the arrival of Chiang Kai-shek and his troops in Shanghai in 1927.

206

In 1926, Hsin-hua Art Academy (Hsin-hua i-shu chuank*o hsueh-hsiao) was formed by secession from Shanghai Mei»»

chuan.

Faculty members included the influential Chang Yu-

kuang, Japanese-educated Yu Chi-fan and (later) Wang Yach'en, when he returned from Europe in 1931.

Modelled

on the Shanghai Mei-chuan, this school gradually began to enjoy equal prominence.

The campus was completely destroyed

in 1937 by Japanese bombing, but the school continued until 1941 at a temporary site in the French Concession.

207

Inspired by the spirit of the May Fourth Movement (1919), the graduates of Chekiang First Normal School, namely Wu Meng-fei, Feng Tzu-k'ai, and Liu Chih-p'ing (all students of Li Shu-t'ung), organized the Shanghai Normal School for Art, which around 1926 changed its name to 208 Shanghai College of Art (Shanghai i-shu ta-hsueh). was forced to close for political reasons around 1930.

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It In

112 its brief history, it produced seven to eight hundred art teachers,

209

and in 1925, part of its faculty (led by Ting

Yen-yung and Ch'en Pao-i) had left to form the China College of Art (Chung-hua i-shu ta'hsueh), which was closed also in 210 1930. At the return of the first group of writers from it " Paris, T'ien Han organized the Nan-kuo i-shu hsueh-yuan (Academie du Midi) in Shanghai, in order to popularize European realistic literature and drama.

T'ien Han intro­

duced Hsu Pei-hung to this group during the artist's first return to China in 1925. n

He later added an art department,

which was headed by Hsu Pei-hung.

211

During this period (1919-1929), graduates of the Shang-hai Mei-chuan were starting their own schools.

An

example is the Pai-o hsi-hua hui (White Goose Western Painting Association) founded in 1923 by former students of Liu Hai-su:

P'an Ssu-t'ung, Ch'en Ch'iu-ts’ao, Fang

Hsueh-ku, and others.

The association developed into the

Pai-o hui-hua pu-hsi hsueh-hsiao (White Goose Preparatory Painting School).

212

The school provided basic courses

in Western painting, while the students were encouraged to work in an atmosphere of liberal experimentation.

Until

the outbreak of Sino-Japanese War in 1937, it produced

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113

nearly one thousand graduates, of whom many went abroad to study.

213

Art Associations in Shanghai With increasing numbers of Western-style artists, the New Art Movement gained momentum.

Art societies and

public exhibitions became popular means for communication, arousing the interest of the public in the large cities. Actually, artist groups were not unknown in Chinese art history, but in the last few decades they had degenerated into something like social clubs in which the amateur painters gathered for wine, food, anecdotes, as well as discussions on art.

Examples are the Shanghai T'i-ch'ing

Kuan Calligraphy, Painting, and Seal-engraving Association (Hai-shang t ’i-cb^ing kuan chin-shih shu-hua hui; active circa 1885-1926) and Ku-huan Chin-yu Calligraphy, Painting, and Seal-engraving Association (Ku-huan chin-yu she chink 214 shih shu-hua she; active 1926-1930).

But the art groups

formed by the Western-style artists resembled more the Impressionists; they found strength in unity in order to fight for their acceptance in an unfriendly or indifferent environment.

The most notable was the T'ien-ma hua-hui

(the Heavenly Horse Art Association) founded by Liu Hai-su and other members of the Shanghai Mei-chuan (Wang Ya-chfen,

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114

Chiang Hsiao-ch ien, Wang Chi-yuan, Ting Sung, and others). They held a total of eight annual exhibitions until 1927, when their activities were interrupted by the arrival of Chiang Kai-shek and his army in Shanghai and the subsequent departure of many of its founding members for further study xn Europe.

215

Another influential art association was the Dawn Art Association (Ch'en-kuang mei-shu hui), which was founded in 1921 by Chang Yu-kuang, Ch'en Pao-i, Chu Yingp'eng, and others.

It functioned more like an informal

atelier where the artists could paint from models provided by the association.

By 1925, it had gathered a substantial

following of three hundred members.~

Four exhibitions

were arranged, which were attended by quite a large public. The Dawn Art Association should be recognized for its sincerity and enthusiasm in promoting the movement. For example, in August 1926, a lecture series was organized to bring about a greater attention to art and its problems. It included such impressive names as Chang Tao-fan, Li Chinfa, Ch'en Pao-x, Fu Yen-ch'ang, among others.

217

The lec­

tures were published the next day in the Art World (I-shu chieh), the art supplement of Shen Pao, Shanghai.

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115

Art Schools and Associations in Peking From the bustling center of Shanghai, we shift our attention to Peking, where the first National Academy and the Painting Method Research Association of Pei-ta were already in existence.

The former expanded to include both

traditional and Western painting.

The Academy enlisted the

help of Wu Fa-ting when he first returned, and in 1926, Lin Feng-mien assumed directorship and brought his Fauvist style to conservative Peking.

219

In the late twenties, the en220

rollment increased to about three hundred fifty students. tl Among its graduates were Liu K ’ai-ch'u, Li Yu-hsing, and Lei Kuei-yuan (who later pursued further study in France). Li I-shih was also active in Peking during the May Fourth Movement (1919), teaching at Peking University

221

and

working with members of the Painting Method Research Asso­ ciation as drawing instructor.

Wu Fa-ting also taught oil 222

painting at the Research Association when he was in Peking. This art association probably evolved into the Plastic Arts Research Association (Tsao-hsing mei-shu yen-chiu hui), which by 1924 was giving classes in traditional painting, Western painting, calligraphy, and seal-engraving, as well as publishing the periodical Plastic Arts (Tsao-hsing meishu) for the study of art history and theory.

The honorary

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116 director was none other than Ts'ai Yuan-p’ei, and its membership included both students of Pei-ta and other interested persons.

223

Young artists could also study Western painting at II " Northern China Academy (Hua-pei hsueh-yuan), founded by ?i 224 T s ’ai Yuan-p'ei in 1922,

In the same year, Wang Tzu-

It yun, then a student at the National Academy of Art, founded (with his teacher Wu Fa-ting) the Apollo Art Association tt 225 (A-po-lo i-shu hsueh-hui) in Peking,

Three exhibitions

of Western painting were held, and the second one in 1923 was attended by Lu Hsun.22^

A lecture series was organized

in the summer of 1924 and was followed by the establishment of the Apollo Art Research Institute (A-po-lo i-shu yen-chiu so % 227 so ). ft

Wang Yueh-chih, educated at the Tokyo School of Fine Arts between 1916 and 1921, brought a highly decora­ tive style of Western painting to Peking.

In 1924, Wang

Tzu-yun and Wang Yueh-chih jointly founded the Peking it " College of Art (Pei-ching mei-shu hsueh-yuan), which offered courses in traditional painting, Western painting, sculpture, commercial, art, handicrafts, and music.

228

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117 Art Schools in Nanking The first art school in Nanking was established in 1922 by Shen C h ’i-ch’iao, a graduate of the painting and handicraft department of Kiangsu-Kiangsi High Normal School.

229

In its short four years of existence, it had

sixty-five students.

Western-style painting was taught

IT

by Hsu Tun-ku, another graduate of the Tokyo School of II Fine Arts (1914-1920), and theory by Lu Cheng, a renowned scholar in aesthetics and Buddhism.

230

In 1927, a group of young artists submitted a request to Ts'ai Yuan-p’ei, then the director of universities, to establish an art department at the National Central Univer­ sity (called the Fourth Sun Yat-sen University at that time) to supplement the National Academy in Peking.

231

Ts'ax

Yuan-p'ei gladly agreed, and the painting and handicraft department of Kiangsu Fourth Normal School in Nanking, founded in 1924, became the basis of the new art department at National Central University.

232

from Peking to head the department.

Li I-shih came south Hsu-Pei—hung* who

returned to Shanghai from France in 1927, spent a brief period in Peking as the director of National Academy. took charge of the department in 1928.

233

Under the able leadership of Hsu Pei-hung, the

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II Hsu

118 department established a solid foundation by emphasizing technical perfection and a healthy understanding of artistic principles.

235

The Nanking school strongly advocated the

beaux-arts training of etudes for Western-style painting in China.

The department attracted many talented artists,

among whom were Wang Ts'ai-pai, Chang Ta-ch'ien, Kao Chien(f fu, Chang Shu-ch'i (traditional painting), P'an Yu-lxang, Li I-shih, and later its alumni Lu Ssu-pai and Wu Tso-jen (Western painting).

235

Art School in Hangchow Hangchow became an important center for the New Art Movement at the founding of National Academy of Art in 1928.

It dedicated itself to "the introduction of

Western art, the reorganization of Chinese art, the synthesis of Chinese and Western art, and the creation 236 of an art of this epoch.”

In sum, it embraced the three

urgent tasks defined by the Chinese students in Europe in the early twenties, and in addition it assumed the basic reponsibility of all new art advocates in China, i.e., the introduction of Western art.

With Lin Feng-mien as

its director until 1939, the Academy developed into a progressive center for new art, emphasizing not only technical training also the ideal of personal expression xn art.

237

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119 Other Centers of Activity By the end of this period in 1929, art schools or departments modelled on European academies were established in many of the major cities in China.

In Soochow, Yen Wen-

liang founded the Soochow Academy of Art (Su-chou mei-shu chuan-k'o hsueh-hsiao) in 1922 and advocated a Western style reminiscent of nineteenth-century Romanticism.

233

There were also Wu-ch'ang Academy of Art established in 1920

239

and Wu-hsi Academy of Art established xn 1926.

240

In Canton, the Lingnan University opened an art department in which brothers Kao Chien-fu and C h ’i-feng taught.

The

Canton Municipal Art Academy also opened in Canton, and its graduates were already active in propaganda work during the Northern Expedxtxon of 1926-1927.

241

In Amoy, Fukien, an art department was founded at the Mei-chi Normal School, where Japanese-trained Mo Ta" ft yuan, Lin Hsueh-ta, and Shanghai Mei-chuan graduate Chang Shu-ch*i taught.

242

Also in Amoy was C h ’i-t’ing Normal

School for Art (1923-1927), founded by the graduates of 243 the art department of the University of Shanghai.

Even

in remote Szechwan, there were two centers of art educa­ tion:

the art department of the University of Szechwan,

Chengtu,

244

and the Southwest Academy of Art,

(Chungking),

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120 founded in 1925, which by 1945 had already produced more than two thousand eight hundred graduates.

245

Western Art and Theories in China Chinese publishing underwent a remarkable develop­ ment under the aegis of the May Fourth Movement (1919). Some four hundred new periodicals in the vernacular appeared within a few years.

246

Advocates of the new art were quick

to recognize the effectiveness of this medium in spreading their new aesthetic.

Before 1927, there were the Painting

Magazine (Hui-hua tsa-chih) published by Peking University, Art Education (Mei-yu) of the China Association of Art Education, Art Magazine (Mei-shu tsa-chih) edited by the art schools in Shanghai, The Arts (I-shu) and New Art n Fortnightly (Hsin i-shu pan-yueh k*an) by the Society for Art (I-shu hsueh-hui), Art Criticism (I-shu p'ing-lun) by the Eastern Art Research Association and the Dawn Art 247 Association, and Art World (I-shu chieh) by Shen Pao. In addition, there were periodicals published by art schools in various cities.

Examples are the Chi-mei

Normal School Monthly (Amoy), Art (Chengtu), Nan-mei tsachih (Nanking), Tsao-hsing mei-shu (Peking), and Ts'ungling (Shanghai).

248

Some of the these art periodicals

stopped publication after a few issues, while others

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121 continued for several years. The initiation process in the last period (de­ scribed in Chapter 2) was fragmentary and unselective; but in the post-May Fourth Movement years, the most inten­ sive introduction of Western art and theories took place, either by translation or adaptation.

Numerous articles

appeared on Impressionism, Post-Impressionism, and Fauvism (the most popular three styles in China), but the nineteenth-century Neo-Classicists, Romanticists, and Realists were not neglected. introduced in 1919.

250

249

The art of Rodin was

In 1920 alone, Brancusi, Laurens,

and the German Expressionists were brought to the attention of Chinese artists.

251

t»

Between 1921 and 1922, Yu

Chi-fan wrote a series of articles devoted to modern painting in various countries of the world (France, Belgium, Italy, Spain, England, Germany, Holland, Russia, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Hungry), bringing the Chinese artists comprehensive and recent knowledge of what was happening in the art centers of the world.

25 2

In 1923,

Ruskin's Modern Painters was partially translated by Feng Tzu-k'ai.

253

William Morris and A. J. Penty’s concept of art 254 and its relationship to soceity was explored in 1920.

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122 Leo Tolstoy's What is Art was translated by Keng Chi-cbih as I-shu lun in 1921 and was published with an introduction by Cheng Chen-to.

He wrote:

(Tolstoy) overthrew the basis of what is called in the present day art for art's sake and established his own definition of art . . . (it) is different from othersj art is not only for life, but for religion. The boundary of art is widened to encompass human existence completely. Works of art must be popular. In essence, Tolstoy thought of art as a revolutionary tool to overcome violence and to create a world of love. He did not negate art, he merely denied the kind of art that is aristocratic, entertaining, and harmful. Many people would object to the introduction of I-shu lun (Tolstoy's theory of art) into China at this time because his theory is too extreme. At a time when art is beginning to be promoted in China, it looks as if we should not introduce such a pre­ judiced theory to destroy the public's interest in beauty and art . . . It is true that his theory borders on prejudice, but it is just perfect to use it to heal China's ills. Chinese art has always been looked upon as entertainment, . . . aristocratic and has no relationship to life . . . Chinese art has no aim; c h 'in, chess, calligraphy, and painting . . . cultivation of refined feelings is its only goal; it is individualistic, not social; imaginary, not from life . . . I feel that China resembles Russia in the old days, it is in the midst of the rushing tide of reform. It seems that we should not sit back and discuss art for art's sake . . . but take art as a tool to demand liberation, to overcome violence, and to create a world of love. This is quoted at length because Cheng Chen-to has given an excellent picture of the Chinese art world in these early years, when the introduction of each theory raised the hope of rejuvenating China and reforming Chinese

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123

art.

Art could no longer be regarded as the pastime of

the privileged literati, it gradually assumed a more im­ portant place in Chinese society. Indeed, it was the II cherished hope of Ts'ai Yuan-p'ei to see art and science become the two main pillars of a modern Chinese nation, 2 and he spared no effort to achieve this end. Admittedly, the appearance in 1921 of Tolstoy's theory of art was a bit premature.

Even in literature,

Kuo Mo-jo did not publish his "Revolution and Literature" until 1926.

257

At this time, as in literature, artists

were engaged in the controversies of art for art and art for life.

258

„ T'ang Chun seemed to echo the opinion of

the majority by saying that the two actually complement echo other.

Quoting Lessing, Kant, Plato, Fichte,

Tolstoy, Kropotkin, and William Morris, he said that the basic goal of art was independent, but it had distinct relationship to life.

It is important to note that he

felt that art could never be made to suit the taste of the common people, because this would result in the loss of the refined taste and lead to its degeneration.

So

he believed that the people must be educated to understand the refined taste in art.

259

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124

Characteristic of this period of learning (19191929) were the large number of publications on Western art and theory.

Chang Tao-fan translated W. C. Constable's

Modern European Painting (1928).

Feng Tsu-k'ai and many

of his contemporaries took advantage of Japanese publica­ tions and translated them for Chinese readers.

Examples

are Twelve Lectures on Modern Art by Ueda Bin, translated by Feng Tzu-k'ai (1929) and "Survey of Russian Art" of 260 Akida Ujaku, translated by Ch'en Chih-fu (1929). IT

In aesthetics, Lu Cheng was the most important and prolific writer.

Using original and Japanese sources,

he wrote introductory surveys, such as Elementary Aesthetics (1923) and Survey of Aesthetics (1923), as well as careful studies on modern aesthetics, for example:

Recent Trends

in Aesthetics (1924) and Recent Theories of Aesthetics and the Principles of Beauty (1925), each appended with exten­ sive bibliographies.

He was followed by Fan Shou-k'ang,

who published Survey of Aesthetics (1927) and The Essence of Art (1928). Volbehr,

261

There were translations of works by Theodor

John Ruskm,

262

and Japanese scholars such as

_ . 263 . 264 265 Kuroda Hoshin, Itagakx Takako, Kurahara Tadato, among others.

266

In addition, articles also appeared to

introduce the theories of Croce, Kropotkin, and other philosophers.

267

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125

On the tremendous impact of Western learning, Mary Wright has written sympathetically: Then suddenly and nearly simultaneously China was struck with equivalents of the Reformation, the French Revolution, and the Russion Revolution. Marx and Dar­ win were new, but no newer than Aristotle and Rousseau. OAQ Young Chinese discovered them all at the same time. The same pattern held true in the world of art.

In

the short period of ten years, the whole history of Western art, all of its theories and images, poured into China.

For

those Chinese artists who hoped to revitalize Chinese art by learning from the West, the knowledge now at their dis­ posal presented ready made formulas to be applied.

There­

fore, there was no need to undertake critical study in order to grasp the intricacies of the Western art theories, nor was there adequate time for them to do so.

Vague "isms"

were fervently discussed without detailed examination of their meanings.

As a result, they were often advocated

or rejected in toto, usually with a great deal of ambiguity and confusion. Another aspect of the introduction of Western learning has been described cuttingly by the great writer Lu Hsun: A horrifying phenonemon in the world of literature and arts in China now is the importation of an "ism,” but without introducing the meaning of this "ism."

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126

As a result, everyone uses his own interpretation. When he reads a work mainly on the author himself, he calls that "Expressionism.M If it concerns other peo­ ple more, then it is "Realism." To be moved by a girl's exposed legs to write poetry is "Romanticism," but to look at a girl's legs and not be allowed to write "poetry is called 'Classicism'." A head falls down from the sky, on this head stands a cow, oh, . . 260 love . . . such is "Futurism," etc., etc. Such superficial and "imaginative" approaches to the West were more than apparent in the world of art.

It

would probably have been an inevitable, but lamentable, phenomenon in any early period of cultural transition on such a large scale.

In the midst of this massive introduction of Western art, Western-style artists made it their business to consolidate their position in the Chinese art world, which may be seen in the large number of art schools and associations which had come into existence in a mere decade.

They also adopted a Western way of communication

with the general public:

by exhibitions.

In one-man

exhibitions or group exhibitions, it was demonstrated that the Western-style artists were freely experimenting in the imported styles. From time to time, Western-style artists felt the need to join forces in order to create a stronger impact. As early as 1922, a large number of Western-style painters

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127 held an exhibition of their recent works in Shanghai, where Wu Fa-ting showed his Rain and Tower of Thunder and Li C h ’ao-shih showed a still life.

270

Another

exhibition worthy of notice was presented in January, 1926, and reviewed by a contemporary critic: The interest of the artists in this joint exhibi­ tion of Western-style paintings lies in landscapes, still lifes, and portraits. They emphasize strong colors and use powerful strokes to demonstrate force. As for the accuracy of form and the appropriateness of their contrast, these are out of the question.271The above description could fit almost any figurative style since Post-Impressionism.

It shows that the critics, or

the artists, were hardly discriminating in their observa­ tions.

The artists, in particular, took delight in

experimenting in the many styles that were being imported at random.

Especially, the art students in the many art

schools had to face the problem of mastering a medium with qualities very different from the brush and ink with which they had been familiar since they began their educa­ tion.

The individual styles of Manet, Monet, Cezanne, van

Gogh, Matisse, Derain, and Vlaminck were considered as a repertoire from which to pick and choose in the learning process.

And a Western-style painter could become a Post-

Impressionist or a Fauve anytime, depending upon his whim. The policy of holding frequent exhibitions by art

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128

students, though a good publicity device, pressured the students into finding the easiest styles to imitate.

The

seemingly easy and free expressions of the Post-Impressionists and the Fauves found great favor, whereas Cubism, which re­ quired an intellectual and analytical vision, hardly had any following. Impressionism became popular among the young artists, led by Wang Ya-ch'en and other members of the T 1ienma hui.

Liu Hai-su studied the works of Cezanne, van Gogh,

Matisse, and Derain through reproductions available in Japan and China (he visited Japan from 1919 to 1920).

Possibly

inspired by Cezanne's Bathers and Matisse's The Joy of Living, he painted Dance in Nature in 1924 (Plate 21), which depicts a group of seven nudes in various postures in a landscape setting.

The composition of the painting

is crowded, and the farms of the figures are clumsily drawn and placed.

In 1929, Liu went to Paris where he

saw for the first time genuine Western painting.

His work

improved substantially, as can be seen in The Express Train (Plate 22), which was exhibited at the Salon Automne in 1929.

He painted in a style reminiscent of van Gogh.

Thick impasto color was applied in powerful strokes, which formed an integral part of his design.

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129

Ting Yen-yung was a faithful follower of Matisse (through reproductions, of course), finding the simplified forms and calligraphic outlines close to Chinese painting. One painting done about 1928, entitled The Returning Boat (West Lake), seems to have captured the tranquil mood of the famed landscape (Plate 23). One of the most pleasing paintings produced in this decade is the Chiu-lung-wu in Soochow (Plate 24) by Yu Chi-fan (circa 1924).

With vertical, horizontal, and

diagonal strokes, the painter presents a simple but rich view of nature.

The colors are green, blue, orange, and

purple, and highlighted by white, achieving a decorative and integrated design. Compared to the artists above, those artists trained in Europe displayed a much more solid technical foundation and a firmer grasp of the Western oil medium (see plates 14-17).

But they were outnumbered in this

period by the students returning from Japan and by recent graduates of native art schools.

Therefore, the majority

of the works produced in this decade (1919-1929) were not only imitative, but also poorly executed because of in­ sufficient technical training.

It was not until the

return of Hsu Pei-hung from France (1927) that technical

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130

discipline was emphasized.

tt One look at Hsu Pei-hung's

study of a nude (charcoal drawing), made when he was study­ ing in France, is enough evidence of his qualification as the champion of academic realism (Plate 25).

The First National Art Exhibition, 1929 After a decade of intensive activity, the young movement was finally acknowledged.

In 1929, the First

National Art Exhibition was held in Shanghai from April 10 272 to 30 under the auspices of the Ministry of Education. Hailed as a major breakthrough for the New Art Movement, this exhibition featured old and contemporary traditional painting, Western-style painting, sculpture, architectural design, photography, and embroidery, selected from artists all over the nation.

273

Imitation of ancient masters pre­

vailed in the section of traditional painting, and the reforms initiated by the Kao brothers were criticized by conservative Huang Pin-hung as too Japanese, which, in traditional art, was a severe criticism.

274

There were five or six hundred paintings in the section on Western-style painting, almost as many as tradi­ tional paintings on display.

Japanese influence still

dominated the scene (as seen in the landscapes, portraits, rt it M still lifes of Wang Yueh-chih, Ting Yen-yung, T ’ang Yun-yu,

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131 ft

t»

Hsu Tun-ku, Mo Ta-yuan, all trained in Japan) in styles ranging from realism to Impressionism, Post-Impressionism, and Fauvism.

t« " P'an Yu-liang and Wang Yuan-po,who had recently

returned from France, represented academic realism, and Lin Feng-mien’s five paintings were dubbed Idealism because of their distortion of figures, intense colors, and symbolic content.

But he was criticized for inadequate three-

dimensional representation of figures.

275

An obscure

painter Feng Kang-po received the best review for his excellent technique and harmonious colors in a self276 portrait of photographic likeness. Further, paintings similar to those generally found on calendars and advertise­ ments were exhibited side be side with copies of Western masterpieces.

277

A special feature of the Western-style painting section was the display of about sixty canvasses from Japan.

Umehara Ryusaburo, a famous Western-style painter

of Japan, personally attended the exhibition.

278

The oil

paintings included works by Ishii Hakutei, Wada Eisaku, _ 279 Wada Sanzo, and (of course) Umehara Ryusaburo. The Western-style paintings of the Chinese artists raised serious questions far the New Art Movement.

We have

seen the isolated experimentation of the previous period

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132

(1898-1919) grow into a coherent movement, through the pionnering spirit of many artists who believed that Western art provided the magic formula for the revival of Chinese art.

Under the illusion that a new art would evolve from

this meeting of East and West, the artists embraced Western art whole-heartedly, thereby submitting themselves to a foreign medium as well as a foreign aesthetic.

This is

particularly true for those art students educated in Japan, whose influence dominated this period.

Learning second­

hand from Japan, they inherited also the problems which accompanied any mass influx of a foreign culture, problems which the Japanese were still struggling to solve.

When

they began teaching in China, the knowledge was further diluted, and misunderstandings multiplied.

Art styles

which took centuries to evolve in Europe were indiscrimi­ nately adopted and discarded, because these Oriental artists saw only the stylistic differences but not the background from which these styles matured.

Moreover, art

students in China picked up their teachers’ interpretation of modern artists like Cezanne and van Gogh as "crazy geniuses,"

Many despised a strict academic training and

pursued self-expression and the realization (or indulgence) of their own talent.

280

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133

The absense of intelligent criticism or artistic standards and the lack of a good collection of Western painting encouraged the artists to copy from reproductions, and some work even found its way into the First National Art Exhibition.

The new art of this movement was actually

the superficial imitation of a foreign tradition.

How

could such an art bring about the "renaissance" of Chinese art?

281

How were the landscapes, portraits, and still

lifes different from the traditional paintings?

How much

did they (especially the paintings of nudes) reflect the realities of present-day China, its struggles and suffer­ ings?

It seems that the works produced by the New Art

Movement fell short of the high expectations of its pioneers, who faced the incompatibility of two cultures. The efforts of the past decade, however, were not spent entirely in vain.

This mass introduction stimu­

lated an inquisitive atmosphere, achieving a better under­ standing of Western art; and each new theory found its own adherents.

Towards the end of this period, the Russian

influence began to emerge, again through the intermediary of Japanese publications.

In addition, the reality of

political conflicts and social upheavals had forced some artists in China out of their ivory towers.

More and more

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134

they became preoccupied with the relevance of their art to society. Conflicts within the New Art Movement can be Tl

detected in another way.

In 1929, Hsu Pei-hung, concerned

with the aimless imitation of modern styles of Fauvism, Cubism, Dadaism, and Purism, reaffirmed the need for art to be true to reality.

He saw these new styles as formalism,

which was not an honest reflection of reality, and there­ fore not true and not beautiful.

Instead, he advocated a

realistic style that could be understood by everybody. Hsu Chih-mo, a poet of the Romanticist school, answered this charge and explained art as the personal expression of the artist.

In defense, Hsu Pei-hung made a distinc­

tion between true art and false art, the former being a truthful reflection of reality and the latter a distortion of reality.

282

By 1929, the New Art Movement had firmly established its place in the world of Chinese art and had even shown tendencies to diversify.

Artists trained in the European

academies gathered around Hsu Pei-hung in Nanking to pur­ sue academic realism in art.

Lin Feng-mien in Hangchow

became the central focus of the modern Western style.

The

influence of the Japanese-trained artists was on the decline,

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135

and the progressive artists in Shanghai and Peking emerged to offer a political alternative for the future of Chinese art.

But, most important, all of them shared

a fundamental conviction that a new art must be established to reflect the present.

The decade had provided the

foundation of knowledge and understanding for development in the next period.

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CHAPTER 4

POLARIZATION AND REORIENTATION

FROM THE FIRST NATIONAL ART EXHIBITION

TO THE SINO-JAPANESE WAR

(1929 - 1937)

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Historical Background The years immediately following the May Fourth Movement (1919) continued to be troubled by competing warlords and foreign imperialists.

The students and the

labor force exercised their new-found influence to wage war against warlordism and imperialism.

They found

ideological support in socialism and furthered the development of the Chinese Communist Party, established 283

in 1921.

In the hope of achieving unity and indepen­

dence from foreign powers, the Kuomintang was reorganized along Soviet lines under Sun Yat-sen in 1923, and Chinese Communist Party members were admitted as individuals in 1924.^®^

After the death of Sun Yat-sen, the Kuomintang,

under the military leadership of Chiang Kai-shek, carried out the successful Northern Expedition in 1926-1927, when national and anti-imperialist sentiments generated by student demonstrations and police gunfire in incidents at Shanghai and Canton (May 30 and June 27, 1925 p Q C

respectively) were at their height. At the founding of the national capital in 1927 at Nanking, Chiang Kai-shek proceeded to purge the left wing group of the K u o m i n t a n g . L e f t i s t organizations were disbanded by force in Shanghai and Nanking, and thousands

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of Communists and leftists were executed.

The Chinese

Communists unsuccessfully attempted to seize power in major centers like Canton (1927) and Changsha (1930). They retreated to Juichin, Kiangsi (1928) where, led by Mao Tse-tung, they proclaimed the birth of the Chinese Soviet Republic in 1931 and began to concentrate on rural reconstruction.287

In spite of Chiang's numerous

extermination campaigns, they managed to remain in Juichin Q OQ

until their famous Long March to Shensi in 1934. At the same time, China’s political situation worsened with the intensified aggression of China's neighbor, Japan.

Manchuria was seized in 1931, resulting

in the establishment of the puppet state, Manchoukuo, and fighting broke out the following year in Shanghai at the provocation of Japanese police.

These were but two

of the incidents which openly revealed Japan's ambitious territorial claims in China.

"It was not until after

prolonged student and popular demonstrations in Peking and elsewhere, strong communist pressure, and the kidnapping of Chiang Kai-shek by Chang Hsueh-liang in 1936, that the Kuomintang was forced to reverse its policy of appeasement." Finally on July 7, 1937, war broke out between China and Japan.

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Polarization of the New Art Movement In the midst of political and social turnoil, the literary movement, which had by now demolished the authority of the classical language, turned from the artistic emotionalism of the earlier years to assume more realistic attitudes on national issues.

The movement

became complicated by the spread of Marxist ideas among literary men.

In 1926, Kuo Mo-jo published "Revolution

and Literature," in which he attacked Romanticism, Naturalism, Symbolism, Aestheticism, and other "isms" which had been popular in literature.

He proclaimed the

beginning of a revolutionary literature which would be both realistic and sympathetic to the Socialist proletariat.

290

By 1928, the movement for revolutionary

literature gained momentum and developed into the movement for proletarian literature.

Two years later, in March,

the All-China League of Left-Wing Writers was founded by m

it

Lu Hsun, Mao Tun, Yu Ta-fu, among others.

2 9 1

In June,

the Kuomintang organized a group of writers who published \

the "Manfesto of the Nationalist Literature Movement" as a counterblast to the Left-Wing writers, and the All-China League of Left-Wing Writers was forced underground.2^2 In the same year, the Kuomintang intensified its campaign

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140

against the liberals and moderate leftists, as well as Communists, and imposed strict censorship on all publications.293 The controversies in the literary movement inevitably affected the New Art Movement, whose participants felt the pressure of the grave political situation and the irrelevance of their art to the demands of the society. It has been shown in the previous chapter that Western art had established itself in China.

The public in the

big cities had begun to get accustomed to the new styles and even to admire their more academic manifestations. But this new art had meaning only to a small coterie of intellectuals residing mostly in the larger cities.

Large

numbers of China's rural population could not read or write their own language.

It was one thing, then, for

intellectuals to adopt new methods in the arts; it was quite another to develop them within China so that they would have meaning for the less culturally privileged classes of society. The polarization in politics and literature soon spread to art.

Following the example of revolutionary

literature, a group of artists declared war on the New Art Movement in 1930 and proclaimed revolutionary art as

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141

an integral part of the left-wing culture movement. Pitted against them were several divergent forces, which included the Nanking school, the Hangchow school, and a number of artists who were earnestly striving to adapt their art so that it would reflect some of the spiritual stress of the time without resorting to revolutionary means.

Reorientation of the New Art Movement What appeared to be irreconcilable conflicts were actually the result of much consideration, because the time had come for the New Art Movement to review its mistakes in the past decade, to

reexamine its priorities, and to

start again in a new direction. In addition, China's artistic tradition, criticized severely in the previous period in the eager quest for its failure to utilize new and modern knowledge, received a helping hand from the prevailing national sentiment and asserted itself for the reappraisal of new artists. All in all, these trends represented efforts of the artists to formulate their aims in response to the demands of a society in transition and a nation in danger. They were, in fact, signs of maturity, because the

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participants in the New Art Movement had started to relate a Western experience to their native environment and to absorb or reject what they had acquired without discrimina­ tion in the preceding decade. The divergent currents in these years created a stimulating and controversial environment.

Many exhibitions

were held, and new groups were formed to search for a possible reconciliation between form and theory.

Art

education developed (under the leadership of students returning from Europe) and began to build a firmer technical foundation.

New ,Tismsn continued to be introduced, but

they received more scrutiny before acceptance.

294

The Resurgence of Traditional Art One of the most outstanding features of this period is the resurgence of tradition.

It was brought

about by a number of factors: the official policy of the Kuomintang government, the growth of nationalism, the reexamination of the national heritage, reform activities of the traditional artists, and recognition of traditional art from abroad.

These developments are discussed below.

The Official Policy of the Kuomintang Government

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"The accession to power of the Kuomintang in 1927-1928 marked the end of an era in which revolutionary strains had been dominant in the party's program and the beginning of one of the most interesting and instructive of the many efforts in history to make a revolution the heir of ancient tradition."

205

As a result, Confucianism

was actively revived as an instrument to restore internal order.

But according to Joseph Levenson, "the twentieth-

century was not traditional; it was traditionalistic. It was not a serene philosophy but a state of troubled mind.

One looked to the past not really for universal

wisdom, the touchstone of civilization in general, but for the basis of Chinese civilization, the 'national essence.' This search for the old was something new, a search for the particular Chinese treasure, imperiled now, it seemed, by Chinese revolutionaries of foreign inspiration." Mary Wright considers the Confician revival of the Kuomintang a dismal failure, judging from its failure to bring social stability and national revival. And above all, there was no general resurgence of Confucian values and

m o r e s .

However, in the course of the

Confucian revival, the government pursued a nationalism in culture that gave the traditional arts a new prestige.

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)

144

The Growth of Nationalism The growth of nationalism in twentieth-century China was stimulated by continuous foreign aggression. It was the driving force behind the many reforms to build a strong and united nation.

Nationalism in the twenties

propelled many intellectuals to advocate complete Westernization in order to save China.

But during this

period (1929-1937), the same sentiments made many people look at traditional culture with less antagonistic pre­ judices.

And the official policy of a nationalistic art

struck a sympathetic chord among the history-conscious and the patriotic.

The Reexamination of the National Heritage The resurgence of traditional culture can be interpreted as a natural reaction after the initial period of absorption of Western ideas, which had already become apparent in other branches of learning.

Largely through

the efforts of chen-li kuo-ku (reorganization of the national heritage) by Hu Shih, Liang Ch'i-ch’ao, and others, tradition emerged in a different light.

208

The

Chinese art world went through a similar but slower process.

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145

Traditional art and theory, formerly attacked fiercely for its imitativeness and conventionality, was given a more rational assessment.

A critical approach

was adopted in the study of traditional art and its theory, chiefly through the dedicated efforts of scholars like T'eng Ku and Tsung Pai-hua.2^

Works of foreign scholars

on Chinese art were translated.200 More important even than the critical study of Chinese art history and theory was the unprecedented availability of ancient masterpieces to the general public and the Chinese artists.

Formerly, Chinese art was either

in the collection of the emperors or in the hands of private collectors.

The Chinese artists had to rely on

personal contacts for opportunities to examine any great work of art.

With the founding of the Republic, however,

the treasures of the imperial collection were nationalized. It was opened to the public in 1925,

301

and for the first

time in Chinese history traditional art was displayed in great quantity and superb quality.

These treasures

opened the eyes of the Chinese people and renewed their pride in the national heritage. More museums and galleries were established, until the number stood at 146 in 1937.

302

The museum

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146

and gallery of the National Peking Research Institute began in 1931 to display over 5,000 pieces of painting, Q Q O

sculpture, and calligraphy.

And the Nanking Center for

the Preservation of Antiques was nationalized in 1928.304 These institutions provided an excellent opportunity for systematic study of China’s artistic heritage. The rediscovery of Chinese artistic tradition coincided with the successful excavation of many prehistoric sites, which elucidated China's cultural origins and pushed back the boundaries of ancient history many thousands of y e a r s . T h e s e archaeological finds further renewed pride in the national heritage, which had suffered because of the influx of Western civilization.

Recognition of Traditional Art from Abroad Admiration for the rich artistic heritage of China was given more support from abroad.

Large-scale exhibitions

of Chinese art were organized under government sponsorship in the West.

The most notable was, of course, the Inter­

national Exhibition of Chinese Art held in London from November 28, 1935, to March 7, 1936, virhich (according to Ferguson) established traditional Chinese art on the same plane as the art of Western countries.30** A preliminary

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147 exhibition was held in Shanghai from April 8 to May 1, 1935.

The collection was exhibited again in Nanking

after its return from London in April, 1937, together with a selection of paintings by living Chinese artists. Both exhibitions were attended by large crowds who were able to become familiar with the same art treasures that had become well-known to those who attended the London Exhibition.3^8 The London International Exhibition of Chinese Art was preceded and followed by other exhibitions of Chinese art, both ancient and contemporary, which toured the central cities in Europe.

These included the very

successful Paris exhibition of 1933 (organized by Hsu Pei-hung), which returned by way of Moscow and Lenigrad.30^ It presented works by traditional artists (as well as Western-style artists experimenting in the native medium): Lin Feng-mien, Hsu Pei-hung, Chiang Hsiao-chien, Liu Hai-su, Wang Ya-ch’en, and Yu Chi-fan.3^

Hsu Pei-hung

emerged as the ideal contemporary artist in the eyes of Western critics, who felt that the Chinese could still learn from their own tradition without coming all the way to Europe to acquire "tired stuff" from the Europeans.3^ Paul Albert Laurens, an academician at I ’Ecole des Beaux

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148

Arts, attended the exhibition with Ch'ang Shu-hung, who was then studying painting in Paris.

He pointed out that

art was the expression of a nation and an epoch and warned against the representation of Chinese principles by Western painting techniques.

312

A similar exhibition

which aroused great interest in the West was organized in 1934-1935 by Liu Hai-su.

It originated in Berlin313

and toured London,314 Czechoslovakia, Poland,315 and Amsterdam.316 All these exhibitions served to earn Chinese art a place in the international world of art.

The recognition

of Chinese art abroad further enhanced its prestige at home.

Reform Activities of the Traditional Artists The process of reorganization of the artistic heritage was aided by the founding of art associations to promote traditional painting.

As early as 1920, the

Research Association of Chinese Painting (Chung-kuo hua hsueh yen-chiu hui) was formed in Peking for the careful study of ancient methods and the selective adoption of new knowledge.

317

It organized seven exhibitions and

published a ten-day periodical, I-lin hsun-k'an.

318

In

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149

1929, the Bee Painting Association (Mi-feng hua she) was founded in Shanghai for the study of traditional painting^^ and developed in 1931 into the Chinese Painting 320 Association (Chung-kuo hua-hui).

As the most important

association of traditional painting, it included the most prestigious traditional painters: Huang Pin-hung, Cheng Ch'ang, Hsieh Kung-chan, Chang Ta-ch'ien, among others. Learning from the New Art Movement, it sought to promote Chinese national painting by exhibitions, publications, lectures, and teaching. association

321

A significant aspect of this

was that among its large membership there

were many who were active in reforming Chinese art through the traditional medium.

All the activities mentioned above signaled the emergence of traditional art.

The New Art Movement was

influenced, so were the Western-style artists, resulting in the redefinition of the aims of the New Art Movement. The Western-style artists, advocates of a foreign mode of representation, had to fight to establish themselves in a hostile and indifferent environment. Once they returned from abroad to the realities of Chinese society, they were separated from the Western sources

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150

both of inspiration and materials.

They felt the immense

weight of the tradition upon them and at the same time suffered an acute sense of frustration at the dilemma of fusing the Chinese tradition with the art of Europe and making their art relevant to contemporary China.

They

saw the rising prestige of the traditional artists, whose reforms were readily accepted by the general public. Following the reform movement, traditional painting seemed to provide an easier solution to their dilemma.

One

after another took up brush and ink to try to invest the native medium with a new interpretation. The attitude of the new artists was best summarized by Lin Wen-tseng, a fellow-student of Lin Feng-mien in France and, later, his colleague at Hangchow National Academy.

He stated the aims of the New Art Movement in

the early thirties: If we want to make the decadent Chinese art responsive to the needs of social consciousness and to plough a new path, we must not forget the contribution of Western painting in our study of Chinese painting. At the same time, if we want to separate oil painting from tired forms and to establish a new art, adequately representative of our national spirit, it is not all right to neglect the achievement of traditional painting in the past centuries.323 This, in fact, was a redefinition of the aims of

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151

the New Art Movement proposed by Lin Feng-mien in 1926. The task of introducing Western art was omitted and new elements such as social consciousness and national spirit (which characterized the thirties) were manifested in the New Art Movement.

The new direction of the movement

satisfied the policy of nationalism in art adopted by the Nanking Government and won the approval of Western critics. This new direction of the New Art Movement and the interest in reform of the traditional artists gave rise to a strong current in twentieth-century Chinese art.

It had

been generally called the Movement for the Renaissance of Chinese art (Chung-kuo i-shu fu-hsing yun-tung), and its underlying principle was the synthesis of Chinese and Western art.

The movement was by no means homogenous;

it embraced the increasingly Japanized version of the Ling-nan school in Canton, the idyllic landscapes of Lin Feng-mien in Hangchow, the realistic figures and animal paintings of Hsu Pei-hung in Nanking, the almost entirely traditional landscapes of Liu Hai-su in Shanghai, the union of oil medium and Chinese form and content attempted by Fang Chun-pi, among other things which were inspired one

by an urge to revitalize the Chinese tradition.

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The Ling-nan School As early as 1916, Kao Chien-fu founded the Ch'unshui Art Academy in Canton to undertake his revolutionary reform of traditional painting.

By 1929, he had come to

be known as the highly respected leader of a school of painting, though he was still criticized by the conservative faction of traditional painters for obvious Japanese influence.^2**

It is easy to see that Kao Chien-fu

and other leaders of this school were influenced by those Japanese-style artists who had assimilated Western realistic techniques: Matsumura Goshun, Takeuchi Seiho and Yamamoto Shunkyo.

In a painting by Kao Chien-fu, depicting

a fox devouring a chicken (The Weak Devoured by the Strong, 1928; Plate 26), the impact of a gruesome and aggressive act is weakened by a lyrical atmosphere of a crescent moon, reeds, and wild flowers.

A similar treatment of the fox

and plants can be seen in a Japanese-style painting by Hishida Shunso, A Fox under the Moon.327

In 1935, a group

of Ch'un-shui Art Academy graduates returned from studying in Japan.

They were Fan Jen-ting, Yang Ying-fang, Su Qp O

Ho-lung, and Huang Lang-p'ing.

Exhibitions of their

works were held in Canton, Shanghai, Nanking, and other cities.

They demonstrated more clearly than ever the

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153

influence of the so-called decorative realism in Japanese-style painting.32^

Fang Jen-ting was particularly

indebted to the Japanese artists, a fact which was clearly demonstrated by his painting of Butterflies (Plate 27). Such a painting readily brings to mind the work by the above-mentioned Japanese artists, and in particular, Kosalca Shodo. In an attempt to relate their art to the spirit of the times, the Ling-nan artists were the first to depict urban scenes, streets, harbors, factories, and other visible manifestations of contemporary society.

They

intended to create a new art for China depicting modern subject matter with a synthetic style designed to combine the essential merits of the traditional school with what was considered good in Western art (i.e., perspective, light and atmosphere, modelling). takes:

But they made two mis­

(1) depending on Japan for their source of

Western art and (2) following the solutions reached by the Japanese painters in bringing their native tradition up-to-date.

What this means is that the Western art the

Ling-nan painters learned was already filtered by the Japanese artists and had been incorporated into Japanese painting as detailed nature-realism.330

Often in the work

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154

of this school, aesthetic feeling was overshadowed by a purely technical and theoretical state of mind.

331

More important, the choice of contemporary subjects and the adoption of Western techniques did not succeed in producing a truly contemporary art.332

Lin Feng-mien The work of Lin Feng-mien and others of the Hangchow school exemplified another solution based on their experience in Western training.

They attempted to absorb

the impact of Western art by translating into the native idiom the discoveries of modern artists in abstraction and design.

The little landscape of Lin Feng-mien (Plate 28),

which was displayed in the annual exhibition of Hangchow National Academy in 1934, is an interesting example. Here we see that the artist’s break from braditional pictorial design (such as overlapping hills, multiple focal points, conventional sexture strokes) was impossible without influence from modern Western painting.

The

artist has taken delight in the fluidity and transluscency of the Chinese ink.

His vision is at one refreshing and

naive, injecting a new vitality into the ancient pictorial art of China.

In his more well-known river scenes, Lin

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155

Feng-mien achieved with ink washes and light colors an abstract and decorative feeling without resorting to the labored realism of the Japanese.

Hsu Pei-hung By 1929, Hsu Pei-hung had abandoned what Dagny Carter has described as "the long hair, velvet coat and flowing tie and his detached languid mannerism" of the Latin Quarter, and had changed all this for the long Chinese gown.333

This is an outward change which coincided with a

new and essentially Chinese development in his painting. He took up the Chinese brush again, and his paintings now combined the free style of the Chinese brush and ink with a Western knowledge of anatomy and academic form.

He

attempted to bridge the gulf between the East and the West by combining large scale Western narrative style with Chinese method and subject.

In Chiu-fang-kuo, completed

in 1931 (Plate 29) and the later The Fool Moving the Mountain (1940), Hsu Pei-hung sought to revive the grandeur of Chinese figure painting of Han and T'ang times.

But

the mixture of East and West, especially in the latter work, inspired not heroic admiration so much as curiosity (even though the realistic drawing of the figures attracted

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156

many favorable comments). IT

Hsu Pei-hung was more successful with more traditional subjects, and his influence on the evolution of new national painting was tremendous.

His powerful

studies of galloping horses (Plate 30) are wholly Chinese in conception, but they also reflect the strong influence of Western visual naturalism.

However, the creative handling

of the early studies was repeated so many times that it degenerated into a formula to be followed by countless imitations.

In his compositions of animals, birds, and

trees, often executed after many preliminary drawings from real life,3^4 he used a new approach to pictorial design, combining a fresh element of representation with the bold simplicity of the old literati painters. Based on exhaustive exploration of Western realism and systematic study of the national heritage,

Hsu Pei-

hung achieved an individual solution which freed Chinese paintings from the bondage of tradition and imitation. His contribution to the movement to revitalize national art was immense, and under his artistic leadership Nanking became a flourishing center of the new national painting movement.

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157 Liu Hai-su The most controversial figure of the three pro­ fessed leaders of the New Art Movement was Liu Hai-su, who also turned to traditional painting at about the same time.

However, his literary-style paintings depended al­

most entirely on traditional forms and compositions, except for a stronger brush execution and an occasional incorporation of Western fundamentals of design carried over from Post-Impressionism.

Consequently, he was open

to criticism by the conservative traditional painters:

335

his forms are often confused, branches and tree trunks badly articulated, and

(most inexcusable of all) the

handling of brush and ink is vulgar (Plate 31).

But his

vigorous style influenced many painters who saw in it a challenge to Western realism from tradition.

337

and a permissible departure

He and his followers were generally referred

338 to as the Art Academy School, Mei-chuan p'ai.

Other Artists The Movement for a Renaissance in Chinese Art influenced many Western-style painters to use the oil medium to depict Chinese compositions and Chinese themes. The representative artist here is Fang Chun-pi, who was hailed by Rene Grousset as one who had with subtlety

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158

merged the tendencies of the East and the West.

339

In

one of her more pleasing works, we see the typically Chinese theme of a solitary angler fishing by the snowy riverbank (Plate 32) translated into the Western medium. In the process, the painting loses the serenity and freez­ ing atmosphere generally found in traditional paintings of the same theme, such

as those by the famous Northern

School traditionalist P'u Ju. contrived and meaningless.

340

The painting looks

Apparently, the future of new

national art did not rest in this direction.

The New National Painting Movement M Except for the case of Fang Chun-pi, the movement for the Renaissance in Chinese Art was actually the equiva­ lent of the New National Painting Movement (Hsin-kuo-hua ft

yun-tung), which had been initiated by Kao Chien-fu upon the founding of the Ch'un-shui Art Academy (1916) and which in this period (1929-1937) had become expanded to include all efforts to develop a contemporary style of traditional painting.

Hsu Pei-hung summarized the basic

attitude of these artists: Keep what is good in the ancient methods, continue those that are about to vanish, correct those that are not good, increase the insufficient, and assimilate what can be adopted in Western painting.

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159

Apparently, what the Chinese artists thought necessary to learn from Western art was still the basic training method.

Sun Fu-hsi, a Western-style painter

educated in France but also active in the New National Painting Movement, suggested (1935) that Chinese artists should adopt the scientific method of Western art in analyzing nature and observing the laws of perspective, anatomy and light.

342

Sun Fu-hsi was not the first artist

to offer this solution for rejuvenating Chinese art:

he

was actually advocating something already practiced in the ff

art schools, especially those under Lin Feng-mien and Hsu Pei-hung.

In fact, Sun Fu-hsi was only echoing the original

intention of the pioneers of the New Art Movement to adopt the objective attitude of Western art in building a new art for China.

But in the thirties, these artists had for

the first time acquired the technical methods and the psychological attitude which would enable them to realize their quest.

In 1929, Lin Feng-mien made drawing compulsory

for all students of the Hangchow National Academy, so that they would be prepared for the task of contributing to the creatxon of new art.

343

" Hsu Pei-hung became famous for

his emphasis on drawing and other fundamental courses at National Central University.

What Sun Fu-hsi said had

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160

popular appeal, and many artists agreed whole-heartedly. They saw this as the most effective means to enable an artist to grasp outward reality, which (according to the artists of the thirties) was still a necessary step to the modernization of traditional painting.

344

Ni I-te, a Western-style artist and writer on art, proposed (circa 1932) a more fundamental attitude in his article on "New National Painting."

345

The reform of

traditional painting, Ni I-te suggested, could only be achieved through a change in artistic attitude; therefore, the artists should abandon the imitative, imaginary state of mind,

Instead, the artists should be receptive to the

stimulation of new feelings and new phenomena, should thereby create new techniques to express new motives. Though Ni I-te did not elaborate further his very signi­ ficant observation, he pointed that the artists should not only study the new art of foreign countries, but also use the knowledge for the revaluation of traditional paint­ ing.

What Ni I-te observed represented an important

development in this period; the realization of the need to reform the fundamental attitude to art.

This realiza­

tion would eventually lead to more basic changes than the previous concern with form and technique.

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161

Besides the group of painters actively engaged in the reform of traditional painting, there were many traditionalists who felt that traditional painting lost its uniqueness with the incorporation of Western techniques. Others felt the need for reform but criticized the borrow­ ing from Western and Japanese painting practiced by new 345 national painting advocates. Most of them continued to hide themselves in the glories of the past and only a few achieved something new to contribute to the future of Chinese art, notably Ch'i Pai-shih, Huang Pin-hung, and Chang Ta-ch'ien.

Western-style Painting in This Period (1929-1937) The previous pages have showed that many advocates of the New Art Movement joined in the Renaissance in Chinese Art Movement by experimenting in new national paintings.

But their activities were not exclusive.

They continued to be active in Western-style painting and art education, training thousands of young artists in the rudiments of Western art, with the specific aim of incorporating the acquired techniques into a new art for China. ft

It can be said that Hsu Pei-hung mastered the realistic technique of European oil painting and draftsman­

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162

ship to a degree attained by no other Chinese artist of the period.

That mastery was typified by two of the

large compositions with almost life-size figures, which Hsu Pei-hung painting in Nanking between the years 1930 and 1933.

One of them, The Five Hundred Retainers of T'ien

Heng, depicts a group of more than twenty people looking with sorrow on the impending departure of their leader T'ien Heng (Plate 33).

The arrangement is in the best

academic tradition (Hsu even included a portrait of him­ self in the center of the composition), the drawing is sound, and the anatomy is impeccable.

However, to the

Western observer there is little to set it apart from the hundreds of narrative canvases painted in the art schools of Europe during the early years of this century.

The

same may be said of Waiting for Our Liberator, which shows a group of country people in a landscape with trees and a grazing buffalo.

The scene epitomizes the studied

grouping of the figure-drawing classes, and the fact that the

figures are Chinese seems only to emphasize

the contrived effect.

It can clearly be seen that the

M realism advocated by Hsu is in fact a kind of visual naturalism in the best beaux arts tradition, not necessarily related to the world around the artist.

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163 ft

In contrast to the realism of Hsu Pei-hung, Lxn Feng-rnien was strongly influenced by Vlaminck, van Dongen, and the German Expressionists.

He sought to express his

inner struggles and intense emotions through compositions of strong colors, expressive lines and symbolic forms. Groping in the Dark (Plate 18) is an early example, and his later works in the thirties are mostly nudes and still lifes with an increasing distortion and fragmentation of 346 the objects portrayed.

Compared to the lyrical

landscapes he did in ink, these oil paintings possess a brutal force that underscores the torment of an artist torn by two different traditions. Many Chinese artists recognized the expressive power in color and line of the modern European schools. They found that the styles of these schools allowed them a stronger expression of their traumatic experience in the meeting of the West and the East, much more effective than the realism of the academic tradition.

Inevitably,

many fell into the pitfall of formalism by pursuing nuances of color and line just as their predecessors had played with ink and brush. Liu Hai-su's study in France (1929-1931) proved to be useful for the development of his art.

He still

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164

experimented with the Post-Impressionist styles of Cezanne and van Gogh (Plate 22), but he also moved into Fauvism in order to achieve greater strength in his paintings.

The

landscapes he did while he was in Europe were reminiscent of Derain and especially Marquet.

In a painting of the

Seine (1930; Plate 34), Liu Hai-su presented a simple, balanced view executed with precise and spontaneous brush strokes.

The Opposing Forces The New Art Movement (as we have seen so far) was dominated by two currents.

One pursued the realistic

appearance of three-dimensional forms while the other aimed at the expression of inner emotions through color and line. Both these currents had developed without strong contact with the realities of life in China, and consequently they were entirely unsatisfactory to those artists who had been awakened to their position in society by the critical political and social situation.

Under the influence of

the Marxist-Leninist interpretation of art and society, these artists followed the left-wing writers and started a left-wing movement in art which would contribute to the salvation of China by the creation of a revolutionary art.

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165

Even before the Left-Wing Art Movement appeared around 1929, it had an inspired mentor in the person of Lu Hsun, a writer and social critic of such prominance that he became an almost legendary figure.

His interest

in art stemmed from his deep concern with the ills of the society and his enthusiasm for the folk tradition of art. He believed in the social and utilitarian function of art as early as 1913, when he worked under T s ’ai Yuan P'ei at the Ministry of Education.

347

As a result of his interest

in Chinese woodblock printing, he became increasingly pre­ occupied with wood-engraving as a contemporary medium used by Western artists.

He recognized that woodblock

printing was preferable to the imperfectly developed mechanical printing methods then available in China and that, as an economical method of mass communication, this process could serve the cause of social education.

A

further advantage consisted of the usefulness of woodengraving (graphic art) in time of revolution, when great demand was to be met at short notice.

348

Because of its

importance in revolution and in the education of the masses, Lu Hsun felt that art, which also included graphic art, must be realistic.

His contempt for what he felt were

the "meaningless" distortions of modern art was well-known,

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166

and his criticism of them could not have been harsher. Even Ch'ang Shu-hung, who was generally recognized as an academic realist, could not escape Lu Hsun's sharp comment His realistic art was based on the correct observation of nature and people.

350

More important, he felt that art

must never be separated from reality.

Though Lu Hsun de­

voted much of his time and effort to introducing the work of Western artists, he pointed out a direction crucial to the future development of graphic art as well as art in general.

In 1935, he wrote:

In my opinion, if we consult the figure painting on Han stone reliefs, the book illustrations of Ming and Ch'ing dynasties^^yaybe we can create a better kind of graphic art. Moreover, through his many articles, he gave cartoons, serial cartoons, illustrations, and other forms of popular art a new and important status in the art world.

The

effect of this was a reexamination of the popular culture through the creation of a proletarian art. This has been only a brief outline of Lu Hsun's views on art, which provided the theoretical basis of the proletarian movement, i.e.: . . . by selection to accept the historical legacy of Chinese traditional art; to absorb the best in style and technique from foreign art; and thus to establish a new national art in accordance with the demands and tastes of the masses.^52

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349

167 In addition, his tireless introduction of Western graphic art literally launched the Modern Woodcut Movement in China.

In 1928, he founded with others the Chao-hua

Society to introduce Eastern and Northern European literature and to import foreign graphic arts.

353

In

1929-1930, he published five volumes of New Glories in the Realm of Art, which included one volume on the English graphic artist Aubrey Beardsley, one volume on the Japanese graphic artist Hukiya Geiji, another on Soviet Russian painting (Kupreyanov, Pavlinov), and two volumes on recent graphic art in England (C.C. Webb, Stephen Bone), France (Alfred Latour, Herman Paul), and the United States (William Zorach, C.B. Falls).

354

In 1931, he organized a

woodcut instruction class in Shanghai with Uchiyama Kakichi (See Plate 35) for the benefit of the aspiring woodcut artists.

By the books he translated (including

the important Russian works on Socialist aesthetics by Lunarcharsky and Plekhanov), exhibitions he organized, and albums he prepared.

356

355

it Lu Hsun firmly established the

Woodcut Movement in China. We have used the terms "Left-Wing Art Movement," "Proletarian Art Movement" and "Woodcut Movement" quite loosely in foregoing pages.

Their ideologies and activities

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168

were so intertwined as to make a complete distinction impossible.

Jointly, these movements represented a

rising force dissatisfied with the various tendencies in the New Art Movement.

They wanted their art to reflect

the struggles of the common people, the suppressed class ff

in society.

They recognized Lu Hsun as the spiritual

leader who introduced the stark and powerful works of the Socialist Realists and the moving social protests depicted by the German artist Kaethe Kollwitz.

357

The young artists

also answered his call for realism in art, and on account of this common ground Michael Sullivan has collectively 358 labeled these trends as in the Realist Movement. Further, Lu Hsun offered spiritual and material encourage­ ment to the frustrated young artists, and he helped preserve samples of work and valuable documents of the left-wing artists, who were under constant threat of arrest and execution.

369

There are some differences within these trends which we should attempt to discern, especially with regard to political stance and materials used.

The ’’Woodcut Move­

ment” usually involved the activities of young artists in the various graphic media, with the woodcut as the most popular and influential medium of expression.

Their

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169

interest in the graphic art had been stimulated by Lu Hsun.

Indeed, they had very strong social consciousness,

having adopted a basically propagandistic form of art, but only a few of them were totally sympathetic with didactic left-wing doctrines on art and not even all of these were actually Communist Party members.

Nonetheless,

the Woodcut Movement met with strong official opposition. From the start, it had been suspected of Communist in­ fluence and a number of young wood-engravers were arrested in Shanghai, including Liu T'ieh-hua, Chiang Feng and Hu Ich'uan (whose wife died in prison).

359

So deeply were the

young artists convinced of the urgency of their mission that the movement, far from collapsing, continued to expand rapidly.

Artists’ associations and instruction classes

were formed in Shanghai, Peking, Nanking, Canton, and even in many culturally backward places.

360

In later years,

the artists shed the initial foreign influence and developed a truly vigorous national style, one which became a signi­ ficant achievement of twentieth-century Chinese art.

Its

phenomenal attainment of maturity deserves a study by it­ self, but we can only hope to give a brief account in this survey of the Western impact on Chinese art. The "Left-Wing Art Movement" and the "Proletarian

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170 Art Movement" were often referred to interchangeably, though the artists referred to their movement as the Hsin-hsing mei-shu yun-tung (lit, the newly-arisen art movement) and expected that it would eventually replace the increasingly reactionary Hsin-i-shu yun-tung (New Art Movement).

Members of this movement worked in all media,

including graphics, which put a large number of them in the Woodcut Movement.

The two centers of left-wing art

were Peking and Shanghai, the former known for oils and the latter for woodcuts.

362

The more important thing was

their acceptance of the Marxist-Leninist ideology (dis­ cussed below).

Because the artistic policies which shaped

the art of the New China (People’s Republic of China) was developed from the oppressed beginning of the Left-Wing Art Movement in this period, it requires detailed study. Wang Chun-ch'u, who was a student of Liu Hai-su (Shanghai Mei-chuan), Lin Feng-mien and Hsu Pei-hung (while they were in Peking) organized, with three other students of the Peking National Academy, an anti-feudalist and anti-imperialist art society.

It was in the year 1925.

Using the rudiments of Western technique acquired from their teachers, these young artists began to make their art into a kind of social protest.

Several annual exhibi-

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171 tions were held, though we do not know how their works were received.

In 1929, they took an exhibition to Tokyo,

where they were greatly stimulated by the work the Japanese were doing (for example, the proletarian painter Watanabe Yujiro). When they returned home, these artists dropped their anti-feudalist and anti-imperialist activities to take up the proletarian cause in earnest.

363

Meanwhile, in the South the influence of Lu Hsun began to be felt.

Immediately after its founding in 1928

the students at the National Academy of Art, Hangchow, voiced their dissatisfaction with the New Art Movement. These dissident students, who were expelled by the academy," left for Shanghai,(1929) where some founded the Eighteen Art Club (I-pa i-she ; from the fact that it was founded in the eighteenth year of the Republic) and sought temporary it

refuge under Lu Hsun. The center of activity seemed to be China College of Art (Chung-hua i-ta), where several left-wing writers were teaching.

365

In 1930, its chairman in Western-style

painting, Hsu Hsin-chih, joined with some progressive students from Shanghai Mei-chuan, Hangchow National Academy, and other art schools to form the Epoch Art Club (Shih-tai mei-shu she).

The club sponsored an exhibition of pictures

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172 of revolutionary art in the Soviet Union from the collection of Lu Hsun.

At the same time, they published a manifesto for

all young artists of China.

The manifesto first attacked the

worshippers of Mammon who cheated the masses with their slogans of "art for art" and "art is the expression of a talent (gen­ ius )."

It summoned young artists to their side:

Our art movement is certainly not a struggle of artistic styles, but a counter-attack of class consciousness against the suppressing class, there­ fore, our art can only be a weapon of class struggle . . . young people of our age should be the avant garde of time, and art of our time should be propagated among the masses of our age.366 This brief manifesto clearly put the Epoch Art Club on the side of the Left-Wing Culture Movement, since it recognized the fact that art was a weapon of class struggle. In July, 1930, four months after the founding of the League of Left-Wing Writers, the artists organized the League of Left-Wing Artists, with the intention of uniting progressive young artists to render their service to the propaganda of revolution, to promote artistic activities based on Marxist-Lenenist theory, and to fight for the establishment of a proletarian art theory.

Members

included representatives from Shanghai Mei-chuan (Chang Erh, Ts'ai Jo-hung), Hsin-hua College of Art (Ch'en Yench'iao), Hangchow National Academy (practically all members of Eighteen Art Club, Hangchow branch), and China College

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173 ii 368 of Art (Hsu Hsin-chih).

Under its direction, the

Cartoon Society was formed to use the weapon of social satire to accelerate the social revolution.

369

Later,

members of the Eighteen Art Club in Hangchow came to Shanghai and became the central focus of the woodcut 370 activities in the Left-Wing Art Movement. In addition to organizational and propaganda work, the left-wing artists concerned their efforts on building a systematic theoretical basis for proletarian art, some­ thing which the New Art Movement still had to accomplish. Before the left-wing artistic theories can be discussed, we should first examine their source of inspiration. Marx and Engels left the realm of aesthetics re­ latively unexplored.

Marx was basically concerned with

showing the relationship between art and society from a historical point of view, rather than with exploiting art as a means of propaganda in the practical work of social revolution.

The primary premise of Marxist aesthetic

theory was that economic relationships represented the ultimate foundation of art, but were not its only founda­ tion.

Marx noted the correspondence of types of artistic

production to different forms of social organization, em­ phasizing that extreme division of labor under modern

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174 capitalism had its counterpart in the individualistic nature of modern art.

371

Engels elaborated on the

economic foundation of art and society and confirmed that art could exert an influence on the course of social development. But the doctrine of the social function of art, of the relationship between art and politics, was a distinct contribution of the Soviet state.

Soviet officials formu­

lated their artistic doctrine from the Marxist view that history is a process of class struggle, which will in­ evitably end with the victory of the proletariat.

There­

fore, Socialist artists must conform to the aims of the proletariat and the emerging Socialist world. Plekhanov, whose theory of art was translated into Chinese by Lu Hsun in 1930, took the position that art was an aspect of the economically determined superstructure. "The ideologies of the ruling class lose their intrinsic value in the same measure as that class ripens for destruction; the art created in the spirit of that class 372 declines with it." The emotional impact of art, its educational and politicizing potential in mobilizing the masses was given full recognization by Lenin.

His views played the decisive

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175 role in shaping the future cultural policies and the ultimate fate of Soviet arts (and was instrumental in shaping Chinese Communist policies on art). By 1931, Socialist direction of all the creative arts had been consolidated, and Lenin's threefold concept of party character, Socialist content, and national roots was to become the official standard and measure of the worth of a work of art.

According to Lenin, this three­

fold concept called for the identification of the artist with the proletarian cause, the importance of content in art (because art was not only a powerful means of realizing reality but also an active influence upon it), and the ex­ pression in art of the interest, ideals and spirit of the working masses.

The application of this multiple concept

was termed Socialist Realism by Stalin and Maxim Gorky in 1932.

373 The progressive young artists in China studied

the socialist aesthetic theories closely, mostly through translations from Japanese publications (Kurihara Tadato's writings were particularly popular).

374

Through this

channel, the works of Plekhanov, Lunacharsky, and Friche spread in China, producing studies of art interpreted from the standpoint of dialectical materialism.

375

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176 U n d e r the i n f l u e n c e o f R u s s i a n a e s t h e t i c s ,

the

left-wing artists proceeded to b u i l d a Socialist aesthetics i n China.

In 1930, H s u H s i n - c h i h p u b l i s h e d t w o a r t i c l e s in

the l e f t - w i n g p e r i o d i c a l s T h e A r t s

(I - s h u ) a n d S i r e n

(Sha-

l u n ) , l a y i n g the f o u n d a t i o n f o r the L e f t - W i n g A r t Movement. In the m o s t p r e c i s e terms,

he appraised the achievement of

the N e w A r t M o v e m e n t s i nc e t h e M a y F o u r t h M o v e m e n t o f 1919. H e s a w th e b e g i n n i n g o f th e N e w A r t M o v e m e n t a s t h e d e f i a n c e of nationalistic bourgeois class against a feudalistic society.

O nce firmly established,

the m o v e m e n t h a d g r o w n

c o m p l a c e n t a n d h a d j o i n e d f o r c e s w i t h the r e a c t i o n a r y g o v e r n m e n t a n d the i m p e r i a l i s t s to s u p p r e s s the re v ol u t i o n , a s e x e m p l i f i e d b y t h e c u r r e n t s u p p r e s s i o n o f s t u d e n t st r i k e s 376 a t the S h a n g h a i M e i - c h u a n a n d H a n g c h o w N a t i o n a l A ca d em y. ft

A s for the w o r k p r o d u c e d b y this m o v e m e n t , c r i t i c i z e d its " i n d i v i d u a l i s t i c , f a n t a s t i c , mysterious, pessimistic, more,

Hsu Hsin-chih ridiculous,

and decadent tendencies."

Further­

he v i e w e d the p r o m o t i o n o f t r a d i t i o n a l a r t b y the

W e s t e r n - s t y l e a r t i s t s as

"a c o m p r o m i s e w i t h th e f e u d a l i s t i c

culture."

"with t h e d e c l i n e o f the b o u r g e o i s

class,

Consequently,

the a rt and a r t m o v e m e n t s o f th e b o u r g e o i s c l a s s

w o u l d i n e v i t a b l y f o l l o w the d e c l i n e o f t h e b o u r g e o i s c l a s s 377 to t h e i r f inal d a y s . "

R i s i n g in its s t e a d w o u l d b e

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177 a n o t h e r n e w a r t m o v e m e n t b e l o n g i n g to t h e p r o l e t a r i a n c l a s s a n d w h i c h w o u l d f l o u r i s h w i t h t h e s u c c e s s o f the p r o l e t a r i a n revolution. H s u H s i n - c h i h f u r t h e r t a b u l a t e d the r e s p o n s i b i l i t y o f the n e w a r t i s t s as fo l l o w s : 1. W e m u s t s t a n d o n a d e f i n i t e c l a s s b a s i s , t o fi g h t the ruling class and the imperial artistic policy of t h i s r u l i n g class. 2. W e m u s t g r a s p the t h e o r y o f d i a l e c t i c a l m a t e r i a l i s m t o o v e r c o m e t he a r t i s t i c t h e o r y o f t h e r u l i n g c l a s s a n d t o c r i t i c i z e their w o r k s o f art. 3. we must strengthen our new art movement and perfect o u r w o r k s t o s u r p a s s t h e w o r k s o f a r t o f t he r u l i n g c lass. 4. W e must establish the relati o n s h i p b e t ween art and s o c i a l life, its i n h e r e n t e x i s t e n c e a n d v a l ue , and w e m u s t a c c o m p l i s h t he m o v e m e n t for a r t i s t i c e n l i g h t e n m e n t a s yet to b e c o m p l e t e d b y t h e r u l i n g class. B u t w h a t w a s t h e p r a c t i c a l a p p l i c a t i o n o f this n e w art m o v e m e n t ? do was

T h e m o s t i m p o r t a n t t h i n g for the a r t i s t to

t o b a s e h is a r t o n t h e p r o l e t a r i a n r e v o l u t i o n .

H is

w o r k m u s t e x p r e s s t h e s t r u g g l e s o f t h e n e w c l a s s i n t h ei r revolution.

T h e a r t i s t s h o u l d a l s o p a r t i c i p a t e i n a l l the

p o l i t i c a l a n d e c o n o m i c s t r u g g l e s to g r a s p f i r m l y t he c o n s c i o u s n e s s o f the p r o l e t a r i a n c l a s s and t o p r o p a g a t e th is c o n s c i o u s n e s s in h i s w or k .

H e s h o u l d g o i n t o the

f a c t o r i e s , e x p e r i e n c e p e r s o n a l l y t he b i t t e r o p p r e s s i o n o f the w o r k i n g cl ass,

and then adopt a powerful and strong

r e a l i s t i c s t y l e t o p o r t r a y them.

Further,

he should use

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178 h i s w o r k t o a r o u s e the m a s s e s , e d u c a t e them,

and lead 379

t h e m t o t h e d i r e c t i o n o f p r o l e t a r i a n c u l t u re .

It is

u n d e r s t a n d a b l e t h a t t he L e f t - W i n g M o v e m e n t c o n d e m n e d the i n d i v i d u a l i s m p r e v a l e n t i n t he a r t w o r l d at t h a t time. The Left-Wing artist was not a privileged person, a m e m b e r o f t he p r o l e t a r i a n society.

he was

This proletarian

a r t m o v e m e n t w o u l d c o n v e r g e w i t h the g r e a t e r p r o l e t a r i a n class revolutionary movement.

Only

in t h e s u c c e s s o f 380

this r e v o l u t i o n w o u l d p r o l e t a r i a n a r t f i n d i ts futur e . H s u H s i n - c h i h ' s t h e o r e t i c a l b a s i s for

the p r o l e t a r i a n

a r t m o v e m e n t in C h i n a w a s a l m o s t e n t i r e l y d e r i v e d f r o m S o v i e t Russia.

T h e s e t h e o r i e s r e p r e s e n t e d the f u n d a m e n t a l f o r m of

l e f t - w i n g a rt p r a c t i c e d b y the p o l i t i c a l l y - o r i e n t e d y o u n g a r t i s t s u n t i l 1942, w h e n C h a i r m a n M ao T s e - t u n g p e r s o n a l l y g a v e a r e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f t h e C o m m u n i s t p o l i c y o n litera381 t u r e and

the a r t s a t the Y e n a n Forum. T h e c o m p l e t e n e g a t i o n o f t h e a c h i e v e m e n t s o f the

N e w A r t M o v em en t m a y n o t h a v e b e e n just, b u t

the proletarian

m o v e m e n t r e p r e s e n t e d a d y n a m i c f o r c e t o t h e d i s s i d e n t y ou n g a r t i s ts .

C h i n a of t h i s p e r i o d

(1 929-1937) w a s i n t he m i d s t

o f a t r e m e n d o u s n a t i o n a l crisi s .

The artistic attitudes

p r a c t i c e d in the a r t s c h o o l s w e r e n o h e l p at a l l in s o l v i n g t h e p r o b l e m s p o s e d b y a n a w a k e n e d s oc i al c o n s c i o u s n e s s .

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179 T h e y oung a r t i s t s felt t h at the te st o f m o d e r n ar t w a s it s v a l u e to the p r o g r e s s o f China.

T h e m a t e r i a l s used,

w h e t h e r oil or w o o d c u t , w e r e not t h e p r i m e i s s u e so l o ng a s the

a r t i s t s w e r e t r u l y C h i n e s e i n feeling, b u t

felt that the vitality of

it w a s

the n e w C h i n e s e a r t m u s t c o m e

from a

c l o s e r c o n t a c t w i t h t h e a s p i r a t i o n s o f the

pe o pl e .

One of

their m o s t p o p u l a r s o l g a n s w a s

salons,

i n t o the s t r e e t s . "

Therefore,

"out o f the

these artists were no

lo n g e r b o u n d b y t he d e s i r e t o l e a r n th e s e c r e t s o f n e w techniques, but b y the d e sire to adopt existing artistic f o r m s c a p a b l e of d e p i c t i n g the a c t i v i t i e s o f s o c i e t y and i d e n t i f i a b l e b y the p eople. a r t b e c a m e appa r en t .

T h e n e c e s s i t y for r e a l i s m in

Because:

It is t h e p r i m e n e e d o f C h i n a a n d her m i l l i o n s t o b e a b l e to s e e a n d f e e l a n d v i s u a l i z e things realistically, to orientate themselves correctly o n t h e b a s i s o f tr u e facts, a n d i n art o n l y r e a l i s m c a n d o this. In the c r e a t i o n o f a r e a l i s t i c art the a r t i s t completely; f u l f i l l s hi s so ci a l a n d p o l i t i c a l l y duties. Consequently,

t h e r e a l i s m a d v o c a t e d b y this c o n t e m -

orary writer was indicative of a political as w e l l as t h e s u b j e c t m a t t e r a n d for m , s t r o n g e m o t i o n a l appeal.

state o f m i n d

often carrying a

T h i s a r t is v e r y d i f f e r e n t f r o m

t h e r e f i n e d and c u l t i v a t e d a c a d e m i c r e a l i s m a d v o c a t e d b y Hsti Pei -h u ng .

In fact, m a n y of the you ng a r t i s t s w e r e

t r a i n e d i n the e s t a b l i s h e d a r t s c h o o l s w h e r e o n l y thei r

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180 p r o g r e s s i v e p o l i t i c a l t h o u g h t set t h e m a p ar t f r o m t he r e s t for t h e st u de nt b ody.

Most o f their w o r k s w e r e

quite p r o p a g a n d i s t s , especially the woodcuts, but the b e s t of t h e m p o s s e s s e d a v i t a l i t y o f s t y l e a n d a n e m o t i o n a l s tr e n g t h n o t f o u n d in t h e i m i t a t i v e p r e t t i n e s s o f t h e soc a l l e d b o u r g e o i s art. Stylistically these young artistic were greatly i n f l u e n c e d b y th e G e r m a n E x p r e s s i o n i s t s , e s p e c i a l l y the p r o t e s t a r t o f G e o r g e G r o s z a n d K a e t h e Ko l lwitz.

An

e x a m p l e o f the i n f l u e n c e o f G r o s z is s h o w n b y A v e n u e J o f f r e (Plate 36), a w a t e r c o l o r b y T s ' a i Jo-hung.

In the c e n t e r

o f the c o m p o s i t i o n is a w e l l - f e d and w e l l - c l a d b u s i n e s s m a n ; b e l o w h i m a p o l i c e m a n is b r u t a l l y h a n g i n g a f a m i s h e d b e g g a r b y t h e c ol l a r .

A t th e r i g ht h a n d c o r n e r a l a d y o f th e

st r e e t s ta n d s s h i v e r i n g i n the cold.

T s ' a i J o - h u n g has

g i v e n u s a g l i m p s e o f the j u n g l e life i n Shanghai. Hu

I - c h ' u a n b o r r o w e d h e a v i l y f r o m the w o o d c u t

t e c h n i q u e s o f the G e r m a n E x p r e s s i o n i s t s .

The sharp c on ­

t r as t o f i r r e g u l a r a r e a s o f lig h t an d d a r k c r e a t e d a stro n g e m o t i o n a l impact, a n d the p l a c e m e n t o f the f r o n t a l f i g u r e a n d his s t i r r i n g g e s t i c u l a t i o n f u r t h e r d r a m a t i z e d t h e u r g e n t ca ll:

L e t ' s G o t o the F r o n t

A n o t h e r g r a p h i c artist,

(Plate 37;

1932).

L i Hua, e x p l o r e d the t r a d i t i o n of

l i ne in C h i n e s e w o o d c u t s .

B u t his r e n d e r i n g in O l d

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181 Fishermen

(Plate 38;

1935) a v o i d e d the e l e g a n t a n d f l u i d

lines f o u n d in t r a d i t i o n a l w o o d c u t il l us tr a t i o n s , h i s lines a r e d e l i b e r a t e a n d rugg e d,

rath er ,

e m p h a s i z i n g the

h a r d s t r u g g l e s o f th e o p p r e s s e d people.

O p p o s i t i o n f r o m the K u o m i n t a n g G o v e r n m e n t W h a t the L e f t - W i n g a r t i s t s p r a c t i c e d w a s r e g a r d e d b y the K u o m i n t a n g g o v e r n m e n t , o f course, to n a t i o n a l unity.

as h i g h l y d a n g e r o u s

The government made drastic attempts to

e r a d i c a t e a l l l e f t i s t t e n d e n c i e s i n China.

S i n c e 1931,

several a r t s o c i e t i e s h a d b e e n s u p p r e s s e d i n Shanghai; e v e n t he C h i n a C o l l e g e o f A r t w a s f o r c e d t o c l o s e in 1931, f o l l o w i n g the a r r e s t o f s e v e r a l m e m b e r s o f the L e a g u e o f L e f t - W i n g Arti s ts .

3 83

In t h e c a s e o f the

M. K. S o c i e t y

for W o o d c u t Study, m o s t o f its m e m b e r s e i t h e r w e r e a r r e s t e d (Chou C h i n -h a i, disappeared

C h ' e n P a o - c h en ,

(Liu A i - c h u ) ,

were confiscated.

384

The

and W a n g T z u - p ’ing) or

a n d tbeir e n g r a v e d w o o d b l o c k s " white t e r r o r " m a d e a n y i n t e r e s t

in the p r o l e t a r i a n a c o n f i r m a t i o n o f s u s p i c i o n o f a c t i v e sedition.

Man y l i b e r a l - m i n d e d a r t i s t s w e r e a r r e s t e d and 3 85

executed.

In s p i t e o f such suppression, the m o v e m e n t

g a i n e d in intensity. m o r e s p rang

A s a r t s o c i e t i e s w e r e d is s ol v ed ,

i n t o existence,

intent o n b r i n g i n g a r t a n d

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

182 r e volution to the masses. The Kuomintang government tried in vain to promote its o w n b r a n d of a r t i s t i c p o l i c y b a s e d o n i t s p o l i t i c a l theory.

W h a t the K u o m i n t a n g p r o p o s e d to c o u n t e r b a l a n c e

t h e i n f l u e n c e o f t he l e f t - w i n g i d e o l o g y a r o u n d 1 9 3 0 w a s a n a t i o n a l ar t m o v e m e n t d e r i v i n g its i n s p i r a t i o n f r o m the Three People's Principles.

In t h e w o r d s o f o n e o f t h e

s u p p o r t e r s w e read: I t h i n k t h a t the a r t i s t s o f C h i n a t o d a y m u s t first k n o w c l e a r l y the national character, then g r a s p the s p i r i t o f t h e age, b e f o r e t h e y p r o c e e d to c r e a t e w o r k s o f a r t w h i c h a r e a n e x p r e s s i o n o f t h e s e things. In o t h e r w ords, w h a t w e n e e d t o d a y is t h e p e a c e f u l a n d g r e a t lo ve o f t h e T h r e e P e o p l e ' s Pr i nc i p l e s . We want to read poetry a n d prose that ar e stimulating and heroic . . . w e want t o a p p r e c i a t e p a i n t i n g s th a t a r e solemn, h o l y a n d pure. A t t h e s a m e time, w e h o p e the a r t i s t s w o u l d f o c u s t he i r a r t i s t i c a c t i v i t i e s o n a r o u s i n g o u r n a t i o n a l c o n s c i o u s n e s s a n d n a t i o n a l spirit. And t h i s n e w a r t i s t i c f o r c e w i l l o n the o n e h a n d f a c i l i t a t e t h e w i l l t o d e v e l o p u p w a r d i n our n a t i o n and o n t he o t h e r c r e a t e a v i g o r o u s d e s t i n y for o u r c o u n t r y . 3 8 6 F r o m the p o i n t o f v i e w o f the

left,

this high-

s o u n d i n g s t a t e m e n t c l e a r l y e x p o s e d t he i r r e l e v a n c e o f t h e n a t i o n a l p o l i c y t o t h e l i f e and r e a l i t y o f C h i n a i n this period.

If a r t w a s t o r e f l e c t t h e s p i r i t o f t h e time,

t h e n C h i n a in t h e t h i r t i e s w a s a n y t h i n g b u t p e a c e f u l . T h e n a t i o n a l p o l i c y i g n o r e d the e c o n o mi c,

social or

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

183 s p i r i t u a l s t r e s s e s o f t h e m a j o r p a r t o f t h e nati on . In 1934, C h a n g K a i - s h e k m a d e a n o t h e r b i d at u n i t i n g his p e o p l e u n d e r a c o m m o n aim:

t o b u i l d a n e w w a y o f life

^ 387 b a s e d on a m e l a n g e o f C o n f u s i a n a n d W e s t e r n ethics. pur p o s e o f the

The

(s o -called) N e w L i f e M o v e m e n t w a s to

establish a reasonable,

scientific,

artistic,

revolutionary,

388 a n d m o d e r n l i f e style.

T h e m o v e m e n t e x t e n d e d t o art,

a n d L i n P e n g - m i e n w r o t e N e w L i f e M o v e m e n t a nd A r t In t h e c o n c l u s i o n ,

(1934).

he acknowledged the social function of

art and artists and

the c o n s e q u e n t n e e d for a n e w p h i l o s o p h y

of life w h i c h c o u l d

b e a d o p t e d f r o m the p r i n c i p l e s o f the

389 N e w L i f e Movement.

He said:

Artists are responsible for part of the leadership i n our s ociety, th e r e f o r e , not o n l y should they improve t h e i r o w n life, but should a l s o m a k e u s e o f the s t r e n g t h o f their a r t t o l e a d the p e o p l e t o i m p r o v e th e i r w a y o f living. The new life style o f the artists is n o t o n l y a p e r s o n a l e l e v a t i n g p r o c e s s , b u t a h e l p ­ i n g f o r c e t o a d v a n c e the q u a l i t y o f l i v i n g in the e n t i r e s o c i e t y . 390 In t h e t w o p a s s a g e s o n the K u o m i n t a n g p o l i c y o n art, w e c a n see t h a t it s h a r e d so m e c o m m o n g r o u n d w i t h the leftw i n g artists.

B o t h r e c o g n i z e d the t r e m e n d o u s f o r m a t i v e

p o w e r o f art a n d t he i m p o r t a n t r o l e o f t he a r t i s t in c r e a t ­ in g a n e w society.

B u t the C o m m u n i s t i d e o l o g y d e m a n d e d

t h a t the a r t i s t s c o m m u n i c a t e w i t h the m a s s e s i n r e a l i s t i c and identif i a b l e

art, w h i l e t h e K u o m i n t a n g p o l i c y c o n c e r n e d

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

184 i t s e l f m o r e w i t h t h e c u l t i v a t i o n o f r e f i n e d feelings. A lso,

the K u o m i n t a n g a t t i t u d e p e r p e t u a t e d a n i n d i v i d u a l i s t i c

i d e a l th a t m a i n t a i n e d that the c r e a t i v e p r o c e s s o f a rt w a s a

" p u r e " p r o c e s s t a k i n g p l a c e w i t h i n the s u b j e c t i v i t y of

the a r i t i s t s b u t i n f l u e n c e d b y e x t e r n a l stimuli.

Conse­

q u e n t l y , a w i d e g u l f e x i s t e d b e t w e e n the m o d e r n a r t i s t s a n d the m a s s o f less i n t e l l e c t u a l l y p r i v i l e g e d people. H o w w o u l d it b e p o s s i b l e for t h e m t o b e i n s p i r e d b y a n art that they cou ld not even understand?

A l t e r n a t i v e s o f Some A r t i s t s I n ev i ta b ly ,

t h e r e w e r e m a n y ar t i s t s w h o d i d not

s u b s c r i b e t o the g r a n d i o s e d o g m a t i s m of t h e K u o m i n t a n g g o v e r n m e n t or t o the m o d e r n a r t i st s.

i vo r y t o w e r a p p r o a c h o f some o f t he

Y et t h e y w e r e f a r f r o m w i l l i n g t o c o m m i t

t h e m s e l v e s t o the r e v o l u t i o n a r y left, w h i c h w o u l d s u bj e ct t he i r c r e a t i v e f r e e d o m t o e v e n g r e a t e r i d e o l o g i c a l control. H owever,

t h e y w e r e n o t i n s e n s i t i v e t o t he m i s e r a b l e c o n d i ­

t ions o f t h e i r society;

t h e y w a n t e d t o r e f l e c t some a w a r e ­

n e s s o f t he da n g e r s , b o t h e x t e r n a l a n d internal,

th a t w e r e

t h r e a t e n i n g China. A g o o d e x a m p l e f r o m t h i s g r o u p o f a r t i s t s is P ' a n g H s u n - c h ’in, w h o s pe n t f i v e y ea r s in P a r i s s t u d y i n g m u s i c a n d painting.

391

H e r e t u r n e d i n 19 2 9 t o f o r m (with a g r o u p

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

185 o f r e t u r n e d a r t i s t s f r o m Fran c e, Mondes

the S o c i e t e d e s D e u x

(T'ai-meng m e i - s h u h u i ) f or the p u r p o s e of pro392

m o t i n g m o d e r n F r e n c h p a i n t i n g i n Shanghai.

Awakened

i m m e d i a t e l y b y t h e r e a l i t i e s in China, h e r e t i r e d t o h i s f a m i l y h o m e in C h ' a n g - s h u to r e o r i e n t e h i m se lf . shu, h e f o u n d e d

In C h ' a n g

(with a n o t h e r n a t i v e artis t, W e n Shao-

t ' ung) t h e Y u - k u a n g P a i n t i n g A s s o c i a t i o n

(Y u - k u a n g hua393

h u i )and b y 1935 h a d a r r a n g e d s e v e n g r o u p e x h ib it i on s . P ' a n g H s u n - c h ’in, organized

i n s e e k i n g a n e w d i r e c t i o n f o r h i s art,

(with p a i n t e r - w r i t e r N i

S h a n g h a i M e i- c h u a n ) 1932.

I-te, a p r o f e s s o r at

th e S t o r m S o c i e t y

( C h ’u e h - l a n s h e ) in

Its m e m b e r s w e r e m o s t l y s t u d e n t s r e t u r n e d f r o m

T o k y o a n d Paris,

i n c l u d i n g C h ’i u Ti

( P ’a n g ' s a r t i s t wife ) , 394

Y a n g T' a i- y an g,

Yang Ch*iu-jen,

a n d others.

The group

a p p e a r e d t o a d v o c a t e a c r e a t i v e s p i r i t in art, w h i c h t h e y f o u n d a b s e n t in t he i n c r e a s i n g l y r e a c t i o n a r y a c a d e m i c i s m (k u a n - h s u e h p ' a i ) p r e v a l e n t in the thirties.

They were

d e d i c a t e d t o p r o m o t i n g m o d e r n s t y l e s th a t c a m e a f t e r Ceza n ne . i n 1935.

3 95

F o u r e x h i b i t i o n s w e r e o r ga n iz e d,

A t first,

t he las t o ne

their w o r k attracted much criticism,

b u t b y 1 9 3 5 th ey h a d e s t a b l i s h e d t h e m s e l v e s as a r e f re s h3 96 i n g f o r c e i n t he N e w A r t Mo v ement.

The reason might

h a v e b e e n their g r a d u a l i m p r o v e m e n t in e m b o d y i n g their

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

186 c r e a t i v e spi r it i n f o r m s f a m i l i a r t o th e c o m m o n p e o p l e a n d in c o n t e n t s y m p a t h e t i c t o them, w r a t h o f the g o v e r n m e n t ar t c e n s o r s .

t h e r e b y i n c u r r i n g the In 1935,

a contro­

v e r s y o v e r the q u e s t i o n o f the ex t e n t t o w h i c h the a r t i s t s s h o u l d i d e n t i f y h i m s e l f w i t h t h e s o c i e t y r e s u l t e d i n the 397

d i s s o l u t i o n o f t he group. b y P' a n g H s u n - c h ' i n ,

In A B l i n d M a n

(Plate 39)

a b l i n d man emerges from a dim ba c k ­

g r o u n d w h i c h e m p h a s i z e s t h e p a l l i d c o m p l e x i o n of his f a c e a n d the t w o l a r g e h a n d s u p o n w h i c h h e d e p e n d s for c o m m u n i ­ c a t i o n w i t h the o u t s i d e w or l d .

The darkness and hopeless­

n e s s o f h is w o r l d a r e t r a n s m i t t e d to the v i ew e r b y b o t h e x p r e s s i o n a n d ge s t u r e , w h i c h a r e d e p i c t e d i n d a r k c o lo r s a n d s i m p l i f i e d forms.

O n t h e o ther hand,

the sharp c o n ­

t r as t o f c o l o r s a n d the e x t r e m e s i m p l i c i t y o f f o r m a r e ft

a e s t h e t i c a l l y ple as i ng .

It c a n b e s a i d that P 'ang Hsun-

c h ' i n had succeeded in expressing a modern feeling through a n a d o p t e d m edium. Another group of artists attempted to b ring about a n art for the m a s s e s w i t h o u t the p o l i t i c a l i m p l i c a t i o n s o f the l e f t - w i n g a r t i st s.

Feng T z u - k ' a i i n t r o d u c e d pro-

l e t a r i a n ar t w i t h o u t t h e u s u al j a r g o n o f c l a s s struggles. W o r k i n g in t h e c a r t o o n m e d i u m , F e n g T z u - k ' a i c h o s e his s u b j e c t s f r o m the c o m m o n p e o p l e a r o u n d him.

H e d i d not

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f th e copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout perm ission.

398

187 a i m at e x p o s i n g the d a r k s i d e o f society;

instead,

he

presented gentle and humorous observations of character an d human behavior.

T h e Ki s s

(Plate 4 0) d e m o n s t r a t e s th e

n a t u r a l a f f e c t i o n b e t w e e n a c h i l d a n d his moth er .

Peng

a c h i e v e d a s o u n d c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n w i t h s ki l l a n d e c o n o m y o f line.

H is i m p o r t a n c e in the h i s t o r y of t w e n t i e t h -

c e n t u r y C h i n e s e a r t l i e s in h i s p i o n e e r i n g u s e o f t r a d i ­ t io n al b r u s h d r a w i n g t o p o r t r a y the p e o p l e a r o u n d h i m b y direct observation

(an a b i l i t y w h i c h h a d c o m e f r o m c l o s e

study of b o t h traditional a n d Western painting techniques). A s a r e s u l t o f the s t i m u l a t i n g d i s c u s s i o n s o f popular

language

(ta-chung y u ) a m o n g w r i t e r s ,

p r o p o s e d his ideas o n p o p u l a r p a i n t i n g

An Tun-li

(t a - c h u n g h u a ),

w h i c h a c c o r d i n g to h i m m e a n t a l i v e l y a n d r e a l i s t i c s t y l e w i t h s e n s u o u s s t i m ul a ti on .

H e a r g u e d that art s h o u l d b e

p r o d u c e d w i t h the a i m o f r e f l e c t i n g v a r i o u s a s p e c t s o f the real

life o f the people.

Therefore,

it m u s t b e f r e e d

f r o m t h e c o n f i n e s o f t he i v o r y t o w e r a n d s h e d i t s s t r a n g e and fantastic forms

(by w h i c h the w r i t e r m e a n t t he d i s t o r ­

tions a n d f r a g m e n t a t i o n s f o u n d in p a r t i c u l a r l y C u b i s t 399 paintings.)

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

188 Chinese Artists in Europe Whi le the se controversies raged in China,

another

g e n e r a t i o n o f C h i n e s e a r t i s t s w a s b e i n g t r a i n e d i n Europe. In 1929, w e see t h e d e p a r t u r e o f the f i r s t g r a d u a t e s o f Lin Feng-mien, t e a c he rs .

H s u P e i - h u ng , a n d o t h e r E u r o p e a n - t r a i n e d a r t

C h ' a n g S h u -h un g s t u d i e d u n d e r P a u l A l b e r t 400

L a u r e ns ,

a n a c a d e m i c p a i nt er ,

L i u K ' a n g e n r o l l e d at

t h e A c a d e m i e d e l a G r a n d e C h a u m i e r e , 4 ^ * L u S s u - p a i w a s at tv

L y o n A c a d e m y o f Art,

a n d L ei K'ue:i-yuan a n d W u T s o - j e n

(1930) w e n t t o B e l g i u m t o s t u d y u n d e r A l f r e d B a s t i e n a t the R oy al A c a d e m y ,

Burssels.

Chang Ch'ung-jen also

s t u d i e d in B r u s s e l s d u r i n g the s a m e period. o f W e s t e r n p a i n t i n g seeme d ,

a s a l w a ys ,

The mecca

to b e Paris.

t h e e a r l y th ir t ie s, w e f i n d t h e r e C h a n g L i - y i n g , hsing,

C h ’e n J e n -h a o,

In

Li Yu-

Chang Tzu-yu, Yang San-lang,

Liao

If

Hsin-hsueh,

Yen Wen-liang,

and

(of c o u r s e )

L i u Hai- su .

In

a d d i t i o n to t h e s e w e r e a b o u t t h i r t y a r t s t u d e n t s w h o f o u n d e d (1933) the A s s o c i a t i o n d e s A r t i s t e s C h i n o i s en F r a n c e (C h u n g - k u o l i u - f a i - s h u h s u e h - h u i ) w i t h t he i n t e n t i o n o f mutual

encouragement and communication with the Chinese 402

art world. Ch'ang Shu-hung K'o,

n I m p o r t a n t m e m b e r s i n c l u d e d L u Ssu-pai, ( m e n t i o n e d e a r l ie r ), W a n g L i n g - i , C h e n g

T ' a n g I-ho, L i u K ' a i - c h ’u, H u a n g H s i e n - c h i h ,

Chou

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

189 t« K ' uei, L u C h ' u a n - w e n , C h a n g C h ' e n g - c h i a n g , W a n g Tzu-yun, 412 H u a T ' i e n - y u , and C h ' e n S hi h -wen. T h e s e a r t s t u d e n t s , h a v i n g s t u d i e d the r u d i m e n t s o f W e s t e r n art in a r t s c h o o l s in China, w e r e m o r e p r e p a r e d f o r the W e s t e r n e x p e r i e n c e t h a n t heir p r e d e c e s s o r s .

Almost

all of them w e r e products o f the modernized educational system, w h e r e t h e y a c q u i r e d a f u l l e r u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f t he West.

Therefore,

t h e s e a r t i s t s w e r e less r o o t e d in

traditional values and had a firmer grasp of Western art techniques.

Consequently,

t h e y h a d less m i s g i v i n g s a b o u t

t r a n s f e r r i n g th ei r a l l e g i a n c e to t he o il me d i u m ,

especially

a s t h e y f e l t that this m e d i u m w a s b o r r o w e d m e r e l y t o e n r i c h t h e i r p o w e r o f e x p r e s s i o n a s c o n t e m p o r a r y a r t is t s.

Thi s

m e d i u m w o u l d b e at t h e s e r v i c e o f C h i n e s e spirit, w h i c h 404 c o u l d n o t b e e c l i p s e d b y t h e c h o i c e o f m a te r i a l s . artist-writer Ch'en I-fan w ro t e

The

(1937) o n this n e w el e m e n t

in t h e N e w A r t Mo ve m en t : T h e s e young p a i n t e r s r e g a r d oil t e c h n i q u e m e r e l y a s a m e d i u m o f p a i n t i n g a n d n ot as a " s t y l e " in the a t t a i n i n g of w h i c h the a r t i s t m u s t s h e d h i s i n d i v i ­ d u a l i t y a n d s t r i v e t o see t hi ng s t h r o u g h t h e eyes o f his Western teachers.4 0 5 F o r some,

t h i s m e a n t th at i n s t e a d o f b e i n g s l a v e s t o a

foreign manner a cquired w i t h mu c h effort, as had b e e n the c a s e w i t h so me o f the p i o ne e rs ,

t h e y h a d e n r i c h e d their

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

190

t e c h n i ca l v o c a b u l a r y a n d b r o a d e n e d their v i s i o n b u t r e m a i n e d C h i n e s e in s p i r i t . 4 0 ^

In t h i s r e spect,

these artists were

a k i n t o t h e l e f t - w i n g a r t i s t s w h o a t thi s p e r i o d c o m p l e t e l y r e j e c t e d the t r a d i t i o n a l m e d i u m as i n c a p a b l e o f si g n i f i c a n t r e p r e s e n t a t i o n o f h u m a n struggle. n o t ha ve b e e n f a r t h e r apart.

B u t their i d e o l o g i e s c o u l d

Most o f the a rt s t u d e n t s w h o retl

t u r n e d to C h i n a b e c a m e

"reactionary" academicians,

notably Lu

Ssu-pai, w h o p a i n t e d in a h i g h l y c o m p e t e n t b u t u n i n s p i r i n g man n er ,

407 as c a n b e e n in A t W o r k . B u t his s t yl e l o o s e n s u p

w h e n he p a i n t s m o r e p e r s o n a l Ma d a m e Li

(Plate 41).

subjects,

suc h a s the P o r t r a i t o f

H e r e t u r n e d t o N a n k i n g to j o i n his f o r m e r

t e a c h e r a t N a t i o n a l C e n tr a l U n i v e r s i t y a n d later

(1937)

succeeded

*» . 408 H s u P e i - h u n g a s h e a d of the art d e p a r t m e n t there.

M W u T s o - j e n a l s o j o i n e d the f a c u l t y o f H s u P e i - h u n g in 1935, w h e r e his w o r k w a s g r e a t l y i n f l u e n c e d b y A l f r e d Bas t ie n , w h o h a d b e e n h i s t e a c h e r at the R o ya l A c a d e m y o f Art, Br u ss e ls . He c o m b i n e d a f i r m g r a s p o f f o r m w i t h a fr ee t o u c h a n d g r ea t lumin o si t y, . 409 1934).

as c a n b e seen in h is S t u d y o f a N u d e

(Plate 42;

» H e s u c c e e d e d H s u P e i - h u n g a s d i r e c t o r o f the 4 10

National Art Academy,

Peking,

in 1953.

Y e n W e n - l i a n g , w h o f o u n d e d t he S o o c h o w A c a d e m y of

✓ A r t in 1922,

s p en t t h e y ears b e t w e e n 1928 a n d 1932 at L ' E c o l e

d e s B e a u x A r t s and,

at the same time,

religiously copied Euro­

p e a n p a i n t i n g s for the b e n e f i t o f h i s s t ud e nt s in China.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

He

191 r e s u m e d d i r e c t o r s h i p o f the S o o c h o w A c a d e m y u p o n r e t u r n a n d f o s t e r e d a s t yle r e m i n i s c e n t o f the a c a d e m i e s o f t h e late n i n e t e e n t h a n d e arly t w e n t i e t h c e n t u ri e s.

He pl ayed an im­

p o r t a n t p a r t in the i n t r o d u c t i o n o f W e s t e r n ar t i n t o C h i n a 41 2 a n d h is r e a l i s t i c c a n v a s e s w e r e g r e a t l y a d m ir e d. portrait of

Hi s self-

1934 is a n i m p r e s s i v e e x a m p l e o f vi s u a l n a t u r a l i s m

(Plate 43).

Th e a r t s t u d e n t s i n E u r o p e a l s o p r o v e d

to b e a v a ­

l u a b l e s o u r c e o f r e c e n t d e v e l o p m e n t s in W e s t e r n a rt to their c o n t e m p o r a r i e s at home.

Periodicals,

al b u m s ,

and color repro­

d u c t i o n s o f r e c e n t w o r k s w e r e sent to their f r i e n d s in C h i n a 413 w h o o f t e n r e q u e s t e d such se rvices. w o r k s o f Ch a g a l l ,

Soutine,

L i p c hi tz ,

M og i gl i a n i ,

and many others came

t h e several

art p e r i o d i c a l s i n China,

T h r o u g h this chan ne l , de Ch i r i c o , B o c c i o n i ,

to C h i n a and r e a p p e a r e d in such as

I-feng.

Art Associations and Exhibitions The Nanking government made valiant attempts to c o n s o ­ l i d a t e the a r t i s t s in o r d e r t o c o u n t e r b a l a n c e the i n f i l t r a t i o n o f the L e f t - W i n g Movement.

Th e C h i n a A r t A s s o c i a t i o n

414 mei-shu h u i ) materialized in Nanking

(C h u n g - k u o

(1932), w i t h f o u n d i n g

m e m b e r s c o n s i s t i n g of h i g h g o v e r n m e n t o f f i c i a l s like C h a n g Taof a n a n d Y u Y u- jen,

a n d a c a d e m i c i a n s Hs u Pei- hu n g,

Li I-shih,

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f th e copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout perm ission.

192

P' a n Y u - l i a n g , 4 1 5 a n d C h ' e n C h i h -f u ,

(later) Lu Ssu-pai, W u T s o - j en ,

and Chang Shu-ch'i.41^

It o r g a n i z e d a n nu a l

group exhibitions but generated little enthusiasm o u t ­ s i d e Nanking. Two national exhibitions with more success were s p o n s o r e d in 1934 in S h a n g h a i a n d 1 9 3 5 in N a n k i n g b y the

I - f e n g s h e , w h i c h p u b l i s h e d the p e r i o d i c a l

I-feng.

P a r t i c i p a n t s i n c l u d e d the m o s t i n f l u e n t i a l a r t i s t s of the N e w A r t M o v e m e n t as w e l l as t r a d i t i o n a l i s t s lik e Huang Pin-hung and Chang Ta-ch'ien.

In t h e W e s t e r n -

s t y l e s e c t i o n of the 1934 e x h i b i t i o n , portraits,

t h e r e w e r e t h e usual

l a n d s c a p e s a n d s till lifes b y a r t i s t s li k e It

Lin Feng-mien,

Lei K ' u e i - y u a n ,

liang, W a n g Ch i- y ua n ,

Ni

I-te,

tt

P'an Yu-liang,

Y e n Wen-

a n d C h ' e n Pao-i.

P'ang

n

H s u n - c h ' i n s u b m i t t e d o n e work,

Untitled

(Plate 44),

w h i c h r e p r e s e n t e d t w o w o m e n s i t t i n g o n t h e ground. T h e s e t w o figures,

r e d u c e d a l m o s t t o c y l i n d r i c a l forms,

t r a n s m i t b y th e ir t i r e d

(but erect) p o s t u r e a n d m e l a n c h o l i c

expression a kind of depressing atmosphere generally f o u n d in a c o s m o p o l i t a n c i t y like S ha n ghai. tones and geometric

s h a pe s

The gray

s e e m to e m p h a s i z e t h e d e h u m a n i z i n g

process of industrialization which China was

struggling

through.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

193 The wor k b y P'ang Hsun-ch'in stood in isolation among the colorful a n d c o n trived paintings in this exhi b i ­ tion,

p r o d u c e d b y t h o s e a r t i s t s s ti l l i n t o x i c a t e d b y the

e x p r e s s i v e p o w e r o f the oil m e di u m.

B u t t h e n e x t year,

he

w a s j o i n e d b y som e y o u n g a r t i s t s w h o t r i e d t o r e l a t e t h e i r art

t o the g r i m r e a l i t i e s a r o u n d

them.

Shih Shih-chen

p a i n t e d l a b o r e r s at wo r k, C h ' e n H s i a o - n a n d e p i c t e d p o w e r p l a n t s a n d f a c t o ri e s, o n p o p u l a r p a i n t in g ,

a nd A n T u n- l i, w h o w r o t e t h e a r t i c l e included fisherman and handicraft 418

t r a i n i n g c e n t e r in h x s themes. T h e year 1 9 3 5 s e e m e d t o b e p a r t i c u l a r l y f e r t i l e f o r art.

B e s i d e s its i n d i v i d u a l and g r o u p e x h i b i t i o n s ,

the year was m a r k e d b y two exhibitions o f original Western paintings.

The first wa s an exhibition of two hu n d r e d

Hungarian and Austrian paintings which was organized b y 419 t h e f o r e i g n r e s i d e n t s i n S h anghai. about

this e x h i b i t i o n ,

Not m u c h w a s w r i t t e n

e x c e p t that a c a t a l o g u e w a s c o m p i l e d

(no l o n g e r a v a i l a b l e ) a n d so me o f the p a i n t i n g s w e r e d o n a t e d b y t h e s p o n s o r s a s l o t t e r y priz es . The second was an large exhibition of mode rn Belgian a r t o r g a n i z e d un de r t h e a u s p i c e s o f t h e B e l g i a n a m b a s s a d o r t o C h ina.

S h o w n w e r e o n e h u n d r e d and t h i r t y oil p a i n t i n g s

b y s i x t y - e i g h t r e p r e s e n t a t i v e a c a d e m i c a r t is t s,

including

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited without p erm ission.

194 W u T s o - j e n ' s t eacher, A l f r e d B a s t i e n , w h o w a s r e p r e s e n t e d b y King Albert

420 I on Horseback and Still-life«

These

w o r k s b y B e l g i a n a r t i s t s e x e m p l i f i e d a v a r i e t y of styles, ranging from Neoclassicism to Romanticism, and Post-Impressionism.

I m pr essionism,

This afforded a rare opportunity

for n e w n a t i v e - t r a i n e d arti s ts , w h o f o r m e r l y h a d to g r o p e t h e i r w a y t h r o u g h r e p r o d u c t i o n s a n d imitat i on s .

It c a n

a l s o b e s e e n as a t r i u m p h f or the a d v o c a t e s o f a c a d e m i c r e a l is m, w h o w e r e f o l l o w i n g c l o s e l y t he b e a u x a r t s t r a d i ­ tion.

A n d the prol e t a r i a n artists w o u l d undoubtedly find

i n s p i r a t i o n f r o m s u c h w o r k s as L e s B e c h e u r s

(Jean D onnay), S

Meunier au Travail (Ame de e Lynen),

(Georges F r e d e r i c ) ,

and La Vie des Humbles

Population Ouvriere (A r m a n d Jamar).

421

In d i r e c t c o n t r a s t w e r e t h e e x h i b i t i o n s h e l d b y a group of students returned from Japan w h o called them­ s e l v e s N e o - F a u v e s and

S u r re a li s ts .

These artists were

members of the China Independent Art Association h u a t u - l i m e i - s h i h s i e h - h u i ).

(Chung-

T h e i r e x h i b i t i o n s in J a p a n 422

had b e e n well-received b y Japanese critics,

b u t their

e f f o r t s to i n t r o d u c e the a v a n t g a r d e s t y l e s i n t o C h i n a (1935) w e r e m e t w i t h s e v e r e c r i t i c i s m , 4 2 ^ e x c e p t f r o m o n e or t w o w r i t e r s w h o f e l t C h i n a s h o u l d k e e p a b r e a s t 424 w i t h r e c e n t d e v e l o p m e n t s i n m o d e r n E u r o p e a n art.

The

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

195 f a i l u r e o f th i s g r o u p s e e m e d to v a l i d a t e a n i m p o r t a n t p r i n c i p l e o f t h e N e w A r t Mo ve m en t ,

that W e s t e r n a rt w a s

v a l u a b l e p r i m a r i l y b e c a u s e it e n a b l e d C h i n e s e a r t i s t s t o grasp the worl d of reality and to cure the indifference to n a t u r e w h i c h c a u s e d the d e c a y o f C h i n e s e t r a d i t i o n a l art. Consequently,

405

r e a l i s m in its v a r i o u s m a n i f e s t a t i o n s w a s

s t u d i e d e n t h u s i a s t i c a l l y , w h i l e a v a n t g a r d e s t y le s

(with

t h e i r i n h e r e n t s u b j e c t i v i t y a n d d i s r e g a r d f or natu ra l appearance)

h a d a d i f f i c u l t t i m e t a k i n g r o o t in China.

These Western avant garde styles were partly influenced b y a n e g a t i o n o n the p a r t o f the i n d u s t r i a l i z e d society.

s e n s i t i v e a r t i s t s t o their

C h i n a h a d yet t o c o m p l e t e her

m o d e r n i z a t i o n p r o c e s s a n d d i d n o t f u r n i s h t he n e c e s s a r y e n v i r o n m e n t for growt h.

Fu r t h e r m o r e ,

Chinese critics

w e r e u n a w a r e o f the r e v o l u t i o n a r y v i e w p o i n t s o f the S u r r e a l i s t s in E u r o p e T r o t s k y in 1938,

(Andre B r e t o n w r o t e w i t h L e o n

"M anifesto:

T o w a r d s a F r e e Revolu-

426 t i o n a r y Art"),

t h e y i n t e r p r e t e d the s u b j e c t i v e i n v o l v e ­

m e n t i n t he d r e a m s a n d f a n t a s i e s o f t he S u r r e a l i s t s as an escape from reality,

a n d thus r e j e c t e d t h e m o n suc h

grounds.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

196 T h e S e c o n d N a t i o n a l A r t E xh i bi t i o n ,

1937

The most spectacular exhibition o f the period was o r g a n i z e d i n 1937 b y t he M i n i s t r y o f E d u c a t i o n to c o i n c i d e w i t h t he o p e n i n g o f t h e n e w a r t g a l l e r y a n d c o n c e r t hal l in N a n k in g , w h i c h w e r e b u i l t w i t h p r o c e e d s f r o m the L o n d o n I n t e r n a t i o n a l E x h i b i t i o n of C h i n e s e A r t

(1935).

The Second

N a t i o n a l A r t E x h i b i t i o n r e p r e s e n t e d a m o n u m e n t a l e f f o r t to b r i n g together over three thousand items in nine divisions: books

(rare e d i t i o n s ) ,

s ea l -e n g r a v i n g ,

a r c h i t e c t u r a l d e s i g n s a n d m o de l s, painting,

d e c o r a t i v e arts,

s c ul p t u r e , W e s t e r n - s t y l e

c o n t e m p o r a r y c a l l i g r a p h y a n d t r a d i t i o n a l p a i n ti n g,

a n c i e n t c a l l i g r a p h y and p a i n t i n g , also brought

and photography.

427

It

t o t h e p u b l i c the f i n d i n g s o f a r c h a e o l o g i c a l

e x c a v a t i o n s c o n d u c t e d b y the A c a d m i a S i n i c a f r o m 193 4 to 428 1 9 3 6 at Anya n g. The two sections of contemporary painting ti o n a l

( t radi­

s t y l e a nd W e s t e r n - s t y l e ) c a n b e d e s c r i b e d a s a

mic r o c o s m of the divergent tendencies in the C hinese art world.

In t r a d i t i o n a l pa i nt i ng ,

one could easily d i s ­

t i n g u i s h b e t w e e n t he c o n s e r v a t i v e o l d s c h o o l a n d t h e n e w school.

A m o n g the o l d school,

e i g h t out o f t e n w o r k s 429

w e r e i m i t a t i o n s o f a n c i e n t mast e rs .

T h e n e w school,

or h s i n k u o - h u a p ' a i , w a s r e p r e s e n t e d b y the L i n g - n a n

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

197 school

(Kao C h i en - fu , C h ' e n S h u - je n ) a n d W e s t e r n - s t y l e

a r t i s t s e x p e r i m e n t i n g i n t h e t r a d i t i o n a l medi u m.

Village

S o n g b y H s u P e i - hu n g s h o w e d a b u f f a l o b o y r e s t i n g o n the ground,

h o l d i n g o n t o a r o p e t i e d to a w a t e r b u f f a l o , H u a n g

S h a o - c h ' i a n g p a i n t e d t w o s e a m s t r e s s e s a t work.

C h a o Wan-

y u n v i v i d l y r e n d e r e d a r e c e n t d i s a s t r o u s f l o o d i n Shangt u n g i n t o p i c t o r i a l form.

Shen I-ch'ien's Shepherdess

dep i c t e d a shepherd girl o f Northwest C h i n a herding t h o u s a n d s o f s h e e p in t h e c o u n t r y s i d e .

These paintings

s t o o d out among the h u n d r e d s o f l a n d s c a p e s , birds,

figures o f court ladies anJ Buddhist dieties, b e ­

c a u s e o f t h e i r c o n t e m p o r a r y s u b j e c t m a t t er , v a ti o n,

flowers and

a n d s p o n t a n e o u s e x p r e s si on .

direct obser­

These artists may

h a v e i n d i c a t e d a w a y to a s s i m i l a t e t h e W e s t e r n i m p a c t w h i c h w o u l d r e s u l t i n th e c r e a t i o n o f a n e w a r t f o r C hina. In the W e s t e r n - s t y l e p a i n t i n g section,

there were

t h e u su al i m i t a t i o n s or a d a p t i o n s o f W e s t e r n or i gi n a l s . B ut a va st i m p r o v e m e n t in t e c h n i q u e w a s r e a d i l y a p p a r e n t , c o m p a r e d w i t h the w o r k s i n o il e x h i b i t e d in the F i r s t National Art Exhibition b e c o m e m o r e at e a s e

(1929).

The C h i n e s e a r t i s t s h a d

w i t h t h e oi l m e d i u m ,

as shown especially

t*

b y t h e a c a d e m i c p a i n t e r s L u Ssu-pai, W u Tso-j’en, a n d C h ' a n g Sh u -h u ng .

B e s i d e s the u su a l p a i n t i n g s o f nudes,

portraits,

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

198 a n d s t i l l - l i f e s , t h e r e w e r e a g r e a t n u m b e r of w o r k s w h i c h i n d i c a t e d t h e g r o w i n g t e n d e n c y o f p o r t r a y i n g the less f o r t u n a t e p e o p l e i n t h e soc i et y : Wanderer

(Shih P ' o - f u) ,

Man a n d His Donkey yu), cover

Potato Diggers

(Chou K'uei ) ,

a n d m a n y other s .

A Begger

(Wang Y u e h - c h i h ) ,

(Li C h i e n - c h ' e n ) ,

Street Peddlars

(Hu H si en -

S o m e a r t i s t s w e r e a l r e a d y t r y i n g to

their W e s t e r n i n f l u e n c e n o t o n l y i n s u b j e c t m a t te r ,

b u t a l s o in t e c h n i q u e . Kwangsi

W a n g C h i - y u a n ' s L a n d s c a p e in

( P late 45) c o n v e y e d a s e n s e o f m o n u m e n t a l i t y a n d

s e r e n i t y w h i c h w a s n o t f o u n d i n h i s e a r l i e r works. A m o n g the w e l l - e s t a b l i s h e d a r t i s t s o f the N e w A r t M o v em e nt ,

o n l y H s u P e i - h u n g a n d W a n g Y a - c h 'e n p a r t i c i p a t e d

in t r a d i t i o n a l p a i n t i n g . a still-life,

Lin Feng-mien w as represented by

Liu H a i - s u b y Sunset on the T h a m e s .

w e r e absent from the exhibition: shih,

Ting Yen-yung,

less t o say,

C h ' e n P ao-i,

Many

Li C h 'ao-

Ni I-te, a n d Y a n g C h ' i u - j e n .

Need­

t h e l e f t - w i n g a r t i s t s w e r e n o t i n c l u d e d in

t he o f f i c i a l e x h i b i t i o n .

B y 1937, m o s t o f t h e e s t a b l i s h e d a r t i s t s o f t he N e w A r t M o v e m e n t h a d b e c o m e m o r e a n d m o r e i n v o l v e d w i t h t he ir o w n a r t t o t h e e x c l u s i o n o f t he o u t s i d e w o r l d .

Many others

turned their attention towards developing a new national painting,

t h e r e b y r e o r i e n t i n g t he N e w A r t M o v e m e n t in t he

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

199 d i r e c t i o n o f the M o v e m e n t f o r t h e R e n a i s s a n c e i n C h i n e s e N a t i o n a l Art.

The vitality of the New Art Movement can

o n l y b e s e e n i n the y o u n g a r t i s t s w h o w e r e t r y i n g t o r e ­ f l e c t C h i n a i n the t h r o e s o f m o d e r n i z a t i o n a n d J a p a n e s e aggression.

Among these young artists were m a n y w h o were

influenced b y Soviet aesthetics.

T h e y b r o k e a w a y f r o m t he

New Ar t Movement to fo r m a Left-Wing Ar t Movement.

In

s p i t e o f c o n t i n u e d s u p p r e s s i o n s and a r r e s t s c o n d u c t e d b y the K u o m i n t a n g g o v e r n m e n t ,

t h e s e a r t i s t s c a r r i e d on the

L e f t - W i n g M o v e m e n t w i t h r e n e w e d vigor.

Diametrically

o p p o s e d w e r e t h e t r a d i t i o n a l i s t s , w h o s t il l c h e r i s h e d t he t h e o r y that a r t s h o u l d n o t r e f l e c t t h e s t r e s s o f its a g e b e c a u s e it w a s m e a n t t o b e a c o m p e n s a t i o n f o r a n d 430 e s c a p e f r o m the r a p i d p a c e o f m o d e r n living.

Friction

among these divergent forces c re ated an exciting and c o m ­ p l e x p e r i od ,

and a s the p o l i t i c a l s i t u a t i o n w o r s e n e d ,

the

n e e d to r e s o l v e on e ' s o w n a r t i s t i c a i m s b e c a m e m o r e urgent. W h e n w a r b r o k e o u t i n July,

1937, b a r e l y t h r e e

m o n t h s a f t e r the S e c o n d N a t i o n a l A r t E x hi b i t i o n , s we p t o v e r the

entire population.

nationalism

A r t i s t s put a s i d e their

c o n f l i c t s and j o i n e d f o r c e s f o r n a t i o n a l

s u rvival.

The

c u r r e n t s o f W e s t e r n a r t w h i c h b e g a n in the l a t e n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y w a s c u t o f f b y this

su r g e o f n a t i o n a l i s m .

Inevitably,

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200 t h e i s o l a t i o n o f a c o u n t r y at w a r i m p o s e d b a r r i e r s on cultural communications.

D e v e l o p m e n t s i n W e s t e r n art

t o w a r d a b s t r a c t i o n h a d n o m e a n i n g in China.

F r o m this

time on, t h e s t r u g g l e w o u l d b e a n i n t e r n a l pro ce ss , the a i m w o u l d b e f o r a t r u l y n a t i o n a l a r t

and

(min-tsu i - s h u ).

T h e a r t i s t s u s e d w h a t the y h a d a c q u i r e d f r o m t h e We s t in the p r e v i o u s f o r t y years, b u t the y w o u l d lo o k n o w for i n s p i r a t i o n in t he s u f f e r i n g s a r o u n d them, o f Tun h ua ng ,

in t h e c a v e s

in the c o l o r f u l m i n o r i t y tribes, a n d the

c a p t i v a t i n g w o n d e r o f W e s t e r n China.

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CHAPTER 5

CONCLUSION

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

202 T h e C h i n e s e Po i nt o f Vi e w In t he f o r e g o i n g c h a p t e r s , w e ha v e t r a c e d t h e e s t a b l i s h m e n t o f a s ch oo l o f W e s t e r n p a i n t i n g in C h i n a a n d the g r a d u a l a s s i m i l a t i o n o f W e s t e r n i n f l u e n c e i n f o t ra d it i o n a l p a i n ti n g.

These w e r e the results o f a h i s­

t o r i c a l p r o c e s s w h i c h b e y o n d a n y d o u b t c h a n g e d the f o r m and content

o f C h i n e s e art.

Contemporary Chinese artists

i n t e r p r e t e d thi s p r o c e s s a s a m a t t e r - o f - f a c t c o n s e q u e n c e of China's encounter with foreign cultures and attempted t o p l a c e t h i s p r o c e s s w i t h i n a h i s t o r i c a l persp e ct i ve . In C h i n e s e a r t h i s to r y,

examples of East-West

e n c o u n t e r s in art a r e n o t scarce. P ' a n T' i e n - s h o u ,

A s e a r l y as 1926,

a representative traditional painter of

the n e w school, m a d e a s t u d y o f the

introduction of

431 f o r e i g n p a i n t i n g i n t o China.

H e l o c a t e d the f i r s t

f o r e i g n a r t i s t i n C h i n a at the t i m e of the Fi r st E m pe ro r of Ch'in

(221-209 B . C. ) .

T h i s w a s f o l l o w e d b y t he i n t r o ­

d u c t i o n o f I n d i a n B u d d h i s m i n t o C h i n a d u r i n g t he E a s t e r n Han dynasty

(25-220 A . D . ).

f l o u r i s h in China,

B u d d h i s t p a i n t i n g b e g a n to

u n t i l it d o m i n a t e d C h i n e s e a r t e n t i r e l y

d u r i n g the S i x D y n a s t i e s a n d r e m a i n e d a n i m p o r t a n t f o r c e in t h e T ' a n g d y n a s t y

(618-905 A . D . ).

T he t h i r d p e r i o d of

f o r e i g n a r t i s t i c i n f l u e n c e , a c c o r d i n g t o P ' a n T ' ie n- s h o u ,

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

203 b e g a n w i t h the a r r i v a l o f J e s u i t m i s s i o n a r i e s in C h a p t e r 1).

(discussed

T h e O p i u m W a r o f 1 8 4 2 o p e n e d C h i n a to

i n t e n s i v e c o m m u n i c a t i o n w i t h t h e W e s t a nd f o r m e d the f o u r t h p e r i o d o f E a s t - W e s t e n c o u n t e r in art. P ' a n T ' i e n - s h o u o b s e r v e d c o r r e c t l y t h a t the i n ­ f l u e n c e o f W e s t e r n a r t in C h i n a b e f o r e t h e t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y w a s v e r y limited,

in s p i t e o f t h e i n t e n s i v e

a c t i v i t i e s of the f o r e i g n e r s .

It w a s n o t u n t i l the first

d e c a d e o f the t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y that the W e s t e r n art g r a d u a l l y i n c r e a s e d .

influence of

P'an gave four reasons

for th is c h a n g e o f r e c e p t i o n : First, E u r o p e a n p a i n t i n g in t h e last t h i r t y or f o r t y years h a d d e v e l o p e d a g r e a t (appreciation) for the p u r i t y o f c o l o r a n d line, t e n d i n g t o w a r d s the s p i r i t u a l t a s t e o f the Orie n t. Sec on d , b e c a u s e o f the influenced of the reform movements, anything th a t w a s n o t n e w o r f o r e i g n w a s n o t w o r t h stu dy i ng . Third, Chinese painting, after the study o f artists a n d s c h o l a r s o f t he s u c c e s s i v e d y n a s t i e s for t h r e e t o f o u r t h o u s a n d years, h a d r e a c h e d its h i g h e s t p oint. It w a s not e a s y t o o p e n ( n e w paths) for the futu re . T h e r e f o r e , it w a s n e c e s s a r y t o w e l c o m e n e w p r i n c i p l e s f r o m t h e ouside. Fourth, the materials a n d the m o d e s o f r e p r e s e n t a t i o n i n W e s t e r n p a i n t i n g p o s s e s s e d u n i q u e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s , thus, it w o u l d b e m e a n i n g f u l to e x p e r i m e n t . F o r t h e s e r e a so n s, y o u n g p e o p l e o f C h i n a d e v e l o p e d t h e t e n d e n c y t o p u r s u e the s t u d y o f W e s t e r n p a i n t i n g d i r e c t l y a n d t h o r o u g h l y . 422 In this a c c ou nt ,

P'an T'ien-shou showed succinctly

the r e a s o n s b e h i n d the a c c e p t a n c e o f W e s t e r n a r t in C h i n a in the

e a r l y y e a r s o f t he t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y .

The tide for

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited without p erm ission.

204 r eform,

the d e c l i n e o f C h i n e s e art, a n d the u n i q u e

c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s o f W e s t e r n ar t

(which c a p t u r e d t h e

in t e r e s t o f the r e f o r m - c o n s c i o u s y o u n g a r t i s t s ) h a v e b e e n d i s c u s s e d i n v a r i o u s p l a c e s in t h i s d i s s e r t a t i o n . T h e m o s t i n t e r e s t i n g po in t s e e m s t o b e P 'a n' s a s s o c i a t i o n o f the n e w e m p ha s is o n the b e a u t y o f c o l o r

and l i n e in

m o d e r n W e s t e r n p a i n t i n g w i t h t he s p i r i t u a l

t as t e o f the

East.

T h i s w i l l b e s t u d i e d u n d e r a s e p a r a t e section. P ’a n w a s the f i r s t t o s tu d y W e s t e r n a r t i n C h i n a

as history,

and h i s a c c o u n t o f t h e e a r l i e s t years o f th e

s c ho ol o f W e s t e r n p a i n t i n g in C h i n a h as b e c o m e a v a l u a b l e p r i m a r y s ou r ce f o r study.

B u t he w a s w r i t i n g

the middle of a historical process and was

(1926)

in

t h e r e f o r e n ot

f u l l y a w a r e o f the c o m p l e x i t y a n d e x t e n t o f thi s E a s t - W e s t encount er .

H e c o u l d o n l y c o m e to t h e f i na l o b s e r v a t i o n

that: . . . world communication has become more convenient d a y b y day, t h e m u t u a l a s s i m i l a t i o n o f the l e a r n i n g s o f t h e Eas t a nd t he W e s t c a n n o t b e guessed. We can o n l y w a i t for natural d e v e l o p m e n t i n the f u t u r e . 4 ^ C h e n g C h ' an g ,

another traditional artist-historian,

w r o t e a n a r t i c l e in d e f e n s e o f t r a d i t i o n a l art in 1931.

He

a l s o l o o k e d f o r p r e c e d e n t s in the l o n g h i s t o r y o f C h i n e s e a r t to e x p l a i n t h e a c c e p t a n c e o f th e W e s t e r n a e s t h e t i c b y c o n t e m p o r a r y a rtists.

W r i t i n g a f e w ye a r s later than P ' a n

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205 T'ien>shou, Cheng was able to extract from history a p r o c e s s o f a s s i m i l a t i o n o f f o r e i g n c u l t u r e that c o u l d b e a p p l i e d t o the t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y p h en o me n on .

H e w r ot e :

In t he b e g i n n i n g ( f o r e i g n art) is a c c e p t e d as m u c h as po s sible; n e x t c o m e s t he p r o c e s s o f s e l e c t i n g t h e e s s e n c e and d i s c a r d i n g the coar se , g r a d u a l l y a c h i e v i n g t he e f f ec t o f a s s i m i l a t i o n , a n d in the end, a n e w p a t h b y w h i c h t he t r u e (Chinese) s e l f is m a n i f e s t e d w i l l b e set.434 A c c o r d i n g t o C h en g, l a t i o n h a d b e g u n alr e ad y,

s ig ns o f s e l e c t i o n a n d a s s i m i ­

i n d i c a t e d b y the e x p e r i m e n t s in

t r a d i t i o n a l p a i n t i n g b y s u c h W e s t e r n - s t y l e a r t i s t s as L i u H a i - s u a n d W a n g Y a - c h ’en.

435

Western art would b e absorbed

e v e n t u a l l y int o the C h i n e s e a r t i s t i c tradit i on , it

enriching

(as it s p r e d e c e s s o r s h a d d o n e in the p r e v i o u s c en tu r i e s ) . D e s p i t e the p r e c e d e n t s ,

however,

the W e s t e r n i m p a c t

in the t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y w a s u n i q u e b o t h i n b r e a d t h o f a c t i v i t y a n d i n d e p t h o f s i g n if i ca nc e .

B e f o r e the C h i n e s e

c a m e i n t o c o n t a c t w i t h the m o d e r n West,

their c i v i l i z a t i o n

h a d n e v e r b e e n s e r i o u s l y c h a l l e n g e d in t o t o b y a n y f o r e i g n influence

(except

I n dian B u d d h i s m , w h i c h h a d t o u c h e d c l o s e l y

m a n y a s p e c t s o f C h i n e s e i n t e l l e c t u a l , a r t i st i c,

a n d social

life, b u t h a d a f f e c t e d t h e p o l i t i c a l a n d e c o n o mi c less).

In art,

it w a s the first

syst em s

t i m e C h i n e s e ar t i s t s

l e a r n e d f r o m f o r e i g n a rt for the p u r p o s e o f r e v i t a l i z i n g t he i r d e c a y i n g tradition.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

206 O n the o t h e r hand,

traditional artists like P'an

T ' i e n - s h o u a n d C h e n g C h ' a n g w e r e t o so me e x t e n t c o r r e c t in their o b s e rv a ti on s .

T h e i n i ti al e n t h u s i a s m fo r W e s t e r n

a rt in the t w e n t i e s w a s e c l i p s e d b y the r e s u r g e n c e o f t r a ­ d i t i o n a l a rt in the th i r t i e s in t he name of n a t i o n a l art. B u t th is r e t u r n to t r a d i t i o n w a s u n d e r t a k e n b y a r t i s t s w h o h a d b e e n e x p o s e d to W e s t e r n i nfluences.

T h e y l o o k e d at

t r a d i t i o n w i t h a m o r e p r o b i n g a n d r e j u v e n a t i n g eye, and t h e y w e r e less b o u n d b y the a r t i s t i c c o n v e n t i o n s w h i c h h a d i n h i b i t e d the p r o g r e s s of C h i n e s e art.

In t h i s respect,

t he i mp a ct of the W e s t h a d i n d e e d i m p a r t e d n e w life to C h i n a ' s a n c i e n t p i c t o r i a l art.

C h i n a ' s R e s p o n s e t o W e s t e r n A r t in the E a s t - W e s t C o n f r o n t a ­ t io n o f the T w e n t i e t h C e n t u r y T he history o f modern China has b e e n interpreted b y m a n y s c h o l a r s t o b e a t r a n s i t i o n f r o m the c l o s e d i d e a o f a C h i n e s e w o r l d to the o p e n id e a o f C h i n a a s a n a t i o n in the w o r l d

( t ' i e n- h si a t o k u o - c h i a ).

436

h as m a d e a n in d e p t h st u d y o f this view.

Joseph Levenson He writes:

Mo s t r e c e n t l y in the e i g h t e e n t h c e n t u r y , C h i n a w a s u n m i s t a k a b l y "gr ea t ," a n d it s a w i t s e l f at the c e n t e r of t he w or l d. Indeed, it w a s a w o r l d b y itself, a w o r l d w h o s e v a l u e s w e r e Value, w h o s e civilization was Civilization, a trans-national antithesis to barbarism. Confucian "culturalist" in C h i n a - a s - a - w o r l d h a d t r a d i t i o n a l i s m a s a w o r l d

view.4 37

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

207 In C h i n e s e art,

t he t r a d i t i o n a l i s t a t t i t u d e

p e r s i s t e d e v e n i n t o the n i n e t e e n t h c e n t ur y , w h e n C h i n a ' s a g e - o l d i n s t i t u t i o n s w e r e a l r e a d y s h o w i n g si g ns o f decay. T h a t a t t i t u d e a c c o u n t s for the v e r y l i m i t e d i n f l u e n c e o f W e s t e r n a r t o n the m a i n s t r e a m o f C h i n e s e a r t u p t o the t w e n t i e t h c entury. B u t such a n

"anc i en t n a t i o n a l - c u l t u r a l c h a u v i n i s m "

w a s n o l o n ge r p o s s i b l e in t he t w e n t i e t h c e n tu ry .

C h i na 's

d e f e a t s in the n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y s h o o k t h e t r a d i t i o n b y its roots.

A s e r i e s o f r e f o r m s fo ll o we d ,

e n l a r g i n g the

c i r c l e of a c c e p t e d W e s t e r n l e a r n i n g f r o m m e r e l y m i l i t a r y s c i e n c e t o th e i n d u s t r i a l a n d p o l i t i c a l s c iences. e f f o r t s at

These

"national r e j u v e n a t i o n " t r a n s f o r m e d the o l d

social a l i g n m e n t , c r e a t i n g n e w w a y s t o s o ci al p r o m i n e n c e and new content to cultural distinction. lists in th e t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y ,

Chinese nationa­

a c c o r d i n g t o Le ve n so n,

w e r e either: . . . a v o w e d l y n e w men, i n t he "May F o u r t h " spirit; or, i f c o n s e r v a t i v e , t h e y t r a n s - v a l u e d o l d v a l u e s in their v e r y a f f i r m a t i o n o f the old. If they tried to r e t a i n C o n f u c i u s , for exa m pl e , i n C h i n a a s a n a t i o n i n the w o r l d , t h e y w e r e t r a d i t i o n a l i s t i c , no t t radit i o n a l . In the t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y , the i c o n o c l a s t i c

"new

me n" w e r e particularly aware of the necessity to assimilate W e s t e r n c u l t u r e in o r d e r for the c o u n t r y t o s u r v i v e as a

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208 m e m b e r o f the w o r l d c o m m u n i t y .

T o a c e r t a i n exte n t,

the

W e s t e r n - s t y l e a r t i s t s w e r e a l s o c o n s c i o u s of t h e n e e d for C h i n a t o e m e r g e f r o m h er d e c l i n i n g t r a d i t i o n a n d a s s u m e a p l a c e in a w o r l d c u l t ur e .

T h e y r e g a r d e d the

adoption o f Western painting techniques as an important s t e p t o w a r d s b e c o m i n g p a r t o f the i n t e r n a t i o n a l s c e n e i n ^ 439 art. The step involved the fusion of cultural nationalism and political nationalism. c l e a r e s t terms,

this m e a n s

inter­

T o p u t it i n t h e

1) that the s u r g e o f n a t i o n a l i s m

in t he t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y h a d r e p l a c e d a c u l t u r a l i s t i c C h i n e s e w o r l d c o n c e p t w i t h the n a t i o n a s the p r o p e r o b j e c t o f loyalty,

2) that on the

s t r e n g t h o f th is c o n c e p t the

n a t i o n a l i s t s w e r e fr ee t o m a k e a n y i n t e l l e c t u a l c h o i c e , h o w e v e r u n o r t h o d o x in t e r m s o f C h i n e s e c u l t u r e , it w e r e n a t i o n a l l y usef ul ,

3) that,

if only

e s p e c i a l l y in t h e c a s e

o f art, m a n y a r t i s t s w h o w e r e i n f l u e n c e d b y the W e s t c a m e to b e l i e v e that art h a d n o n a t i o n a l b o u n d a r i e s . F u P a o - s h ih , a p r o m i n e n t t r a d i t i o n a l p a i n t e r t r a i n e d i n Japan, w a s v e r y f r a n k in h i s s t a t e m e n t : It is a ll right for C h i n e s e p a i n t i n g t o s u bm i t to i n f l u e n c e s f r o m the West, f r o m India, or f r o m Japan. W h e n w e a r e l o o k in g for a path, w e s h o u l d l o o k a r o u n d in m a n y d i r e c t i o n s . 4 4 ®

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209 T h e c a s e w a s e v e n m o r e p r o m i n e n t l y i l l u s t r a t e d b y the L e f t - W i n g A r t M o v e m e n t o f t h e t hi rties.

Th e movement

was marked b y an intensely nationalistic feeling generated b y d i s a s t e r af t er d i s a s t e r in f o r e i g n a n d d o m e s t i c p ol ities. It b o r r o w e d h e a v i l y f r o m f o r e i g n a r t t o e x p r e s s b o t h t h e o u t r a g e o f t h e C h i n e s e p e o p l e a n d t h e i r h o p e f or a b e t t e r future. U n d e r t h e a e g i s o f c u l t u r a l i n t e r n a t i o n a l i s m a nd political nationalism, m a n y imitative a n d poor w o r k s w e r e produced,

e s p e c i a l l y in W e s t e r n - s t y l e p a i n t i n g .

more than apparent

It is

that t h e a d o p t i o n o f a f o r e i g n t e c h n i q u e

w a s f ar f r o m s u f f i c i e n t in b r i n g i n g a b o u t a n c u l t u r a l Renaissance Mo v em e n t ) ,

(a b o r r o w e d t e r m e d p o p u l a r

s i n c e the M a y F o u r t h

no t to m e n t i o n t h e i n a d e q u a c y o f th at t e c h n i q u e

t o e a r n a p l a c e ior C h i n e s e a r t i s t s in the i n t e r n a t i o n a l ar t wo rld.

It is o n e r e q u i r e m e n t o f art that

b e universal,

it h a s t o b e i nd i vi d ua l,

in o r d e r to

in order to be

a p p r e c i a t e d b y art l o v e r s o f all n a t i o n a l i t i e s ,

it has to 441

b e national,

as o n e C h i n e s e w r i t e r o b s e r v e d in 1937,

L u Hsun, w i t h h i s u s u a l s h a r p visio n ,

a l s o c o m m e n t e d on

t h e n a t i o n a l r o o t s o f art: . . . o n t h e c o n t r a r y , it is e a s i e r f or ar t w i t h local c o l o r t o b e c o m e i n t e r n a t i o n a l (to b e a c c e p t e d on a n i n t e r n a t i o n a l level} , a n d to b e noticed b y young people of other countries.

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210 Though Lu Hsun was writing specifically on woodcuts,

he

r e f l e c t e d the g r o w i n g r e a l i z a t i o n th a t o n e m u s t f i r s t b e a

"real C h i n e s e " b e f o r e b e c o m i n g in t er n a t i o n a l *

Only

t h e n w o u l d o n e b e in a p o s i t i o n t o b r i n g o n e ' s u n i q u e r a c i a l a n d r e g i o n a l i d e n t i t y t o a w o r l d c u l t u re * For many Chinese intellectuals,

t he c h o i c e of

W e s t e r n thoug h t w a s n o t o n l y a p o s i t i v e act, b u t a l s o an act o f re p u d i a t i o n *

F r o m t h e i r point o f view,

the t r a d i ­

t ional v a l u e s h e l d b a c k the p r o g r e s s o f Ch ina, m a k i n g t h e c o u n t r y a v i c t i m o f f o r e i g n powers. already disintegrating,

T h o u g h t r a d i t i o n wa s

t h e s e young i n t e l l e c t u a l s still

f e l t its c o n t i n u i n g f o r c e v e r y k e en l y. d e s t r o y its hold. t he i r cr i ti c is m; C h i n e s e A rt

T h e y w i s h e d to

S o m e w r i t e r s w e r e v e r y s p e c i f i c in T a i Yo,

t r a n s l a t o r o f S. W. B u s h e l l ' s

(1923), c a n b e c o n s i d e r e d the r e p r e s e n t a t i v e

o f t h e s e wri t er s .

H e p o i n t e d out

(1924) t h r e e m a j o r

d e f e c t s in C h i n e s e a r t w h i c h l e d t o its i m i t a t i v e n e s s a n d decline. type-forms, lar.

Fi rst,

C h i n e s e a rt p r e s e n t e d o n l y g e n e r a l i z e d

l a c k i n g in a c c u r a t e d e p i c t i o n s o f the p a r t i c u ­

Second,

C h i n e s e a r t t e n d e d t o b e imagin a ry ;

there­

f o r e it w a s u n a b l e t o p o r t r a y t he real a p p e a r a n c e o f t o d a y ' s wo rld.

A n d third,

i n its t r a d i t i o n a l t ec h ni q ue s,

C h i n e s e a r t w a s i r r a t i o n a l a n d u n s c i e n t i f i c w i t h o u t pers-

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211 p e c t i v e or m o d e l l i n g .

443

Even thougb these supposed

d e f e c t s in C h i n e s e a r t w e r e b r i l l i a n t l y d e f e n d e d f r o m a

444 p h i l o s o p h i c a l p o i n t o f v i e w b y T s u n g P a i - h u a in 1934. They remained to haunt the conscience of Chinese artists s t r i vi ng to f i n d a n e w p a t h for m o d e r n C h i n e s e art.

Jfeny, there­

fore, felt ocmpeUed to r e f a s h i o n C h i n e s e a r t a n d t o f r e e it from the b o n dage of the ancients b y adopting Western s c i e n t i f i c m e t h o d s i n r e n d e r i n g the w o r l d o f o u t w a r d reality.

T h e c h a n g e i n a t t i t u d e b e c o m e s a ll the m o r e

s i g n i f i c a n t if w e r e c a l l that it w a s p r e c i s e l y o n a c c o u n t o f its l i f e - l i k e a p p e a r a n c e and d e p e n d e n c e o n t e c h n i c a l m e t h o d s that C h i n e s e a r t i s t s of the p r e v i o u s c e n t u r i e s r e j e c t e d W e s t e r n art. B ut t h e s e v e r e i c o n o c l a s m w h i c h o t h e r a s p e c t s o f traditional thought suffered was never too strong among t he C h i n e s e arti st s .

Indeed,

traditional art was criticized

f o r its o u t m o d e d f o r m a n d c o n t en t; b u t th e C h i n e s e a r t i s t s b l a m e d the d e c l i n e o f t r a d i t i o n a l art o n the i n f l u e n c e o f t h e Pour Wangs, w h o s e t h e o r i e s o n art d o m i n a t e d t he m a i n ­ s t r e a m f o r n e a r l y t h r e e h u n d r e d years.

T h e Fo ur W a n g s a n d

their f o l l o w e r s w e r e r e s p o n s i b l e for a n e c l e c t i s m w h i c h r e s u l t e d in s e p a r a t i n g the a r t i s t s f r o m t h e i r s o u r c e o f inspiration--nature.

Therefore,

instead of repudiating

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212 entirely the values of tradition, as the new intellect vials were doing, they accepted Western art as a way of return­ ing to the original spirit of the ancient masters.

These

artists interpreted the principle behind great works of art created by ancient masters of the T'ang and Sung dy­ nasties as a direct study of nature--hsieh-sheng.

Though

the technique might vary, hsieh-sheng was the one thing the artists of both the old and new schools agreed (in­ cluding Hsu Pei-hung, Wang Ya-ch'en, Wang Chi-yuan, Sun Fu-hsi, Huang Pin-hung, and many others). Furthermore, while the traditional political, social intellectual institutions collapsed in the twentieth century, Chinese art alone stood as the testimony of China's glorious past.

These works were not words recorded in books,

but vivid and concrete treasures from a superior culture which had stood the test of time, gaining recognition abroad and restoring national pride at home.

Therefore,

even though the revival of traditional thought (undertaken by the Kuoraintang government after it came into power in 1927) was considered by Mary Wright as "a dismal failure” in its attempt to restore social and economic stability,

445

traditional art emerged for more rational examination and reorganization.

This is a unique aspect of China's response

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213 to Western art not found in other areas of East-West encounter in the twentieth century. The surge of traditional art had its advantages and disadvantages.

The advantage was that it afforded

Western-style artists opportunities to reexamine their national heritage and their national roots.

It helped to

steer the Chinese art world away from meaningless imita­ tion of the West and facilitated the process of assimila­ tion of the Western impact.

But the surge of traditional

art also produced some disadvantages; the most obvious was that the pride inspired by the great achievements of the ancient masters made conservative traditionalists more imitative, adhering tenaciously to the canons of the past.

Support for the value of traditional art came from another direction.

Chinese artists perceived in modern

European artistic trends distinct influences from the East. Benjamin Schwartz has written on similar reactions by Chinese intellectuals towards Western learning: The openness to the variety of Western thought, when combined with the ongoing sense of the variety of Chinese thought, leads this generation to perceive not only antitheses but also affinities, similarities, and compatibilities between specific elements of Chinese traditional thought and specific varieties of modern Western thought.44** Their reason for doing so, according to Schwartz, was r'the

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214 need to salvage national pride."

He added:

Much of it is no doubt simply wrong and yet may reflect the brute fact that these people are in­ evitably forced to use the categories of thought and language available to them to assimilate the new ideas of the West.447 In the realm of art, this was very often a reason for accepting Western influence, as previously pointed out by P'an T'ien-shou.

But finding parallels and affinities

between traditional art and modern European art served another purpose: art.

it reaffirmed the values of traditional

When T ’ao Leng-yueh wrote in 1932 on cultural ex­

changes between the East and the West, he concluded by saying: . . . Post-Impressionism in Western painting, on the other hand, pays attention to the tendency of strength and line. It also talks about the ex­ pression of the personality (of the artist) . Since it places no importance to objective (obser­ vation) and emphasizes exclusively subjectivity, it is moving away from the bondage of realistic re­ presentation towards the expression of an idea ( hsieh-i ) . It appears to be caused by Oriental styles, this we must know about.44® The key word in this passage is "appears," since the connection between the Post-Impressionist and Oriental styles seemed obvious to the author of these observations. He wanted to bring the connection to the attention of the Chinese artists, even though his categorical description of Post-Impressionism would certainly arouse strong comments

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215 from anyone fully aware of the complex achievements of Cezanne, van Gogh, and Gauguin.

What Chinese Artists Learned from the West The process of the introduction of Western art involved a transmission of ideas was well as images.

While

the former might subject to misunderstanding arising from translations, the latter suffered unj'ustly because of poor reproductions (which did not do j’ustice to the rich tex­ tures and colors of oil paintings).

A brief survey of the

printed examples available to Chinese artists would reveal the crucial disadvnatages the Western-style artists suffered in their learning process.

To realize that these pale sha­

dows of great works were actually utilized as models helps to explain the low aesthetic standard of many of the works produced in this period.

Some of the more experienced

artists published guides and painting manuals for aspiring 449 young artists, who in turn copied from them also.

Collec­

tions of Western painting were non-existent in China during the entire period of forty years.

Not until 1935 did

Chinese artists have an opportunity to come face to face with original Western paintings during exhibitions from Austria, Hungary, and Belgium.

Students who were fortunate

enough to go abroad were accorded an authority and prestige

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216 sometimes beyond their capabilities when they returned to their homeland.

Not only were there no original paintings

to serve as a standard for comparison, there was no system of art criticism to stimulate progress and reform.

The

artists often preferred an atmosphere of mutual admiration. In art schools, the stronghold of the New Art Move­ ment, there were more problems.

Scores of art schools

sprang into existence all over China during a ten-year period that roughly corresponds to what we call the period of dissemination and consolidation (1919-1929).

Many of

these art schools were makeshift institutions capitalizing on the demand for training in Western-style painting.

Faci­

lities were far from ideal, and not a few of them closed after only a short time.

As for national academies and

well-established art schools like Shanghai Mei-chuan and Hsin-hua Art Academy, an integrated program to train artists never materialized.

The curriculum actually per­

petuated the dichotomy of nationalism and internationalism in the art world.

Michael Sullivan gives a vivid descrip­

tion of the situation which generally confronted a young student first beginning his career as a painter:

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217 After a first year spent in learning elementary drawing, perspective, shading and so on in the Western media, the student was asked which department he wished to enter--the "Western" or the "Chinese." Thereafter he was obliged to devote himself exclusively to one of the other, emerging three years later as a qualified painter in either a native and decadent tradition or a totally foreign style. In either case, the instruction was thoroughly academic, consisting in the former case in copying work by the teacher or from the technical handbooks, and the latter in draw­ ing from casts and from the nude in the manner of the ficole des Beaux Arts. The two kinds of artistic activity were considered quite separate and distinct. i

In this we may find the reason behind the slew emergence of a new art for modern China. Art schools were a modern phenomenon in China.

They

offered largescale training in art, thus replacing the masterd i s c i p l e relationship of the previous centuries.

But

their position in the modern Chinese educational system was not clearly defined.

From the founding of the earliest

art school (Shanghai Mei-chuan) in 1912 to 1937, art school went through the gamut of vocational schools, special academies, regular colleges, and departments in universities. The vicissitudes of the first National Academy in Peking best illustrate the nebulous and unfortunate condition of one of the most important forces of the New Art Movement. As we have seen in Chapter 2, the Peking National Academy was founded in 1918 as the Pei-ching mei-shu chuanmen hsueh-hsiao.

The name was changed in 1925 to Pei-ching

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i - s h u c h u a n - m e n h s u e h - h s i a o w i t h t he a d d i t i o n o f d e p a r t ­ m e n t s o f m u s i c a n d drama.

In 1927,

the amalgamation of

e i g h t s c h o o l s in P e k i n g f o r m e d P e k i n g U n i v e r s i t y and t he a r t a c a d e m y b e c a m e its a r t d e p a r t m e n t .

In 1928,

t h i s art ft

department was developed into a College of Art

(I - s h u hsueh-

U

tt

y u a n ) s ti l l a f f i l i a t e d w i t h t he P e k i n g U n i v e r s i t y a n d H s u P e i - h u n g w a s its d i r e c t o r for

two months,

t i o n in O c t o b e r u n t i l D e c e m be r.

f r o m its i n c e p ­

The Ministry of Education

d e c r e e d that the C o l l e g e o f A r t b e c h a n g e d t o a v o c a t i o n a l school

(P e i - p * i n g i - s h u c h i h - y e h c h u a n - k ' o h s u e h - h s i a o ) ,

b u t a f e w months later dec i d e d to d r o p c h i h - y e h , meaning v o c a t i o n a l , f r o m its name.

The College of Art stopped

o p e r a t i o n in t he s u m m e r o f 1933, a n d w h a t w e g e n e r a l l y call Peking National Academy

( o f f i c i a l l y k nown,

h owever,

as t he P e i - p fi ng i - s h u c h u a n - k ' o h s u e h - h s i a o ) c a m e i n t o e x i s t e n c e in A u g u s t ,

1934.

Its f a t e a f t e r

it d o e s not c o n c e r n us d i r e c t l y ,

1937,

though

r e v e a l s m o r e up he a va l s,

s i n c e t h e e n t i r e s c h o o l w a s m o v e d t h r o u g h the N o r t h w e s t a t the o u t b r e a k o f t h e S i n o - J a p a n e s e W a r

(1937) a n d

a m a l g a m a t e d w i t h the H a n g c h o w N a t i o n a l A c a d e m y in 1938.

4 51

It w a s f i n a l l y r e s t o r e d i n P e k i n g i n 1946, w i t h H s u Peih u n g as its d i r e c t o r u n t i l h i s d e a t h i n 1953.

This account

i s o n l y a s i m p o l i f i e d v e r s i o n o f the f o r t u n e s o f th e

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219 N a t i o n a l A c a de m y;

n o t o n l y w a s ea c h c h a n g e d e c r e e d b y

the Ministry o f Education accompanied b y name change and curriculum modification,

there usually resulted a

r e o r g a n i z a t i o n o f d i r e c t o r an d f a c u l t y as we l l.

More­

over, a r t s c h o o l s h a d b e c o m e b a s e s for p a r t y p o l i t i c s and,

in t h e th ir t ie s , b a t t l e g r o u n d s for i d e o l o g i c a l c o n ­

f l i c t s b e t w e e n r i g h t a n d left.

A l l t h e s e h i n d e r e d the

u t i l i z a t i o n o f a r t s c h o o l s t o t h e i r f u l l p o t e n t i a l as t r a i n i n g g r o u n d s f or n e w talent. A m i d s t such c o n f u s i o n a n d cr i s i s , w e m a y w o n d e r h o w m u c h C h i n e s e a r t i s t s a c t u a l l y d i d l e a r n f r o m the West. W e m u s t b e a r in m i n d that in o n l y a f e w d e c a d e s C h i n a had b e e n e x p o s e d t o s e v e r a l t h o u s a n d y e a r s o f W e s t e r n his to r y, i n c l u d i n g c u l t u r e a nd a r t o f w h i c h s h e h a d h i t h e r t o b e e n ignorant.

T h e t i m e w a s t o o s hort e v e n for a c o m p l e t e

u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f its t h e o r i e s a n d forms, m u c h less f o r an a s s i m i l a t i o n o f t h e e n t i r e h e r i t a g e o f W e s t e r n c i v i ­ lization. aesthetic Chin e se ,

A w h o l e v o l u m e c o u l d b e w r i t t e n on h o w e a c h theory was translated and understood b y the i f our r e s o u r c e s w e r e m o r e c o m p r e h e n s i v e a n d

e n o u g h time a n d e f f o r t w e r e spent t o s o r t t h e w h o l e c h a o t i c a nd i n d i s c r i m i n a t e process.

At this moment we

f i n d it p o s s i b l e o n l y to d e a l w i t h the m a j o r issues.

The

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220 m o s t r e m a r k a b l e is, o f c o ur s e,

t h e r e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f th e

me aning o f art required b y China's adjustment

t o t he m o d e r n

w o rl d. T h e t wo b a s i c p r i n c i p l e s th at C h i n a a d o p t e d f r o m the W e s t w e r e s c i e n c e and d e m o c r a c y , ( S a i - y i n - s s u h s i e n - s h e n g )and h s i e n - s h e n g ).

452

n i c k n a m e d "Mr.

"Mr. D e m o c r a c y "

R e f l e c t e d i n the arts,

Science"

(T e - m o - k 'o - l a - h s i

the f o r m e r i n v o l v e d

a r e j e c t i o n o f t h e sy m b o l i c and i n t u i t i v e t r a d i t i o n in favor o f a s c i e n t i f i c a n d r a t i o n a l meth o d. f e s t e d in t h e m a n y a t t e m p t s

The latter was m a n i ­

t o l i b e r a t e the a r t s f r o m t h e i r

a s s o c i a t i o n w i t h t h e s c h o l a r l y e l i t e a nd to m a k e t h e m a g e n e r a t i v e f o r c e for the n e w society. a rt

In this res pe c t,

s h e d its f o r m e r a m a t e u r ideal and p a s t i m e c o n n o t a t i o n s

(which t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y C h i n e s e a r t i s t s d i s c r e d i t e d as t he c a u s e o f its d i v o r c e f r o m the s t r e a m o f life). A r t w a s a c t i v e l y p r o m o t e d in t h e e d u c a t i o n a l system, m u s e u m s d i s p l a y i n g a n c i e n t t r e a s u r e s w e r e o p e n e d t o the

public,

galleries w ere instituted to exhibit c o n ­

t e m p o r a r y w o r k s o f art, l ar g e q u a n t i t i e s .

a n d b o o k s o n a rt w e r e p u b l i s h e d in

A r t w a s i n v e s t e d w i t h a s o c ia l f u n c t i o n

to t r a n s f o r m a n old, b a c k w a r d s o c i e t y a nd t o a l l e v i a t e some o f the s t r u g g l e s o f h u m a n e x i s te n ce .

These were

i d e a s n o t f o u n d i n t r a d i t i o n a l a t t i t u d e s t o a rt in the

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221 p r e v i o u s c e nt u r i e s .

W e c a n o n l y fin d a r e m o t e a n t e c e d e n t

in t h e w o r d s o f C h a n g Y e n - y u a n

(T'ang d y n as ty ) w h o r e c o r d e d

the e t h i c a l f u n c t i o n o f a r t in his R e c o r d o f F a m o u s P a i n t ­ ings in S u c c e s s i v e A g e s

(c om p le t ed 845):

’’P a i n t i n g p r o mo te s

c u l t u r e and s t r e n g t h e n s t he p r i n c i p l e s of r i g h t c o n d u c t

453 . . . ”

S oc i al a t t i t u d e s to a rt b e l o n g m a i n l y t o p r e - t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y Europe,

and

the i n c o n g r u i t y b e t w e e n d o c t r i n e a n d

a rt in C h i n a b e c o m e s r e a d i l y a p p a r e n t w h e n w e lo o k at e x a m p le s o f art that w e r e b e i n g c r e a t e d a n d p o p u l a r i z e d d u r i n g thi s period.

A s w e h a v e n o t e d i n the p r e v i o u s

ch a pt e rs , C h i n e s e a r t i s t s e x p e r i m e n t e d m a i n l y in a c a d e m i c realism,

Imp r es s io ni s m,

G e r m a n Exp r es si o ni s m.

Post-Impressionism, In the West,

Fauvism,

and

artistic development

s i n c e I m p r e s s i o n i s m h a d b e e n a r e a c t i o n a g a i n s t th e a r t i ­ ficiality

(or id ea l is m)

o f t he a c a d e m i c s t yl e a n d the

e x p r e s s i o n o f the p e r s o n a l

s u b j e c t i v i t y o f a r t i s t s in an

advanced industrialized and capitalist

society.

w o r k s w e r e e l o q ue n t e x p r e s s i o n s o f t h e a rtists' a n d sufferings,

Their aspirations

a n d their artistic developments w e r e anti­

c i p a t e d a n d s u p p o r t e d b y s i m i l a r p r o g r e s s in a e s t h e t i c s a n d p hi l os o ph y .

45 4

B u t th e ir C h i n e s e i m i t a t o r s r a r e l y

w e n t b e y o n d the s u p e r f i c i a l c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s o f t h e s e styles.

T h e y a d o p t e d the s u bj e ct m a t t e r o f the W e s t e r n

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222 a r t is t s:

s t i l l - l i f e s o f f l o w e r s and

nudes, a n d portraits.

fruits,

landsc a pe s ,

S e l d o m d i d t h e y v e n t u r e o ut o f their

w o r l d t o d e p i c t w h a t w a s h a p p e n i n g to t h e p e o p l e o f China, t heir s t r u g g l e s and s u ff er i n g s . for the f u l f i l l m e n t o f the

It w o u l d b e f u t i l e to h o p e

social,

ethical,

and educational

f u n c t i o n s o f art b y w o r k that w a s b a s i c a l l y a s o c i a l a n d symbolic. If w e l o o k at t h e p e r i o d f r o m a n o t h e r v i e w p oi nt , it seems logic al t o t h i n k th at a r t s h o u l d f i r s t b e p o p u ­ l a r i z e d b e f o r e it c o u l d i n f l u e n c e society. before,

a r t schools, m u s e u m s ,

As noted

galleries, publications

w e r e b e i n g u s e d to p r o p a g a t e art.

B u t t h e s e w e r e still

d i r e c t e d t o a m i n o r i t y g r o u p in t he i m m e n s e social tu r e o f China. b e i n g n e gl e c t e d ,

struc­

The m a j o r i t y of the C h i n e s e p e o pl e w e r e a s in the past.

o l d art w a s s o m e t h i n g new;

T o t h e s e people,

ev e n

th ey h a d yet t o l ea r n t o d i s ­

t i n g u i s h b e t w e e n g o o d a n d bad.

T h e i r t a s t e h a d st i ll to

b e f o r m e d a n d their c a p a c i t y t o e n j o y q u a l i t y h a d still t o b e d e ve l op ed .

T h e a r t i s t s themse l ve s ,

the modern concept of individualism,

influenced b y

r e f u s e d t o lower

t h e i r art t o th e p o i n t o f d e p i c t i n g t he l i f e of t h e masses. T h e y thoug h t o f art,

such a n a c t i o n w o u l d l e a d t o t h e d e g r a d a t i o n

e v e n t h o u g h t h e y a d m i t t e d that a r t c o u l d n o t b e

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223 s e p a r a t e d f r o m s o c i e t y a n d life, b y man,

a s o cial b e i n g .

a r t a n d the people,

455

s i n c e it w a s c r e a t e d

A deep schism existed between

and an incredible discrepancy could be

d e t e c t e d b e t w e e n d o c t r i n e s t a u g h t and w o r k s o f a r t c r e at e d. W e m a y c o n s i d e r t h e s e the g r a v e m i s t a k e s o f the N e w A r t Movement.

U n l e s s s o m e c o m p r o m i s e w e r e rea ch e d,

all m e a n ­

i ng f ul e f f o r t s to p r o m o t e a r t w o u l d p e r h a p s i n e v i t a b l y b e futile. U n d e r the i n f l u e n c e o f S o v i e t a e s t h e t i c t h e o r i es , s o m e C h i n e s e a r t i s t s b e g a n t o r e a r r a n g e t h ei r p r i o r i t i e s , r e s u l t i n g i n the f o u n d i n g o f the L e f t - W i n g A r t (1930).

Movement

A s p o i n t e d o u t b y H s u H s i n - c h i h i n 1930,

d i s t i n c t i o n b e t w e e n the r i g h t and o f a n e w a t t i tu d e, t h e one hand,

th e left w a s t h e r e su lt

n o t s i m p l y n e w a r t i s t i c st a nd a rd s.

t h e social,

art w e r e uti li z ed ,

a n d the

educational,

s o cial r e s p o n s i b i l i t y o f t h e scheme

A n e w means of expression, b y which

m e a n t S o c i a l i s t Real i sm , w a s t o b e the t he o t h e r hand,

On

formative farces of

a r t i s t a n d h i s p r o d u c t i v e s t a t u s in the S o c i a l i s t w e r e confirmed.

the

u l t i m a t e form.

th ey On

art w a s b e i n g p o p u l a r i z e d a m o n g t h e f o r m e r l y

ignored masses of people,

in f o r m s t h e y c o u l d i d e n t i t y w i t h

a n d b e i n s p i r e d by. Though few modern artists would b e willing to

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

224 accept

the S o c i a l i s t c o n c e p t ,

i m p l i e d a u s e of art in the

f o r the r e a s o n tha t it

s e r v i c e o f p r e c o n c e i v e d ideas,

f o r m a n y C h i n e s e a r t i s t s in the s e c o n d q u a r t e r o f t h e t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y it w a s the o n l y a n s w e r to the c a l l of s o ci a l c o n s c i o u s n e s s a r o u s e d b y a c t s o f f o r e i g n a g g r e s s i o n , d o m e s t i c o p p r e ss i on , p e op l e.

exploitation,

a n d s t a r v a t i o n o f the

S o c i a l i s m v i e w e d ar t in a n e n t i r e l y d i f f e r e n t

l i g h t a n d i n v e s t e d a n e w set of valu e s: revolutionary.

456

utilitarian and

T h e s y s t e m m i g h t n o t b e n e c e s s a r y to

t h e W e s t e r n wo r l d , b u t a s it to o k r o o t in C hina,

it s e e m e d

t o b e g o i n g in t h e right d i r e c t i o n t o r e m o v e t h e c o n f l i c t between doctrines and works

of a rt a n d to b r i d g e the g u l f

b e t w e e n a rt and t h e people. "The c l i m a t e of the a g e R e a d w r ot e ,

(Z e i t g e i s t ) ," H e r b e r t

"is t h e c r e a t i o n o f a th o u s a n d f o r c e s and

p e r h a p s the M a r x i s t s a r e r i g h t in g i v i n g p r i o r i t y ,

among

457 t h e s e forces,

to economic trends."

Economy provided

t h e b a s i c m a t e r i a l n e e d s of the p e op l e,

t h i s f a c t o r in

C h i n a w a s p a r t i c u l a r l y c r u c i a l b e c a u s e not all h e r p e o p l e w e r e a d e q u a t e l y f e d a n d clot h ed .

The Left-Wing Movement

f o s t e r e d a n e g a l i t a r i a n i d e a l in m a t e r i a l as w e l l a s in c u l t u r a l m atters.

U n l e s s t he l i v i n g s t a n d a r d o f a l l the

p e o p l e w e r e i m p r o v e d a n d t h e c u l t u r a l ne e ds o f a l l the

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225 p e o p l e w e r e an s w e r e d ,

a n y e f f o r t at p r o m o t i o n t o a

h i g h e r level w o u l d b e m e a n i n g l e s s a n d futile. groun d s,

O n such

th e L e f t - W i n g w r i t e r s o n a r t j u d g e d th e u l t i m a t e

f a i l u r e o f the N e w A r t

M o v e m en t.

458

T h e a t t e m p t s o f th e

S o c i a l i s t a r t i s t s m i g h t s e e m u n s a t i s f a c t o r y in th e b e g i n ­ ning, b u t

sane a d v i c e f r o m t h e i r l e a d e r L u H s u n h a d put

t h e m on the r i g h t p a th:

t h e y s h o u l d a b s o r b the b e s t f r o m

th e W e s t an d s t u d y t h e f o l k t r a d i t i o n o f the H a n reliefs, bo o k illustrations,

a n d N e w Y e a r Pi ctures.

459

Some o f

t h e m a t u r e w o r k s in l a t er y e a r s d e m o n s t r a t e a b a l a n c e o f t r a d i t i o n and i m p o r t e d t e c h n i q u e w h i c h d e s e r v e s a p e r m a n e n t 46 0 p l a c e in t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y C h i n e s e art.

Chinese Artists in the Twentieth Century M o d e r n a r t i s t s in t h e W e s t o c c u p y a n u n e a s y p l a c e in the society.

A r t i s the p r o d u c t o f h i g h l y s p e c i a l i z e d

i n d i v i d u a l i s t s and h a s b e e n t r e a t e d l i k e a n y o t h er c o m m o d i t y o n the f r e e m ar k et .

In gener a l,

c o n t e m p o r a r y a r t i s t s in

C h i n a b e f o r e 1 9 37 f a c e d s i m i l a r p r o b l e m s o f a l i e n a t i o n a n d s u r v i v a l to t h os e of t h e i r W e s t e r n c o u n t e r p a r t .

B u t the

s i t u a t i o n w a s m o r e c o m p l e x for C h i n e s e a r t i st s , b e c a u s e the concept

of a p r o f e s s i o n a l a r t i s t w a s o n l y a r e c e n t

p h e n o m e n o n w h i c h c a m e w i t h the c o l l a p s e o f a b u r e a u a c r a t i c an d social

system which supported the amateur

i d eal in

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226 C h i n e s e art.

461

Western-style artists encountered

a d d i t i o n a l obstac le s ,

s i n c e the p u b l i c h a d as yet c u l ­

t i v a t e d n o t a s t e f o r W e s t e r n art.

The a r t i s t s w e r e

confronted with the realistic problems of finding a liveli­ hood.

C h o u H s i a n g and C h a n g Y u - k u a n g w e r e p r o t o t y p e s for

the a r t i s t - e d u c a t o r c o m b i n a t i o n w h i c h c a m e t o b e a c c e p t e d b y m o s t o f the a r t i s t s a f t e r the f l o u r i s h i n g of th e art schools.

Pioneers of the New Art Movement also earned

their l i v i n g as c a r t o o n i s t s a n d i l l u s t r a t o r s f or t h e n e w l y If

p o p u l a r d ailies,

n o t a b l y C h a n g Yu - kuang,

T i n g Sung,

Chiang

462 H s i a o - c h i e n , C h ' e n Pao-i, schools,

a m o n g others.

p r i v a t e and n a t i o n a l ,

o f i n c o m e a n d pr estige.

T h e n a rt

p r o v i d e d the n e e d e d s o ur c e

T he les s f o r t u n a t e w e r e o b l i g e d

t o g i v e th e b u l k o f t h e i r ti me t o n o n - a r t i s t i c e m p l o y m e n t a n d d e v o t e o n l y w h a t l e i su re t h e y c o u l d s a l v a g e to their art.

T h e y led a f ru g al e x i s t e n c e in o r d e r to p a i n t in oils.

T h i s w a s i n d e e d a l u x u r y f o r m a n y art is t s, b e c a u s e a small p a i n t i n g i n oil o f t e n c o s t as m u c h as a f e w days li v i n g e x p e n s e s a n d w o u l d e v e n a m o u n t t o one w h o l e m o n t h ' s e a r n i n g s 463 if i m p o r t e d pa i n t s w e r e used.

T he e c o no m ic f a c t o r m i g h t

v e r y w e l l ha v e i n f l u e n c e d m a n y W e s t e r n - s t y l e a r t i s t s to r e t u r n to t r a d i t i o n a l p a i n ti n g, w h i c h c a t e r e d t o a f a i r l y s t a b l e p u b l i c a n d d e c i d e d l y c a r r i e d m o r e pr e stige.

Furt h er ,

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227 it p r e s e n t e d a n eas y s o l u t i o n t o the c o n f l i c t b e t w e e n t r a d i t i o n a l a n d f o r e i g n forms. In a dd ition,

contemporary Chinese artists were

c a u g h t i n a d i l e m m a p o i n t e d o u t befo re .

The modern Western

artists evolved individual a nd subjective solutions to th e ir p l i g h t i n m o d e r n society.

Their C h i nese counterparts,

lea r ni n g f r o m them, a d o p t e d a l s o t h e i r a s o c i a l and a l i e n a t e d i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f reality.

In the c a p i t a l i s t

scheme,

a r t i s t s w e r e c o n s i d e r e d n o t d i r e c t l y r e l a t e d t o the produc464 ti ve f o r c e o f t h e society.

Paradoxically,

the C h i n e s e

a r t i s t s w e r e e n t r u s t e d w i t h a social r e s p o n s i b i l i t y that w a s n o t i n t e n d e d for the k i n d o f art t h e y pro d uc e d.

L in

F e n g - m i e n w r o t e o f the a r t i s t a s t h e f u n d a m e n t a l f o r c e in 465 r e f o r m i n g society,

said:

and Fu Pao-shih matter-of-factly

’’Artists are vanguards of the time, able contributors

to the National Cultural Movement

. . . (they) a r e m e m b e r s

466 o n t he w a y to a r e n a i s s a n c e in o u r n a t i o n . ”

M a n y so ught

e s c a p e f r o m t h i s d i l e m m a b y s h u t t i n g t h e m s e l v e s in t h e i v o r y t ow e r o f art, w h i l e o t h e r s r e j e c t e d c o n t r a d i c t o r y a e s t h e t i c v a l u e s of the N e w A r t M o v e m e n t t o s e e k n e w a e s t h e t i c v a l u e s m o r e c o n s o n a n t w i t h th e i r d e v e l o p i n g so cial c o n s c i o u s n e s s .

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228 T h e forty y e a r s u nd er

s t u d y here c o n s t i t u t e a

c o n t r o v e r s i a l a n d c o m p l e x p e r i od , b e c a u s e o f t h e m u l t i t u d e o f i d e a s a n d i m ag e s in t r o d u c e d . in C hi n a, b u t t h e u s e f u l n e s s

in e a c h c a s e f o r t h e r e j u v e n a ­

t i o n o f C h i n a w a s h o t l y deb a te d. w a s i n e v i t a b l y ecl ip s ed ,

E a c h f o u n d its a d h e r e n t s

Although traditional art

it h a d i t s f o l l o w e r s a n d w o u l d

u l t i m a t e l y b e n e f i t m o s t f r o m t h e W e s t e r n impact,

since

t r a d i t i o n c o u l d not b e m a i n t a i n e d in t o t o b u t c o u l d b e renewed when the feeling a n d sensibilities of the past w e r e b r o u g h t t o life a g a i n i n s o m e n e w form.

The impact

f r o m the W e s t p r o v i d e d t h e n e e d e d s t i m u l u s for r e f a s h i o n ­ ing t h e o u t m o d e l t ra d it i o n .

W e h a v e s e e n the g r a d u a l

a s s i m i l a t i o n o f t he W e s t e r n e x p e r i e n c e i n t o t r a d i t i o n a l p a i n t i n g s b y H s u Pei-hung, a m o n g others.

Lin Feng-mien,

Feng Tzu-k*ai,

T h e y a p p r o a c h e d n a t u r e in a m o r e v i g o r o u s

a n d d i r e c t w a y than t h e i r p r e d e c e s s o r s had. g e n e r a t i o n to emerge,

The next

among w h o m C h ' e n g S h i h - f a s h o u l d b e

considered one of the best,

achieved a fusion of Chinese

br u s h technique and Western realistic drawing that instilled n e w l i f e i n t o the o l d t r a d i t i o n a n d e n s u r e d its c o n t i n u i t y . It is i n t h e light o f s u c h a c h i e v e m e n t s t h a t t h e W e s t e r n i m pa c t o n t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y C h i n e s e art s h o u l d b e a s s e s se d.

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229 T h e e s t a b l i s h m e n t o f a W e s t e r n s ch o ol o f p a i n t i n g p r o d u c e d f e w o r i g i n a l o il p a i n t i n g s .

Bu t the

large body

of w o r k in oil produced during these four decades remains as h i s t o r i c a l e v i d e n c e o f the d e s i r e o f C h i n e s e a r t i s t s to f i n d a pa th for the f u t u r e o f C h i n e s e art. develop a national

E f f o r t s to

s t y l e i n oil p a i n t i n g s t il l g o e s on

a f t e r the f o u n d i n g o f t h e P e o p l e ’s R e p u b l i c o f C h i n a in

1949. O n th e o t h e r hand, u n w i l l i n g to s u b j e c t their

the

exodus o f Chinese artists

lives a n d w o r k s to the s tr i ct

i d e o l o g i c a l c o n t r o l of C o m m u n i s t s p r e a d t o t he a r t c e n t e r s of the world.

These Chinese artists were uprooted from

their homeland and transplanted to a new cultural environ­ ment.

Som e c o n t i n u e d t o c l i n g to their t r a d i t i o n a l h e r i t a g e

to r e t a i n their n a t i o n a l i d e n t i t y a n d W a n g Y a - c h ’e n i n the U.S.).

(such as W a n g C h i - y u a n But m a n y others subjected

themselves to direct influences and new stimuli from recent developments

in m o d e r n art, f i n a l l y a c h i e v i n g a p l a c e in

t h e i n t e r n a t i o n a l w o r l d o f a rt o n l y d r e a m e d of b y t he i r predecessors.

C h o u W u - c h i in F r a n c e and T i n g Hsiung-

c h ’u a n in t h e U.S.

a r e g o o d e x a m p l e s o f th i s group.

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NOTES TO THE TEXT

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

231 1.

M a r y C. Wfight,

"Mod e rn C h i n a i n T r a n s i t i o n ,

1900-

1 9 5 0 , " M o d e r n C h i na ; A n I n t e r p r e t i v e A n t h o l o g y , ed. J o s e p h R. L e v e n s o n 2.

C h ' e n S hu-jen, pao

(London,

1971), p. 200.

"New P a i n t i n g M e t h o d s , " C h e n - h s i a n g hua-

(The T r u e Record),

1:7

(August 1, 1912),

14.

His

statement curiously echoes an earlier one made b y a group o f J a p a n e s e a r t i s t s at the fo u n d i n g o f the Me ij i A r t Society. S e e U y e n o N aoteru,

J a p a n e s e A r t s a n d C r a f t s in t he Meiji

E r a , English adaptation b y Richard Lane 3.

H u a n g P i n - h un g,

4.

1958), p* 32.

"Rev i ew o f P a i n te r s in t h e La s t F e w

Decades," Tung-fang tsa-chih 2 7: 1

(Tokyo,

(Ja n ua r y 10,

1930),

(Eastern M i sc el l an y ),

155-157.

T o list t h e b o o k s w h i c h fail to c a r r y the h i s t o r y of C h i n e s e a rt b e y o n d the c o l l a p s e o f the C h ' i n g d y n a s t y w o u l d m e a n the c o m p i l a t i o n of a b i b l i o g r a p h y a l m o s t as e x t e n s i v e a s o n e on t he h i s t o r y o f C h i n e s e art.

It m a y

b e o f i n t e r e s t t o p r e s e n t some o f t he m o r e i m p o r t a n t b o o k s in C h i n e s e a n d W e s t e r n l a n g ua g es w h i c h omit the m o d e r n p e r i o d f or r ef e re n ce .

T h e s e w o u l d i nclude: C h e n g

Ch'ang, A C o m p l e t e H i s t o r y of C h i n e s e P a i n t i n g (Shanghai, Art.

tr.

1929),

Ch'en Pin-ho

Yu Chien-hua, hai,

Omura S e i g a i , History of Chinese (rep.

e d . : Sh a nghai,

History of Chinese Painting

1932), (Shang­

1937), H u g o Munst e rb e rg , A S h o r t H i s t o r y

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

of Chinese Art

(New York,

1949), T ' a n g T a n - c h i u n g

( e d . ) O u t l i n e o f H i s t o r y o f C h i n e s e A r t , 6 vols. (Tai-chung,

1954),

L a w r e n c e S i c k m a n and A l e x a n d e r

Soper, T h e A r t and A r c h i t e c t u r e o f C h i n a M ar y la nd ,

1958), O s v a l d Siren, C h i n e s e P a i n t i n g :

L e a d i n g M a s t e r s a n d P r i n c i p l e s , 7 vols. 1956- 19 5 8) , (London, York, Art

(Baltimore,

W i l l i a m Willets,

1958),

1960),

(London,

(New York,

C h i n e s e A r t , 2 vols.

J a m e s Cahi ll , C h i n e s e P a i n t i n g

(New

a n d S h e r m a n Lee, A H i s t o r y o f F a r E a s t e r n 1964).

W e r n e r S p ei se r i n c l u d e s some

c o n t e m p o r a r y t r a d i t i o n a l p a i n t e r s i n his C h i n e s e A r t ; Pa i nt i ng , C a l l i g r a p h y , (New York, (London,

1964),

195-?).

Stone, R ubbing, W o o d E n g r a v i n g

so does L ub o r Hlijek in his C h i n e s e Art T h e same au thor a l s o p u b l i s h e d C o n ­

temporary Chinese Painting

(London,

1961), w h i c h is

d e v o t e d to t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y t r a d i t i o n a l pai n te rs . M i c h a e l S u l l i v a n b r i n g s h is account

o f C h i n e s e art

u p t o the p r e s e n t e p o c h in h i s A Short H i s t o r y of Chinese Art

( B e r k e l e y ,3967 ).

H e is c r e d i t e d w i t h a

p i o n e e r w o r k in t h e s t u d y o f c o n t e m p o r a r y a r t China,

C h i n e s e A r t in t h e T w e n t i e t h C e n t u r y

(London,

1959), w h i c h has b e e n u s e f u l in this study. r e c e n t w o r k i s b y A. C.

in

Scott, L i t e r a t u r e and

A more the A r t s

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

233 in T w e n t i e t h - C e n t u r y C h i n a

(London,

1963).

A m o n g the

m a n y h i s t o r i e s o f C h i n e s e a r t w r i t t e n in J a p a n e s e , b r i e f s u m m a r i e s of the m o d e r n p e r i o d a r e f o u n d in v o l u m e 20 1953),

(Chugoku 4) o f Sekai B i j u t s u Z e n s h u

98-104, w r i t t e n b y T s u c h i k a t a T e i i c h i ,

K a w a k i t a Mi ch i ak i , C h u g o k u B i j u t s u , vol. Sekai B i j u t s u D a i k e i

(Tokyo,

1965).

(Tokyo, and

3, 1 7 - 2 0 , 1 0

T h e la t t e r has

b e e n a d a p t e d i n t o E n g l i s h a nd c a n b e f o u n d in Y o n e z a w a Y o s h i h o a n d K a w a k i t a Michiaki, (Tokyo,

1970),

pp.

19-22.

A r t s o f C h i n a , Vol.

T h e f i rs t h i s t o r y o f C h i n e s e

m o d e r n art w a s p u b l i s h e d in 1936: of A r t in M o d e r n C h i n a

3.

(Shanghai,

Li P' o- y ua n , 1936).

History

Another mono­

graph on twentieth-century Chinese art was compiled b y Y e h K u n g - c h ’ao, T h e A r t s

(Taipei,

n . d . ) w h o in t h e

s e c t i o n on p a i n t i n g d e al s w i t h only p a i n t e r s o f the t r a d i t i o n a l m e d iu m.

The reinterpretation of Chinese

art h i s t o r y i n a c c o r d a n c e w i t h M a r x i s t - L e n i n i s t t h e o r y e x t e n d s a l s o to t h e m o d e r n period.

Examples a r e Hu ft

Mang,

History of Chinese Art

Outline of

(Yenan,

H i s t o r y of Chinese Art

1946), L i Yu, (Peking,

Y e n L i - c W ua n , A B r i e f H i s t o r y o f C h i n e s e A r t

1957),

and

(Peking,

1958).

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

234 5.

Se e the f o l l o w i n g b i b l i o g r a p h i e s : and Liu Kwang-ching,

J o h n K. F a i r b a n k

Modern China:

A Bibliographical

Guide to Chinese Works 1899-1937

(Cambridge,

1950),

R e s e a r c h G u i d e for

Teng Ssu-yu a n d Fairbank,

C h i n a ’s R e s p o n s e t o the West: 1839-1923

(Cambridge,

M a s a t a t a Bann o,

Mass.,

Mass.,

A Documentary Survey 1954),

Fairbank and

J a p a n e s e S t u d i e s o f M o d e r n C h i na :

A

Bibliographical Guide to Historical and Social-science Research on the 19th and 20th Centuries and Chow Tse-tsung, M o v e me nt : 1915-1924 6.

Intellectual (Cambridge,

R e v o l u t i o n in M o d e r n C h i n a

Mass.,

from Teng and Fairbank,

1963).

(Cambridge,

Mass.,

1954),

164.

H o w a r d L. B o o r m a n , C h i n a , II

8.

y u n g ," q u o t e d

C h i n a 's R e s p o n s e to the W e s t :

A Documentary Survey 1839-1923

7.

1955),

R e s e a r c h G u i d e to t h e M a y F o u r t h

" c h u n g - h s u e h w e i t'i, h s i - h s u e h w e i

p.

(Tokyo,

Biographical

(New York,

1968),

Dictionary of Republican

236 -2 3 7.

F o r a d e t a i l e d study o f S i n o - J a p a n e s e c u l t u r a l i n t e r ­ c h a n g es ,

see L i u P a i - m i n a n d others,

A Collection of

W r i t i n g s o n C h i n e s e a n d J a p a n e s e C u l t u r e s , 2 vols. (Taipei,

1958).

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

235 9.

Ch'en Ch'i-t'ien,

H i s t o r y o f C h i n e s e E d u c a t i o n in

The Last Thirty Years

10.

G. B.

Sanson,

(rep. e d . ; Taip ei ,

1962), p. 156.

T h e W e s t e r n W o r l d a nd J apan:

A S tu d y in

t he I n t e r a c t i o n of E u r o p e a n and A s i a t i c C u l t u r e s ,(4th p r i n t i n g ; N e w York,

1962), p.

378.

11. Uyeno, pp. 6-7. 12.

E x a m p l e s o f their w o r k c a n b e f o u n d in K a w a k i t a Michiaki (Tokyo,

13.

( e d . ), M o d e r n J a p a n e s e P a i n t i n g , 3 vols. 1967).

L i u Hai-s u , (Shanghai,

R a n d o m No t e s f r o m My T r i p t o E ur o pe 1935),

p. 94.

14.

I b i d . , p.

15.

Shang-hai me i-shu ch uan-k'o hsueh-hsiao Survey

5.

(of t h e school)

in C o m m e m o r a t i o n o f the

Twenty-fifth Anniversary b e t w e e n pp. 16.

(Shanghai,

1936), c h a r t

100 a n d 101.

F o r a s u r v e y of R u s s i a n art, c o n s u l t G e o r g e Hamilton. T h e A r t and A r c h i t e c t u r e o f R u s s i a land,

17.

( e d . ),

(Baltimore,

Mary­

1954).

F o r an e x c e l l e n t

st ud y o f t he m o d e r n m o v e m e n t in

Russia, c o n s u l t C a m i l l a Gray, in Art;

1863-1922

The R u s s i a n E x p e r i m e n t

(2nd e d . ; N e w York,

1970).

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

236 18.

In 1935,

S u n F u - h s i d e f i n e s C h i n e s e art:

"What w e

c a l l C h i n e s e a r t is o f c o u r s e done b y the Chinese. R e g a r d l e s s o f the m a t e r i a l s u s e d a n d w h e t h e r

(the

w o r k s p r o d u c e d ) c o n t a i n i n f l u e n c e s f r o m othe r c o u n t r i e s , t h e y m u s t e m b o d y the m e a n i n g o f C h i n e s e n a t i o n a l thou g ht , history,

geography, customs,

and h a b i t s . "

S un Fu-hsi,

"Probing t he F u t u r e o f C h i n e s e A r t , " I - f e n g , 3:5 15, 1935), 19.

32.

L i u Hai-su, (Shanghai,

(May

N e w I m p r e s s i o n s o f N e w A r t in J a p a n 1921), pp.

66-67.

Li u a r b i t r a r i l y i d e n t i f i e d

a p a i n t i n g a s f u t u r i s t i c b e c a u s e the n u d e r e p r e s e n t e d in it h a d a d i s p r o p o r t i o n a t e figure.

20 .

T h e s e i l l u s t r a t e d b o o k s a n d B i b l e s p r o v e d t o b e so po p u l a r t h at the m i s s i o n a r i e s , L o n g ob ar d ,

a n d Ricci,

M ic h ae l Sullivan,

a m o n g w h o m w e r e Ru ggieri,

t h a t they a s k e d m o r e to b e sent.

"Some P o s s i b l e S o u r c e s o f E u r o p e a n

I n f l u e n c e o n L a t e M i n g and E a r l y C h ' i n g P a i n t i n g , " p a pe r d e l i v e r e d at the Chinese Painting

21. 22

.

Sullivan,

I n t e r n a t i o n a l S y m p o s i u m on

(Taipei,

J u ne 1970),

p. 4.

"Sources o f E u r o p e a n I n f l u e n c e , " p. 1.

F o r an a c c o u n t

in E n g l i s h o f E u r o p e a n art and a r t i s t s

in C h i n a d u r i n g this pe r i o d ,

se e Sullivan,

"Sources

o f E u r o p e a n I n f l u e n c e , " a n d Siren, C h i n e s e P a i n t i n g ,

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f th e copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout perm ission.

237 V. 88-94, 223-231, from which the writer derives most of her sources.

23.

H. Bernard, Aux Portes de la Chine les Missionaries XVI Siecle 1514-1588 (Tientsin, 1933), quoted in Yung-k'o, 'The Importation of Western Art from Wanli to C h 1ien-lung,n Mei-shu yen-chiu, 1 (1959), 48.

24.

Siren recorded that Niccolo later went to live in Macao.

25.

Siren, Chinese Painting, V. 89.

Another source stated that Niva went to Macao in 1601, then to Peking in 1604, returning to Japan in 1907.

Yung-k'o, HThe Importation of Western Art,"

p. 50. 26.

Sullivan, "Sources of European Influence", p. 2.

27.

Ibid., p. 7.

28.

Examples are:

Evangelicae Historiae Imagines by

Nadal, Teatrum Orbis Terrarum by A. Ortelius, and I Quattro Libri dell1 Architectura by Andrea Palladio, Ibid., pp. 5-6. 29.

These are:

The Destruction of Sodom, engraved by

Anton Wierix after Martin de Vos. Christ and Disciples on the Road to Emmaus, adapted from Nadal's Evangelicae Historiae Imagines, and Madonna and Child, after en­ graving by Neustra Senora d*Antiqua in Seville.

Ibid.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

238 30.

Hsiang Ta, "Western Influences upon Chinese Art in the Ming and Ch'ing Dynasties," Tung-fang tsa-chih (Eastern Miscellany), 27:1 (January 1930), 22-23.

31.

Sullivan, "Sources of European Influence," pp. 7-8.

32.

Ku Ch'i-yuan, K'o-tso chiu-yu, 1618, chuan VI, 24a.

33.

English translation

quoted from Siren, Chinese

Painting, V. 88. 34.

Lettres edifiantes. 25 vols. (Paris, 1780-1783).

35.

Yoko Woodson, "The Problem of Western Influence," The Restless Landscape:

Chinese Painting of the

Late Ming Period, ed. James Cahill (Berkeley, 1971), p. 15. 36.

English translation from Siren, Chinese Painting, V. 90.

37.

Hu Chin, Hu Chin Shu-hua k'ao san-cheng. chuan I Kuo-ch'ao yuan-hua lu (Peking, 1934), pp. la-b.

38.

Other court artists who followed in the footsteps of Chiao Ping-chen were Leng Mei, T'ang Tai, Lo Fumin, etc.

39. 40.

Hsiang Ta, ,!Western Influences," p. 26.

Yung-k'o, "The Importation

of Western Art," p. 56.

Woodson, in Cahill, Restless Landscape, p. 14.

41.

Ibid., p. 16.

42.

Sullivan, "Sources of European Influence," p. 3. For study of these victory

series, see P. Pelliot,

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f th e copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout perm ission.

239 ”Les Conquetes de l ’Empereur de la China,” T *oung Pao, 1920-22, pp. 183-274. 43.

Ah Ying (Ch'ien Hsin-ts'un) , A Brief History of New Year Pictures in China (Peking, 1954).

44.

For illustrations of Yang-liu-ch’ing New Year Pic­ tures, see Wang Shu-ts'un, A Selection of Source Materials of New Year Pictures from Yang-liu-chting (Peking, 1959).

45.

Ah Ying, p. 12.

46.

English translation quoted from Siren, Chinese Paint­ ing , V. 228.

47.

Ibid., V. 89.

48.

Wu Li, Mo-ching c hi, chuan IV.

If

English translation

from Sir&n, Chinese Painting, V, 192, modified by the writer. 49.

Ibid.

50.

John Barrow, Travels in China (2d ed.; London, 1806). pp. 323-325.

51.

Hu Chin, chuan I, 14a-b.

52.

Lettres Edifiantes, XXVII.

53.

G. F. Hudson, Europe and China (Boston, 1961), Chapter 10.

54.

English translation quoted from Sullivan, Chinese Art in the Twentieth Century (London, 1959), pp. 19-20.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

240 55.

Five treaty ports were opened for trade at the defeat of the First Opium War: Foochow, Amoy, and Ningpo.

Canton, Shanghai,

For a general discussion

of these cities, see Prague, National Gallery, Masters of Shanghai School of Painting (Prague, 1968), pp. 8-9. 56.

By 1858 Missionaries were established in Manchuria, Mongolia and in all of the eighteen provinces except Kansu and Anhui.

See K. S. Latourette.

A History of

Christian Missions in China (New York, 1929), p. 236. 57.

Examples are:

Canton, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Foochow,

Hankow, Ningpo, Swatow, Hainan, Manchuria.

In 1847,

American Presbyterian Press in Ningpo alone produced 52,734 copies of different works, totally 1,819,092 pages.

Gilbert McIntosh, The Mission Press in China

(Shanghai, 1895), p. 6. 58.

Latourette, p. 329.

59.

James Orange, The Chater Collection:

Pictures

Relating to China, Hong Kong, Macao, 1655-1869 (London, 1924). 60.

Barrow, frontispiece.

61.

For examples of Alexander's work, see Orange, Section II, plates 1, 6, 9-14; and Alexander, The Costume of China. (London, 1805).

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

241

62.

Borget published Sketches of China and the Chinese, some illustrations are included in Orange, Section V, plates 28-32.

63.

Hong Kong, City Hall Gallery, George Chinnery, 17741852 (Hong Kong, 1965), p. 10.

64.

Toogood Downing, The Fan-Qui in China, I.

(London,

1838), 39. 65.

Orange, p. 240.

66.

Hong Kong, City Hall Gallery, p. 5.

67.

John Thomson, Illustrations of China and Its People, I (London, 1873), Plate 4.

68.

Wang Shu-tsfun, "An Early Portrait in Oil," Chinese Literature, 8 (August, 1962), 112-114.

69.

For more information on painting on glass, see Margaret Jourdain and R. Soame Jenyns, Chinese Export Art in the Eighteenth Century (London, 1950), pp. 3339.

70.

Ibid., p. 12.

71.

M. Hue, A Journey through the Chinese Empire, I (New York, 1855), 167.

72.

Harold Gorst, China (London, 1899), p. 18.

73.

Jourdain and Jenyns, p. 12.

74.

Huang Meng-t'ien, Random Notes at the Galleries (Hong Kong, 1970), pp. 121-125.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

242 75.

Wang Shu-ts'un, "On a Sino-Western Calendar ’Lottery Picture of Scenes in Shanghai'," Mei-shu yen-chiu, 2 (1959), 56-57.

76.

Pu-chi, "Source Material for Calendar New Year Pic­ tures before the Liberation," Mei-shu yen-chiu, 2 (1959), 52.

It appears that this training center

was already in operation in the last years of the C h ’ing dynasty.

A Brother Liu, who studied Western

art from the missionaries, taught there.

Hsu Yung-

c h ’ing, a noted commercial painter, was said to be his pupil. 77.

Wang Shu-ts’un, "Sino-Western Calendar," p. 57.

78.

Pu-chi, "Calendar New Year Pictures before the Liberation," p. 52.

79.

See the portrait of Hsiang-fei attributed to Lang Shih-ning.

80.

This is specifically pointed out in Wang Chao-yung, Notes on Painting in South China (Hong Kong, 1961), p. 3.

81.

Prague, National Gallery, pp. 9-14.

82.

Teng and Fairbank, China’s Response to the West, pp. 175-177.

83.

"chung-hsueh wei t ’i, hsi-hsueh wei yung," ibid., p. 164.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

243 84.

Ibid., p. 166.

85.

Saneto Keishu, History of Chinese Students in Japan (Tokyo, 1960), p. 545.

This is only an approximate

figure. 86.

Ch'en Ch'i-t'ien, History of Educationin Modern China (rep. ed.; Taipei, 1959), p. 49.

87.

Ch'en Ch'i-t’ien, Chinese Education in

the Last Thirty

Years, p. 39. 88.

Kao Chien-fu was an art teacher at Shu-shang Ele­ mentary School in Canton before he went to Japan in 1898.

89.

Boorman, II, 236.

At the establishment of Kuang Fan-yen Kuan in Shang­ hai in 1863, drawing was included in the curriculum of this school for linguistic and Western studies. In the regulations particular stress was laid on the relationship of drawing to the study and practice of technical subjects.

Knight Biggerstaff, The

Earliest Modern Government Schools In China (Athica, New York, 1961), p. 171.

Drawing and design hence­

forth became a required course in the curriculum of engineering schools. 90.

Chiang Tan-shu, "A Page in the History of Art Education in China," Mei-shu yen-chiu. 1 (1959), 30-31.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

244 91.

Li Jui-ch'ing, Jt. Mei-an, h. Native of Kiangsi.

Ch'ing Tao-jen.

A member of Hanlin.

In addition

to his contribution to modern education, he was a noted painter and calligrapher of the library school. He moved to Shanghai at the fall of Ch'ing and earned his living by selling his paintings.

Chang Ta-ch'ien

became his pupil in 1919; died in Shanghai, 1920. 92.

Chiang Tan-shu, p. 30.

93.

Ibid.

94.

P'an T'ien-shou, History of Chinese Painting (2d ed.; Shanghai, 1936), p. 246.

95.

Graduates include Chiang Tan-shu (c. 1885-1962), _t. Chin-lu.

Native of Li-yang, Kiangsu.

He pursued a

long career in art education, teaching in various art schools.

His publications included works on art his­

tory, artistic anatomy, and perspective; Shen Ch'ich'iao founded in 1922 the Nanking Art Academy, the first art school in Nanking.

Lii Feng-tzu (1885-1959),

h. Feng Hsien-sheng, Native of Tan-yang, Kiangsu.

He

also taught at various art schools, and founded in 1912 the Cheng-tze

School for Girls whose art depart­

ment was expanded into the Cheng-tze Art Academy in 1942.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

245

96.

Chiang Tan’shu, p. 31.

97.

Ibid.

98.

Sullivan, Chinese Art in the Twentieth

99.

Fu Yen-ch'ang and others, Three (Writers) on Art

Century, p. 48.

(Shanghai, 1927), p. 187. 100.

P'an T'ien-shou, p. 248. interview.

Also Wang Ya-ch'en, personal

April 28, 1971.

101.

Sullivan, Chinese Art in the Twentieth

102.

Fu Yen-ch’ang and others, p. 187.

103.

Century, p. 48.

Wang Ya-ch’en, ’’Autobiography Written at the Age of Forty,” quoted in P'an T'ien-shou, p. 247.

104.

Min-li hua-pao (People’s Stand Pictorial), 6 vols. (April-October 1911).

105.

Ibid., pp. 247-248.

106.

Liang Te-so, ’’Painting," in Li P ’o-yuan, p. 30.

107.

Chiang Tan-shu, p. 32.

108.

Shanq-hai mei-shu chuan-k'o hsueh-hsiao, p. 3.

109.

Ts'ai Yuan-p'ei (1876-1940), b . Shanyin, Chekiang,

11

n

was an extraordinary figure in China's modernization. He devoted his life to education and under his inspired leadership, Peking University became the center for new thought.

His theories on art and

aesthetic education were very influential and at

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

246 his encouragement many young artists looked to the West for inspiration.

110.

T s ’ai Yuan-p'ei, "Views on the Aims of Education," tf

A Record of Words and Actions of Xs'ai Yuan-p'ei, ed. Hsin-ch'ao she (Peking, 1920), pp. 189-203. English translation quoted from Teng and Fairbank, China's Response to the West, pp. 235-238.

111

.

Teng and Fairbank.

China's Response to the West,

p. 237. 112

.

Hsin ch'ing-nien (La Jeuaesse), 3 (August, 1917), 1-5.

113.

Li Shu, "The Earliest Oil Painters of Our Country," Mei-shu, 4 (1962), 69.

114.

This art society continued to function through the years of the May Fourth Movement with teachers just returned from France and England.

Ibid.

115.

Boorman, II, 134.

116.

Notably Peking High Normal School, Peking High Normal School for Girls, Kwangtung High Normal School, Fukien First Normal School, and Shantung Normal School.

Wu Meng-fei, "Fragments of Re­

miniscence on Art Education before and after the May Fourth Movement," Mei-shu yen-chiu, 3 (1959), 44.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

247 117.

Ching Heng-i (1877-1938), t. I-yuan.

Native of

Shang-yu, Chekiang.

After graduation from Tokyo

High Normal School.

He returned to China to devote

his life to education.

In his later years, he be­

came interested in traditional painting and exhibited many times with the Friends in Winter Society (Han chih yu she).

Wang I-ch*ang and others (ed.), 1947

Art Year Book (Shanghai, 1948), shih, pp. 36-37. (hereafter referred to as NC 1947.) 118.

Sotsugyosha meibo henshu iinkai (ed.)

Directory

of Graduates from the Tokyo School of Fine Arts and Tokyo University of Fine Arts (Tokyo, 1965), p. 65. 119.

Li Shu, p. 68.

120.

Sotsugyosha meibo henshu iinkai(ed.), p. 65.

121.

For his biography inEnglish,

seeBoorman, II,

323-328. 122.

Miyagawa Torao, Modern Japanese Painting (2d ed.; Tokyo, 1968), p. 66.

123.

Boorman, II, 326.

124.

Wu Meng-fei, p. 42.

125.

Ibid. , p. 43.

126.

NC 1947, shih, p. 2.

127.

Ibid.

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248 ft

128.

Shanghai mei-shu chuan-k'o hsueh-hsiao (ed.), p. 3.

129.

P'an T'ein-shou, p. 248.

130‘

NC 1947, shih, p. 3.

131.

Fan Chiang, "Survey of Chinese Politics in the Last Ten Years:

Education," Tunq-fang tsa-chih (Eastern

Miscellany), 9:7 (January, 1913), 86. 132.

Chang Wang, "Chronology of the Artistic Activities of Lu Hsun," Mei-shu, 10 (October, 1955), 13.

133.

Yung T'ein-ch'i, "Cheng Chiung-shang and the New Academic Painting," Collection of Writings on Art of Yung-chai (Taipei, 1959), pp. 128-130.

134.

NC 1947, shih, p. 16.

135.

Miyagawa, p. 29.

136.

Sullivan, Chinese Art in the Twentieth Century, p. 47.

137.

Saneto, History of Chinese Students in Japan, p. 545.

The number is open to question.

He

lists 2 in 1917 and 1 in 1919 whereas graduates from just the Tokyo School of Fine Arts numbered 4 each in 1917 and 1919.

See Sotsugyosho meibo

henshu Iinkai (ed.). Many art schools were closed or their records destroyed in the last World War.

Some were re-

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

249 organized under a new administration, notably the Tokyo University of Fine Arts which grew out of Tokyo School of Fine Arts.

Such circumstances

had made detailed investigation almost impossible. 138.

Students records supplied by Tokyo University of Fine Arts, whose help is greatly appreciated.

139.

Boorman, II, 236.

Contrary to what Boorman says,

Kao studied principally Western paintings, because the organization named are mainly Western-style painting associations. 140.

Ibid., II, 134.

141.

Tung-fang tsa-chih (Eastern Miscelleny), 21: 20 (October 26, 1924), 146.

142.

Saneto, History of Chinese Students in Japan, p. 89.

143.

According to a census taken in 1909, there were 356 foreign teachers in China of which 311 were Japanese. Saneto, based on other sources, added 150 to the list.

Its completeness is again open to question,

but further research would inevitably expand the list.

16 were listed as art teachers, to which I

would add 4:

Takayashi Isami, graduate of the

Tokyo School of Fine Arts, went to Pei-ching tatt

hsueh; Noda Shohei, graduate of the same school, also went to Pei-ching ta-hsueh; Sasaki Sosaburo,

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f th e copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout perm ission.

250

graduate of the same school, went to Lu-shun KuanqIt

tung chung hsueh-hsiao; Iio Komataro, graduate of the same school, taught at Ssu-ch'uan Cheng-tu kao-teng it

hsueh-t'ang.

Saneto, Draft History of Chinese Students

in Japan (Tokyo, 1939), pp. 172-185. 144.

Letter written by Iwataki Tamaro, published in Koyukai Geppo, 7:9 (May 27, 1909), 191.

145.

Letter by Maruno Yutaka, published in Koyukai Geppo 8:1 (September 30, 1909), 15-16.

146.

P ’an T'ien-shou, p. 246.

147.

Saneto, History of Chinese Students in Japan, p. 104.

148.

Li Shu, p. 69.

149.

Ibid.

150.

Fang Chun-pi, personal interview.

151.

Tung-fang tsa-chih (Eastern Miscellany), 8:7 (July,

May 2, 1971.

1911, 11:4 (April, 1914), 14:7 (July, 1919) res­ pectively.

Periodical published by Young Allen,

Wan-kuo kung-pao (The Globe Magazine) in Shanghai from 1875 to 1907, included art in its spread of knowledge of the Western countries.

R. S. Britton,

The Chinese Periodical Press 1800-1912 (Shanghai, 1933), p. 53. 152.

(Shanghai, 1916).

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251 153.

Mei-i, "What is Art," Tung-fang tsa-chih (Eastern Miscellany), 16:12 (December, 1919), 209-212.

Wang

Ya-ch'en mentioned the names of two bookstores in Shanghai which handled reproductions of Western paintings. 154.

Saneto, History of Chinese Slradents in Japan, p. 545.

155.

Saneto, Catalogue of Japanese Books Translated into Chinese (Tokyo, 1945), p. 14. Vt

156.

Hsu Pei-hung is a good example.

157.

Yao Pao-ming, "Similarities and Differences between Chinese and German Painting," Tung-fang tsa-chih (Eastern Miscellany), 8:10 (April, 1912), 13-15.

158.

Ibid., p. 15.

159.

Ch'en Shu-jen,"New Painting Methods," Chen-hsiang hua-pao (The true Record), 1:1-16 (May 6, 1912February 1, 1913).

160.

Ibid., 1:8 (August 1, 1912), 17.

161.

Lu C h 1in-chung, "Brief Notes on Paintings of Modern Styles," Tung-fang tsa-chih (Eastern Mis­ cellany), 14:7 (July 15, 1917), 99-100.

162.

Chang Wang, Lu Hsun on Art (Peking, 1956), pp. 1-5.

163.

Hsu Ta-ch’un, "On Aesthetics," Tung-fang tsa-chih (Eastern Miscellany), 12:1 (January, 1915), 5-8.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f th e copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout perm ission.

252 164.

Boorman, II, 236.

165.

Ibid., 1898-1902, and 1904-1911.

166.

Ibid.

167.

Wang Chi-yuan, "Modern Chinese Painting," Un­ published Manuscript, £. 1945.

168.

Wang Chi-yuan, personal interview, April 26, 1971.

169.

Wu Meng-fei, p. 43.

170.

Ibid.

171.

In particular we cite the Twenty-one Demands from Japan in 1915 which virtually put the whole country of China under Japanese control.

The day on which

the agreement was signed was destinated the National Humiliation Day.

Chow Tse-tsung, The May Fourth

Movement (Stanford, California, 1969), pp. 20-24. 172.

The May Fourth Incident refers to what happened on May 4, 1919.

A mass demonstration was organized

by the students in Peking, resulting in the burning of the house of T s ’ao Tso-ling and the arrest of many students. 173.

Ibid., p. 5.

174.

Ibid., p. 14.

175.

T s ’ai Yuan-p’ei, "Do not Forget Aesthetic Education in the Culture Movement," quoted in T s ’ai Shang-ssu,

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f th e copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout perm ission.

253 Intellectual Thought and Biography of Ts'ai Yuan-p'ei (Shanghai, 1950), p. 322. 176.

Ch'en Tu-hsiu, "What Is the New Culture Movement?" Hsin ch'ing-nien (La Jeuness^, 7:5 (April 1, 1920),

1-6 . 177.

The emergence of a new vernacular literature as a medium of expression liberated the process of learning in the twentieth century.

178.

Shu Hsin-ch'eng, History of Education of Students Abroad in Modern China (Shanghai, 1927), pp. 183-184.

179.

Boorman, II, 134.

180.

Chang Tao-fang, Memories that Are Sour, Sweet, Bitter, and Spicy (Taipei, 1958), pp. 20-21.

181.

Sullivan, Chinese Art in the Twentieth Century, p. 48.

182.

Ibid., p. 93.

183.

Ibid., pp. 47-48.

184.

Many of the Foreign art students enrolled at the Ecole des Beaux Arts as eleve libre in order to use its facilities and models.

ft

Hsu was said to

be the only Chinese art student to be admitted as a regular student on the same basis as the French students.

But Fang Chun-pi claimed that

she was the first and the only Chinese student

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254

admitted at that time (early twenties) as a regular student, 6leve propre. 185.

Chiang Pi-wei, Memoirs of Chiang Pi-wei, 3 vols (Taipei, n.d.), I, 67.

186.

NC 1947, chuan, p. 56.

187.

Ibid.

188.

Chang Tao-fan, pp. 20-21.

189.

Boorman, Biographical Dictionary of Republican China, I (New York, 1967), 112-114.

190.

Sullivan, Chinese Art in the Twentieth Century, pp. 58-59.

191.

Fu Yen-ch'ang, pp. 204-205.

192.

Liang Te-so, "Painting," in Li P ’o-yuan, p. 31.

193.

Li Feng, "The First Exhibition of Chinese Art Organized by the Chinese in Europe," Tung-fang tsa-chih (Eastern Miscellany), 21:16 (August 26, 1924), 30-36.

194.

Ibid., p. 32.

195.

Lin Feng-mien, "The Future of Oriental and Occidental Art," Tung-fang tsa-chih (Eastern Miscellany), 23:10 (May 16, 1926), 97-104.

196.

Sullivan, Chinese Art in the Twentieth, Century, p. 95.

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255 197.

Shang-hai mei-shu chuan-k'o hsueh-hsiao,

(ed.),

p. 102. 198.

Sullivan, Chinese Art in the Twentieth Century, p. 93.

199.

NC 1947, chuan, p. 32.

200.

The first figure comes from records of the Tokyo School of Fine Art; the second figure comes from Sotsugyosha meibo henshu iinkai (ed.).

For the

same year, Saneto lists only twenty graduates from seven art schools in Japan.

Saneto, History

of Chinese Students in Japan, p. 545. 201*

NC 1947, shih, pp. 2-3.

202.

Liang Te-so, ’'Painting,” in Li P'o-yuan, p. 30.

203.

Sotsugyosha meibo henshu iinkai (ed.), pp. 74 and 78.

204.

Li Shu, p. 69.

205.

M Shanghai mei-shu chuan-k'o hsueh-hsiao (ed.), p. 4.

206.

Ibid.

207.

NC 1947, shih, pp. 5-6.

208.

Wu Meng-fei, p. 45.

209.

Ibid.

210.

Sullivan, Chinese Art in the Twentieth Century, p. 85.

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256

211.

Ibid., p. 50.

212.

NC 1947, shih, p. 3.

In 1928, its name was

changed to White Goose Painting Research Institute. 213.

Ibid.

214.

Ibid., pp. 1 and 5.

215.

Ibid., p. 3.

216.

Ibid.

217.

Their topics were:

Chang Tao-fan, ’’Painting and

its Audience,” Li Chin-fa, ’’China's Road to Renaissance,” Ch'en Pao-i, ’’Realism and Beauty," and Fu Yen-ch'ang, "Essential Differences between Chinese and Western Art,” Chang Jo-ku,"I-shu chieh (supplement) of Shen Pao in the Past Year," I-shu chieh, 1:1 (January 5, 1927), 37. 218.

Li Shu, p. 69.

219.

Liang Te-so, "Painting,” in Li P ’o-yuan, p. 31.

200.

Ibid.

221.

Li Shu, p. 69.

222.

Ibid.

223.

"Regulations of the Plastic Arts Research Associa­ tion ,’’ Tsao^jisin2 _tsa£ChiJi, 1 (June 23, 1924), 1-2.

224.

Chuang Wen-ya, Survey of the Cultural Institutions of China (Shanghai, 1934), pp. 405-406.

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257 225.

NC 1947, chuan, p. 6.

226.

Chang Wang, "Chronology of Artistic Activities of Lu Hsiin," p. 13.

227.

NC 1947, chuan, p. 6.

228.

Chuang Wen-ya, pp. 225-226.

229.

Nan-mei tsa-chih, 1 (June, 1923).

230.

"List of Faculty and Staff," ibid., p. 20.

231*

NC 1947, shih, p. 20.

232.

Chiang Tan-shu, p. 33.

233.

NC 1947, shih, p. 16.

234.

T'ang Shou-shan, "General Information of Our Department," Hsi-hsin (Department News), 1 (March 25, 1944), 11.

235.

NC 1947, shih, p. 20.

236.

Liang Te-so, "Painting," in Li P'o-yuan, p. 32.

237.

Lin Wen-tseng, "Outline for Art Education at Hangchow Academy," A-po-lo (Apollo), 13 (March, 1934), 1179-86.

238.

NC 1947, shih, pp. 31-33.

239.

Ibid., p. 28.

240.

Chiang Tan-shu, p. 33.

241.

Liang Te-so, "Painting," in Li P'o-ytfan, p. 33.

242.

Chi-mei ssu-fan yueh-k'an, 1 (April, 1926), 167.

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258 243.

NC 1947, shih. p. 26.

244.

Chuang Wen-ya, pp. 190-192.

245.

NC 1947. shih. pp. 22-23.

246.

Chow Tse-tsung, May Fourth Movement, p. 178.

247.

Chang Jo-ku, p. 33.

248.

Consult list of periodicals in Bibliography.

249.

The articles are too numerous to name and they often repeat each other. are:

The more notable ones

Liu Hai-su, "The Art of Classicism and

Romanticism and Their Criticism," Tung-fang tsachih (Eastern Miscellany), 21:22 (November 25, 1924), 112-115.

Feng Tzu-k'ai, "The Personality

and Art of Painter Millet," ibid., 21:2 (January 25, 1924), N9-N18, and Impressionist Painters, Dawn Art Association Series (Shanghai, 1927). 250.

Lo-lo, 'The Art of Rodin," translated from Current Opinion, Ibid., 15:9 (September, 1919), 89-93.

251.

See Tung-fang tsa-chih (Eastern Miscellany), vol. 18, published in 1921.

252.

Can be found in Tung-fang tsa-chih (Eastern Miscellany), vols. 18 and 19, later published as Recent Paintings in the West, 2 vols., (Shanghai, 1923).

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

253.

Feng Tzu-k'ai,

(XVI), ’’True Characters that Make

Art Great," ibid., 20:14 (February 25, 1923), 62-75. 254.

Hsi-ch'en,

"Morris' Views on Art and Labor," ibid.,

17:7 (April 10, 1920), 41-49. 255.

Keng Chi-chih,

(tr. ) , What Is Art, by Leo Tolstoy

(Shanghai, 1921), preface by Cheng Chen-to. 256.

Ts'ai Yuan-p'ei, "The Evolution of Art." Tung-fang tsa-chih (Eastern Miscellany), 17:22 (November 25, 1920), 128-130.

257.

Kuo Mo-jo, "Revolution and Literature," in HsiaoV! shuo yueh-pao.

258.

T'ang Chun, "A Criticism of the Theories of Artistic Independence and Art for Life," Tung-fang tsa-chih (Eastern Miscellany), 18:17 (September 10, 1921), 45.

259.

Ibid., pp. 45-50.

260.

Sea Breeze Weekly, 11 (March 13, 1929), 11-14.

261.

Ch'ien Tao-sun, (tr.), Plastic Arts, by Theodor Volbehr (Shanghai, 1924).

262.

Liu Ssu-hsun,

(tr.), The Artistic Theory of Ruskin

(Shanghai, 1927). 263.

Yu Chi-fan translated Kuroda's Outline of Artistic

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

260 Theories (Shanghai, 1922) and Outline of Aesthetics (Shanghai, 1922).

Feng Tzu-k'ai translated his

Brief Discussion on Art (Shanghai, 1922). 264.

Lu Hsun, (tr.), Trends in Modern Art History (Shang­ hai, 1929).

265.

Lin Po-hsiu, The Form and Content of Proletarian Art (Shanghai, 1929).

266.

For more complete information on translations of Japanese books, see Saneto, Catalogue of Japanese Books Translated in Chinese, pp. 193-197.

267.

T'eng Jo-ch'u, "New Aesthetic Theory of Croce," Tung-fang tsa-chih (Eastern Miscellany), 18:8 (April 25, 1921), 71-75; Yu-shih, "The Artistic Theory of Kropotkin," ibid., 18:4 (February 25, 1921), 81-82.

268.

Wright, "Modern China in Transition," Levenson, Modern China:

An Interpretive Anthology, p. 200.

If

269.

If

Lu Hsun, Complete Works of Lu Hsun (Shanghai, 1946), IV, 97.

This was written in 1927.

270.

Li Shu, p. 69.

271.

Chang Jo-ku, p. 37.

272.

Hu Keng-t'ien, "Impressions from the First National Art Exhibition," I-kuan, 3 (March 15, 1929), 37.

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261 273.

Ch'i-fan, "All-China Art Exhibition," I-pan, 1 (May 5, 1929), 258-259.

274.

Huang Pin-hung, "Traditional Painting in the Art Exhibition," I-kuan, 3 (May 15, 1929), 33-35.

275.

Paintings were reproduced in a two-volume special catalogue.

The National Fine Arts Exhibition of

1929 (Shanghai, 1929). 276.

Hu Keng-t'ien, pp. 37-40.

277.

Ibid., p. 37.

278.

Wang Chi-yuan, personal interview, April 26, 1972.

279.

Reproduced in The National Fine Arts Exhibition of 1929.

280.

Fu Yen-ch'ang, p. 9.

281.

Fan Tseng, Hsu Pei-hung. Anthology of Chinese Painters, No.

282.

28 (Shanghai, 1962), pp.

Ch'ang Shu-hung,

"ThePast Mistakes

17-20. of the

Chinese New Art Movement and Its Prospect in the Future," I-feng, 2:8 (August 1, 1934), 35. 283.

Conrad Brandt, Benjamin Schwartz, and John K. Fairbank, A Documentary History of Chinese Com­ munism (Cambridge, Mass., 1952), pp. 29-30.

284.

Ibid., p.

31.

285.

Ibid., p.

32.

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262 286.

Ibid., p. 33.

287.

Ibid., p. 37.

288.

Ibid., p. 38.

289.

Sullivan, Chinese Art in the Twentiety Century, pp. 25-26.

As early as February 1932, the Chinese

Soviet Republic declared war on Japan and called on all groups and classes to resist Japanese aggression. 290.

Brandt and others, p. 37.

Kuo Mo-jo, "Revolution and Literature," in Reference Materials for History of Modern Chinese Literature (Peking, 1959), 210-219.

291.

Li Ho-lin, A Study of the History of New Literature in China (Peking, 1951), pp. 58-60.

292.

Lan-hai, History of Literature during China’s War of Resistance (Shanghai, 1947), pp. 21-22.

293.

In 1931-1932, numerous liberal and leftist writers were arrested in Shanghai, of whom forty were executed.

In 1934, the Kuomintang Bureau of

Propaganda prohibited the sale of 149 transla­ tions and works by popular authors, including Lu Hsun and Mao Tun.

See Sullivan, Chinese Art

in the Twentieth Century, p. 27.

Also in Reference

Materials for History of Modern Chinese Literature,

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f th e copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout perm ission.

I, 300-301 is a secret document issued by the Kuomintang Bureau of Propaganda,

The specific

instructions contained in it reveal how the censorship was carried out to even small book stores. 294.

The best example would be the introduction of Surrealism from Japan into China by a group of artists around 1935.

Their exhibitions in Shang­

hai and Canton were met with severe criticism. See a special issue on Surrealism in I-feng, 3:10 (October, 1935). 295.

Wright, "From Revolution to Restoration," Modern China:

An Interpretive Anthology, ed. Levenson,

p. 99. 296.

Ibid.

297.

Ibid., p. 111.

298.

This is actually an over-simplication of the situation, please see Chow Tse tsung, The May Fourth Movement, pp. 314-337, for a more detailed analysis.

299.

For example:

Tsung Pai-hua, "On the Origin and

Foundation of Chinese and Western Artistic Theories, Wen-i ts'ung-k’a n , 1:2 (October, 1934), 47-68, and

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

264 and T ’eng Ku, "The Interrelationship of Poetry, Calligraphy, and Painting," in Anthology of Chinese Art (Shanghai, 1938), pp. 85-89. 300.

Bcaxnples are:

Omura Seigai, A Study of Literary

Painting, tr. C h ’en Heng-k’o (Peking, 1922), S. W. Bushell, Chinese Art, tr. Tai Yo (Shanghai, 1923). 301.

Ignatius T. P. Pao, A History of Chinese Museums (Taipei, 1964), pp. 43-47.

302.

Ibid., p. 31.

303.

Chuang Wen-ya, pp. 215-216.

304.

Ibid., pp. 334-335.

305.

Ignatious Pao, pp. 1-3.

306.

J. C. Ferguson, "Chinese Art," in The China Yearbook 1938 (Shanghai, 1933), p. 406.

307.

Ministry of Education,

(ed.), Participating in the

International Exhibition of Chinese Art, London, 3 vols. (Shanghai, 1936). 308.

Ferguson, p. 407.

309.

Chang Yuan-chi, "Chinese Art World in the Past Month," I-feng, 2:9 (September, 1934), 9. If

310.

Hsu Pei-hung, "The Exhibition of Chinese Art in Paris," I-feng, 1:11 (November, 1933), 72-76. Sponsors of the exhibition included painters Chabas, Maurice Denis, Besnard, Landowsky, and

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited without p erm ission.

265 Muenier.

See Paris, Musee du Jeu de Paume,

Exposition de la Peinture Chinoise (May-June 1933). 311.

Ch'ang Shu-hung, "The Parisian Exhibition of Chinese Painting and the Future of Chinese Paint­ ing," I-feng, 1:8 (August, 1933), 11-13.

312.

Ibid., pp. 13-15.

313.

Liu Hai-su, Album of Contemporary Chinese Painting in the Collection of the Berlin Museum (Shanghai, 1936), preface.

314•

I-feng, 3:3 (March, 1935), 115.

315.

Ibid., 3:4 (April, 1935), 106-107.

316.

Amsterdam, Stedelijk Museum, Tentoonstelling van Moderne Chinesche Schilderkunst (May-June, 1934).

317.

The association was formed actually to unite traditional painters in order to facilitate the Sino-Japanese Exhibitions proposed by the Japanese.

318.

Liang Te-so, "Painting," Li P'o-yuan, p. 33.

319.

NC 1947. shih, pp. 8-9.

320.

Ibid., pp. 6-8.

321.

Ibid.

322.

Hsieh Kung-chan, "My Views on Reform in Chinese Painting," Nan-mei tsa-chih, 1 (June, 1923), 143-156.

323.

Lin Wen-tseng, "Outline for Art Education," p. 1182.

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266 324.

Ch'ang Shu-hung, "Parisian Exhibition of Chinese Painting," p. 14.

325.

The list should also include Wang Ya-ch'en, Wang Chi-yuan, Chiang Hsiao-chien, Ting Yen-yung, and many others.

326.

Huang Pin-hung, "Traditional Art in the Art Exhi­ bition," p. 34.

327.

Illustrated in Nihon egakan, ed. Kumamoto Hanjiro and Oka Isaburo, IX (Tokyo, 1970), Plate 20.

328.

Wu-chao, "Exhibition Sponsored by the Ch'in-shui School of Art to Welcome the Return of Fang, Yang, Su, and Huang," I-feng, 3:11 (November, 1935), 136141.

329.

Chien Yu-wen, "Introducing Painter Fang Jen-ting and Chatting on New National Painting," I-ching, 30 (May 20, 1937), 36-41.

330.

Read Nakamura Tanio, Contemporary Japanese-style Painting (Tokyo, 1969), pp. 11-26.

331.

See Kao Chien-fu, My Views on Modern Chinese Painting, ed.

332.

Kao Li-chieh (Hong Kong, 1955).

Sullivan, Chinese Art in the Twentieth Century, p. 45.

333.

Dagny Carter, "Modern Chinese Painting," Asia, 34:4 (April, 1934), 228.

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267 334.

Fan Tseng, Hsu Pei-hung, p. 34; also T ’ao Te-raan, "Treasures of Chinese Painting," Tung-fang tsa-chih (Eastern Miscellany), 34:10 (May 16, 1937), 59.

335.

Hsueh-chuan, "An Inspection of Art Exhibitions in Nanking in the Year 22 of the Republic," I-feng, 2:2 (February, 1934), 61-63.

336.

Sullivan, Chinese Art in the Twentieth Century, P. 43.

337.

Ibid.

338.

Liang Te-so, "Painting," Li P'o-yuan, p. 38.

339.

Fang Chun-pi, Chinese Painting by Fang Chun-pi

if

(n.d.).

"

Preface by Rene Grousset.

340.

Illustrated in Liu Hai-su, Berlin Museum.

341.

M Hsu Pei-hung, "On Reform in Chinese Painting," Collection of Essays on Chinese Painting, ed. Yao Yu-hsiang (Shanghai, 1932), pp. 109-114.

342.

Sun Fu-hsi, "Probing the Future of Chinese Art," p. 32.

343.

Liang Te-so, "Painting," Li P'o-yuan, p. 32.

344.

Ku I-ch'en, "More on Modern Chinese Painting and the Training a Painter Should Have," I-feng, 3:10 (October, 1935), 56.

345.

Ni I-te, "New National Painting," Yao Yu-hsiang, pp. 115-120.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

268 346.

Ministry of Education,

(ed.), A Special Collection

of the Second National Exhibition of Chinese Art, III (Shanghai, 1937), plate 43. 347.

Lu Hsun, "Draft for Opinions on the Propagation of Art," Lu Hsun on A r t , ed. Chang Wang, pp. 1-5.

348.

Lu Hsun, "Preface

for

Selections of New Russian

Painting," ibid.,

pp.

50-52.

IT

349.

Lu Hsun’s letter to Cheng Chen-to in 1934, quoted If

in Chang Wang (ed.), Lu Hsun on Art. pp. 239-240. 350.

Ibid., p. 151.

351.

Ibid., p. 237.

352.

T1 Ch'en Yen-ch'iao,Lu Hsun and Woodcut, Sullivan, Chinese

353.

Art

quoted in

in the Twentieth

Century,p. 61.

Feng Nai-lin, "Chao-hua Society," Mei-she yen-chiu, 3 (1959), 48.

354.

They are: Selection of Recent Woodcuts, 2 vols, Selction of Works by Beardsley, Selections of Works by Hukiya Geiji, and Selections of New Russian painting.

Chang Wang, "Chronoloty of the Artistic If

Activities of Lu Hsun," 13-17. 355.

Such as the exhibition of rare prints held in 1930 with Uchiyama Kanzo and the exhibition of German prints in 1931. Ibid., pp. 14-15.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f th e copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout perm ission.

269 356.

See 333.

357.

Example: Lu Hsun (ed.), A Selection of Prints

!«

by Kaethe Kollwitz (Shanghai, 1936), reprinted in Peking, 1956. 358.

Sullivan, "The Realist Movement," in Chinese Art in the Twentieth Century, pp. 61-66.

359.

Chang Wang, "Chronology of the Artistic Activities It

of Lu Hsun," p. 16. 360.

Sullivan, Chinese Art in the Twentieth Century, p. 61.

361.

See Chinese Woodcutters’ Association (ed.), Woodcuts of War-time China: 1937-1945 (Shanghai, 1946), pp. vvii-x.

362.

Yao Hsin-nung, "Modern Chinese Painting," NorthChina Daily News (April 22, 1934), quoted in Nym Wales, "Notes on the Left-Wing Painters and Modern Art in China," unpublished manuscript, courtesy of Michael Sullivan.

363.

Nym Wales, p. 30.

364.

K ’ang Chuang, "Major Events of the Art Academy in the Last Six Years," A-po-lo (Apollo), 13 (March, 1934), 1203-05.

365.

Cheng Pai-ch'i, Ch'ien Hsin-ts’un, and others.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

270 366.

Hsu Hsin-chih, "Reminiscence of the League of Left-Wing Artists," Mei-shu yen-chiu, 4 (1959), 45.

367.

Ibid., p. 44.

368.

Ibid., p. 46.

369.

Ibid., p. 45.

370.

Ibid.

371.

Eugenia Herbert, The Artists and Social Reform: France and Belgium, 1885-1898 (New Haven, Conn., 1961), pp. 12-13.

372.

Paul Sjeklocha and Igor Mead, Unofficial Art in the Soviet Union (Berkeley, 1967).

373.

Ibid., 29-32.

374.

Consult the various issues of Proletarian Litera­ ture and Art in 1930, Essays on the Newly Arisen Art, tr. and ed. Feng Hsien-chang (Shanghai, 1930), and especially Feng Nai-ch'ao, "Source Materials for Marxist Theory on Art," and "Books on Marxist Theory on Art in Japanese," in Forum on Literature and Art (Shanghai, 1930), I, 305-318.

Also

Kurahara Tadato, "A Few Problems in Artistic ?f Theory," tr. Hsu Hsin-chih, Ta-chung wen-i, 2:3 (March, 1930), 571-581. If

375.

Wang Chun-ch'u, Ten Essays on Dialectical

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

271 Aesthetics (Shanghai, 1932); also Hu Ch'iu-yuan, Art Theories based on Materialistic Historicism (Shanghai, 1932). it

376.

Hsu Hsin-chih, '’Prospect of Chinese Art Movement," Sha-lun (Siren), 1:1 (June 16, 1940), 25.

377.

Ibid., pp. 27-28.

If 378. Hsu Hsin-chih, "The Mission of the Newly-arisen Art Movement," I-shu, 1:1 (March 15, 1930), 24. n 379. Hsu Hsin-chih, "Prospects of Chinese Art Movement," p. 32. 380.

Ibid., pp. 33.

381.

Mao Tse-tung, Talk at Yenan Forum on

Literature

and Art, (4th ed.; Peking, 1965). 382.

Ch'en I-fan, "The Modern Trend in Contemporary Chinese Art," T'ien Hsia, 4;1 (January, 1937), 47-48. If

383.

Hsu Hsin-chih, "Reminiscence of the League of Left-Wing Artists," p. 44. tl

384.

Chang Wang, Lu Hsun on Ar t , p. 249.

385.

Nym Wales wrote in 1935, "As I write, I learn than (sic) two of the most promising painters on the new oil technique . . . have been arrested and spirited away, none know where."

Wales, p. 15.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f th e copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout perm ission.

272 386.

Chou Ch'u-shan, "Art and Epoch," I-feng, 2:9 (September, 1934), 58.

387.

"The Nation-wide Popular New Life Movement," Tung-fang tsa-chih (Eastern Miscellany), 31:8 (April 16, 1934), 30-32.

388.

Lin Feng-mien, Art and New Life Movement (Shanghai, 1934), statement of aims at the publication of the New Life Series.

389.

Ibid., pp. 67-68.

390.

Ibid.

391.

Sullivan, Chinese Art in the Twentieth Century, p. 95.

392.

Ibid., p. 51.

393.

"Art News," I-feng, 3:11 (November, 1935), 143.

394.

Huang Meng-t'ien, "From the Storm Society to Yang Ch'iu-jen," in Painters and Paintings (Hong Kong, 1957), p. 55.

395.

Ibid.

396.

Sun Fu-hsi, "Special Issue on the Exhibition," I-feng, 3:11 (November, 1935), 60.

397.

Sullivan, Chinese Art in the Twentieth Century, p. 53.

398.

Feng Tzu-k*ai, "The Latest Tendencies in World Art,"

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f th e copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout perm ission.

273 collected in his Art Anthology (Shanghai, 1935), pp. 3-19.

399.

An Tun-li, ’’Popular Language and Popular Painting," I-feng, 2:10 (October, 1934), 65-66.

His views

were supported by Chin Kuang-ts'an, "Popular Art," I-feng, 3:7 (July, 1935), 40-41. 400.

"Membership List of the Association des Artistes Chinois en France," I-feng, 1:8 (August, 1933), 67.

401.

Liu K'ang, A Collection of Paintings by Liu K ’ang (Singapore, 1957).

402.

Chiang-liao, "The Founding of our Association," I-feng, 1:8 (August, 1933), 85-86.

403.

"Membership List," ibid., p. 67.

404.

Both Ch'ang Shu-hung and Wu Tso-jen wrote of their new attitude in the thirties.

See Ch'ang Shu-

hung, "The Past Mistakes of the New Art Movement," p. 34, and Wu Tso-jen, "Art and Chinese Society," I-feng, 3:4 (April, 1935), 79-81. 405.

Ch'en I-fan, "The Modern Trend in Contemporary Chinese Art," pp. 42-43.

406.

Sullivan, Chinese Art in the Twentieth Century, p . 53.

407.

I-feng, 3:7 (July, 1935), 90.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

274 408.

NC 1947. shih, p. 20.

409.

See examples of his work in Wu Tso-jen, Album of Paintings by Wu Tso-jen (Peking, 1962).

410.

Sullivan, Chinese Art in the Twentieth Century, p . 51.

411.

NC 1947, chuan, p. 66.

412.

See examples of his work in Yen Wen-liang, Album of Paintings by Yen Wen-liang (Shanghai, n.d.).

413.

Wang Tzu-yun, "Correspondence from Paris," I-feng, 3:8 (August, 1935), 106-109.

414 •

NC 1947, shih, pp. 20-21.

415.

"Art News," I-feng, 3:4 (April, 1935), 48.

416.

I-wen tsa-chih, 1:2 (May 10, 1936), 3.

417.

See I-feng, 2:6 (June, 1934); 13:5 (May, 1935);

418.

and 3:7 (July, 1938) for articles and

reviews.

"Catalogue of the Second National Art

Exhibition

of the I-feng she," I-feng, 3:5 (May, 1935), 171-188. 419.

"Art News," I-feng, 3:4 (April, 1935), 109.

420.

Hsieh Shcu-k'ang, "Glories of the Belgian School of Art," 19-22, Wu Tso-jen, "To Welcome the Exhibition of Modern Belgian Painting in Nanking," 23-25.

"Catalogue of the Exhibition of Modern

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f th e copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout perm ission.

275 Belgian Painting,” 26-28, all in I-feng, 3:12 (December, 1935). 421.

Ibid., pp. 26-28.

422.

Kimura Shohachi, "Western-style Painters from China," Atelier, 15 (January, 1948), 50-51.

423.

P'u Sha, "Exhibition of the China Independent Art Exhibition and Its Surrealism," I-feng, 3:12 (December, 1935), 55-58.

424.

Ming-te, "Review of the Qchibition of China Independent Art Association," I-feng (December, 1935), 65-66.

425.

C h ’ang Shu-hung, "The Past Mistakes of the Chinese New Art Movement and its Propects in the Future," pp. 33-34.

426.

Herschel B. Chipp, Theories of Modern Art (Berkeley, 1968), pp. 483-487.

427.

Ministry of Education (ed.), A Special Collection of the Second National Exhibition of Chinese A r t , 3 vols.

428.

Chien Yu-wen, "The Second National Exhibition of Art," I-ching, 28 (April 20, 1937), part 1, 7.

429.

Chien Yu-wen, "The Second National Exhibition of Art," I-ching, 29 (May 5, 1937), part 2, 59.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited without p erm ission.

276 430.

»t Yu Shao-sung, "The Problem of Spirit Resonance (c h ’i-yun) in Chinese Painting," Anthology of Chinese A rt, ed. T ’eng Ku, p. 100.

431.

P'an T'ien-shou, "A Brief Study of the Introduction of Foreign Painting into China," appendix in his History of Chinese Painting, pp. 233-250.

432.

Ibid., p. 245.

433.

Ibid., p. 250.

434.

Cheng C h ’ang, "To Know Chinese Painting," Tungfang tsa-chih (Eastern Miscellany), 28:1 (January 10, 1931), 113.

435.

Ibid.

436.

Levenson, Confucian China and Its Modern Fate: A Trilogy (Berkeley, 1968), p. 99.

437.

Levenson, Revolution and Cosmopolitianism (Berkeley, 1971), p. 20.

438.

Ibid.

439.

Wang Chi-yuan, "Modern Chinese Painting," unpublished manuscript.

440.

Fu Pao-shih, "A Historical Observation of Traditional Painting Since the Founding of the Republic," I-ching, 34 (July 20, 1937), 29.

441.

"Editorial Commentary," T'ien Hsia, 4:4 (April,1937), 326.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

277 442.

Chang Wang, Lu Hsun on Art, p. 239.

443.

Tai Yo, "The True Value of Art and theFundamental Method to Reform Chinese Art," in Hsu Ta-shun,

Art

and Life (Shanghai, 1924), pp. 65-100. 444.

In his "On the Origin and Foundation of the Paintings of China and the West," pp. 47-58, Tsung Pai-hua explains Chinese art in terms of the yin-yang interaction of The Book of Changes (I-ching) and the philosophical ideas of Lao-tzu and Chuang-tzu.

Chinese artists seek to achieve

the inner rhythm of the universe and thus despise the literal representation of nature’s outward appearance.

The unique perspective found in

Chinese painting, according to Tsung Pai-hua allows the artist an unrestrained and free communi­ cation with nature. 445.

Wright, "From Revolution to Restoration," Modern China:

An Interpretive Anthology, ed. Levenson,

pp. 110-111. 446.

Benjamin Schwartz, "The Limits of ’tradition versus Modernity’ as Categories of Explanation: The Case of the Chinese Intellectuals."

Daedalus,

101:2 (Spring, 1972), 82.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

278 447.

Ibid.

448.

T'ao Leng-yueh, "A New Study on Traditional ft

Painting," Yao Yu-hsiang, p. 136. 449.

For example, Chou Ling-sun, Watercolor Landscape Painting (Shanghai, 1915), Hsu Chieh-chi and Hsiung Chu-kao,

(edS.), A New Edition of Study

Methods in Drawing and Painting (Shanghai, 1924), and Liu Hai-su, Textbook for Drawing and Painting, 6 vols.

(Shanghai, 1924), the eighth edition was

printed in 1926. 450.

Sullivan, Chinese Art in the Twentieth Century, p. 71.

451.

NC 1947, shih, p. 16.

452.

Chow Tse-tsung, May Fourth Movement, p. 59.

453.

Osvald Siren, The Chinese on the Art of Chinese Painting (New York, 1963), p. 224.

454.

Katherine E. Gilbert and Helmut Kuhn, A History of Aesthetics, (5th printing; Bloomington, Indiana, 1965), Chapters 17-19. tf

455.

T'ang Chun, pp. 47-49.

456.

For a Chinese Study of Marxist-Leninist theory on art, consult Lu Mei-lin and others (tr.), The Aesthetic Principles of Marxism and Leninism,

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

279 2 vols. (Peking, 1962). 457.

Herbert Read, The Philosophy of Modern Art, (London, 1952), p. 43.

458.

Hu Mang, p. 180.

459.

Chang Wang, Lu Hsun on Art, p. 237.

460.

rt See Huang Yung-yu, Albums of Woodcuts by Huang Yungff

yu (Peking, 1958), Li Shao-yen, A Selection of Works by Li Shao-yen (Peking, 1964), and Huang Chou, A Selection of Works by Huang Chou (Peking, 1963). 461.

Levenson, Confucian China and Its Modern Fate, pp. 15-43.

462.

Liu Chen-ch’ing, A General Study on Cartoons (Shanghai, 1938), pp. 23-24.

463.

. ...

Sun Fu-hsi, ’The Exhibition That We Hope to See," I-feng, 2:6 (June, 1934), 66.

464.

Yeh Kung-cho, "Chinese Art in the Last Ten Years,” in Committee for the Construction of Chinese Culture, ed., China in the Last Ten Years (1937), reprinted as China in the Ten Years Before the War of Resistence (Hong Kong, 1965), p. 689.

465.

Lin Feng-mien, Art and New Life Movement, pp. 67-

68 .

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

466.

Fu Fao-shih, "Prospects and Construction of Chinese Art," Wen-hua chien-she, 1:8 (May 10, 1935), 95-97.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

PLATES

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.

282 1.

John Thomson. Photograph.

2.

A Chinese Artist in Hong Kong. 1873.

Anonymous.

Portrait of a Young Woman.

Oil.

Kuang-

hsu (1875-1908). IT

3.

Anonymous.

An Authentic Picture of T'ang-shan.

New Year Picture, colored woodcut,

Kuang-hsu

(1875-1908). 4.

Anonymous.

Sino-French War of 1884-1885.

shih Chai Pictorial, lithograph, 5.

Anonymous.

6.

Wu Yu-j'u.

n.d.

The Loss of Stone Lions.

Chai Pictorial, lithograph,

The Interior of Tien-shih Chai Press.

Cheng Man -t'o. Watercolor.

8.

10.

1916.

Chang Yu-kuang.

Li Shu-t'ung. Anonymous.

People in Shanghai.

Anonymous.

People*s

1911.

Study of a Nude.

A Tall Building.

Oil.

Before 1919.

A New Edition of

Model Paintings for Middle Schools. 11.

n.d.

Girl Holding a Telephone Receiver.

Stand Pictorial, cartoon. 9.

Tien-shih

n.d.

Tien-shih Chai Pictorial, lithograph, 7.

Tien-

1907.

A Bridge in the Countryside.

A New

Edition of Model Paintings for Middle Schools. 1907.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f th e copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout perm ission.

283 12.

The First Figure Drawing Class at Chekiang First Normal School.

13.

Hsu

14.

Wu Fa-ting.

Photograph.

1914.

Tun-ku. A Scene in the Park.

Oil.

1918.

Portrait of a Manchu Lady.

Oil.

Before 1924. 15.

Li Ch'ao-shih.

Portrait of a Young Boy.

Pastel.

1947. 16.

Li I-shih. Oil.

17.

Portrait of Painter Wang Meng-pai.

Before 1927.

P'an Yu-liang.

A Young Girl in the Park.

Pastel,

c. 1925. 18.

Lin Feng-mien.

Groping in the Dark.

19.

Liu Chi-p'iao.

Yang Kuei-fei After Bath.

20.

Organizers of the First Exhibition of Chinese Art in Europe.

Photograph (Strasbourg, France).

21.

Liu

Hai-su. Dance in Nature.

22.

Liu

Hai-su. The Express Train.

23.

Ting Yen-yung. Oil.

Oil.

1924. Oil.

1924.

1924.

1924.

Oil.

1929.

The Returning Boat (West Lake).

£. 1928.

24.

Yu Chi-fan.

25.

Hsu Pei-hung. drawing,

26.

Oil.

Chiu-lung-wu in Soochow.

Pastel.

Study of a Standing Nude.

£. 1924.

Charcoal

n.d.

Kao Chien-fu.

The Weak Devoured by the Strong.

Ink and color on paper.

1928.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

284 27.

Fang Jen-ting. paper,

28.

Butterflies.

Ink and color on

n.d.

Lin Feng-mien.

Chinese Landscape.

Ink on paper,

c. 1934. 29.

Hsu Pei-hung. paper.

Chiu-fang-kuo.

Ink and color on

1931.

30.

Hsu Pei-hung.

31.

Liu Hai-su.

32.

Fang Chun-pi.

Galloping Horse. Landscape.

Ink on paper,

Ink on paper,

n.d.

n.d.

Fishing by the Snowy Riverbank.

Oil.

n.d. 33.

Hsu Pei-hung. Hgng.

The Five Hundred Retainers of T'ien

1930-1933.

34.

Liu Hai-su.

35.

Li Hua. Class,

The Seine.

Oil.

1930.

Lu Hsun and Uchiyama Kakichi in the Woodcut n.d.

36.

Ts'ai Jo-hung.

Avenue Joffre.

37.

Hu I-ch'uan.

38.

Li Hua.

39.

P'ang Hsun-ch'in.

40.

Feng Tzu-k'ai.

41.

Ch'ang Shu-hung.

Watercolor. c. 1937.

Let's Go to the Front.

Old Fisherman.

Woodcut.

A Blind Man.

The Kiss.

Woodcut.

1932.

1935. Oil.

1935.

Ink Drawing,

n.d.

Portrait of Madame Li.

Oil.

c. 1935. 42.

Wu Tso-jen.

Study of a Nude.

Oil.

1934.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

285

43.

Yen Wen-liang.

Self-portrait.

44.

P ’ang Hsun-ch’in.

45.

Wang Chi-yuan.

Untitled.

Oil.

1934.

1934.

Landscape in Kwangsi.

Watercolor.

c. 1937.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

286

1.

John Thomson. A Chinese Artist in Hong Kong. Photograph. 1873.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

287

2.

Anonymous. Portrait of a Young Woman. Kuang-hsu (1875-1908).

Oil.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f th e copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout perm ission.

288

3.

Anonymous. An Authentic Picture of T 1ang-shan. New Year Picture, colored woodcut. Kuang-hsu (1875-1908).

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

289

* * * a. *

t * * *. a * j a k. i •*. «

i *. ia.

ttHi’jplfismlti n •\Jii7,*?

4.

I U

i

}

* J

J

*

1 1

?

S 5

t A

Anonymous. .Sino-French War of 1884-1885. shih Chai Pictorial, lithograph, n.d.

Tien-

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

290

iilkU&iHniUUiHi S£4** *****? ftfi£J?sS'*£5

fcA * rt «i * |* yi

i a « « k, i< J * -Vi' i a f »j t !

h!jn!llttHHiiii*|i“ fffi^niSHasiSH* •*-

5.

Anonymous. The Loss of Stone Lions. Chai Pictorial, lithograph, n.d.

Tien-shih

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

291

Wu Yu-ju. The Interior of Tien-shih Chai Press Tien-shih Chai Pictorial, lithograph, n.d.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

292

7.

Cheng Man -t'o. Girl Holding a Telephone Receiver. Watercolor, 1916-

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

293

8.

Chang Yu-kuang. People in Shanghai. Stand Pictorial, cartoon. 1911.

People’s

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

294

Study of a Nude

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

295

.i

10.

Anonymous. A Tall Building. A New Edition of Model Paintings for Middle Schools. 1907.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

296

11.

Anonymous. A Bridge in the Countryside. A New Edition of Model Paintings for Middle Schools. 1907.

*fcr.I*' P ,,« 111 W

•vrL’.v.1 a.

afT-'- lit'

l :~

.r»/v:

12.

The First Figure Drawing Class at Chekiang First Normal School. Photograph. 1914.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

297

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

298

14.

Wu Fa-ting. Portrait of a Manchu Lady. Before 1924.

Oil.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

299

15.

Li C h ’ao-shih. 1947.

Portrait of a Young Boy, Pastel.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f th e copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout perm ission.

300

16.

Li I-shih. Portrait of Painter Wang Meng-pai. Oil. Before 1927.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

301

17.

P'an Yu-liang. c. 1925.

A Young Girl in the Park.

Pastel,

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

302

18.

19.

Lin Feng-mien.

Liu Chi-p'iao.

Groping in the Dark.

Yang Kuei-fei After Bath.

Oil.

Oil.

1924.

1924

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

20.

Organizers of the First Exhibition of Chinese Art in Europe. Photograph (Strasbourg, France). 1924.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f th e copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission .

21.

Liu Hai-su.

Dance in Nature.

Oil.

1924.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f th e copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout perm ission.

305

22.

Liu Hai-su.

The Express Train.

Oil.

1929.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

306

w, 'fa School).

In 1926 changed its name to Shanghai i-shu

ssu-fan ta-hsueh b 'life of Art) ;

typ \t '-f1&. (Shanghai Normal

Shanghai Normal College

the next year it amalgamated with Tung-fang

i-shu chuan-k^ hsueh-hsiao and acquired its present name.

Closed in 1928.

Shanghai mei-shu chuan-k’o hsfleh-hsiao

^ |

"|^

(Shanghai College of Fine Arts) — Founded in 1912 by Liu Hai-su, Chang Yii-kuang, Ting Sung, and others. It xvas first called Shanghai t ’u-hu? mei-shu yflan; in 1915 it became Shanghai mei-shu hsfleh-hsiao.

In 1921

changed its name to Shanghai mei-shu chuan-men hsuehhsiao and in 1931 acquired its present name.

Published

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

333 I-shu ylieh-k'an

(Art Monthly), Ts ♦ung-ling

and Mei-chuan ts'ung-shu

\ \ % %

,

(Shanghai College

of Fine Arts Books on Art). Nanking: Kuo-li Chung-yang ta-hsueh i-shu hsi

^ ^ ^

(National Central University Art Department) — Formed in 1927 from the art students at Chiang-su shen ti-ssu ssu-fan hsueh-hsiao

yt

^ % \f>V p

(Kiangsu Fourth Normal School), Nanking.

^ & Under the

leadership of Hstl Pei-hung, the art department became an important art center.

Moved to Chungking in 1937

and returned to Nanking in 1946. Liang-chiang ssu-fan hsueh-t’ang $9 -/i

-fez % %

(Kiangsu-Kiangsi Normal School)— A Painting and Handi­ crafts Department was opened in 1906 under the director­ ship of Li Jui-ch'ing.

It produced the first generation

of art teachers in China.

The school was closed down

after the fall of the C h ’ing dynasty but was reorganized into the Kuo-li Nan-ching kao-teng ssu-fan hsiieh-hsiao (National Nanking High Normal School) in 1913. Nan-ching mei-shu chuan-men hsiieh-hsiao ^ ij. ^ #3 P"0

(Nanking School of Art)— Founded in 1920 by

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

334 Shen Ch'i-ch'iao.

Closed in 1926.

Faculty included

Hsiao Chiln-hsien, Kuang Liang, Hsu Tun-ku, and Lu Cheng. Published Nan-mei tsa-chih % %

(Nanking Art School

Magazine). Hangchow; Che-chiang ti-i ssu-fan ta hsueh

-jfft ',1

*■ ^

(Chekiang First Normal School)--A Painting and Handicrafts Department was opened in 1912.

Faculty included Li

Shu-t'ung, Chiang Tan-shu, and some Japanese teachers. Closed in 1915 after graduation of the first class of students. Kuo-li Hangchou i-shu chuan-k*o hsueh-hsiao (^) ^ %% *t % W5

% Ja (National Academy of Art, Hangdnw)--Founded

in 1928, director Lin Feng-mien.

Known first as the

Kuo-li Hsi-hu i-shu yuan, acquired its present name in 1929.

In 1937 moved to Pi-shan, near Chungking and

in 1938 amalgamated with Kuo-li Pei-ching i-shu chuank'o hsfleh-hsiao.

In 1946 returned to Hangchow.

Since

1949 known as the Che-chiang mei-shu hsueh-yuan (Chekiang Academy of Art).

Successive directors:

T ’eng Ku, Lu Feng-tzu, Ch'en Chih-fu, P'an T ’ien-shou, and Wang Jih-ch’ang. A-tan-na

Published A-po-lo ^

(Adeana) , Shen-ch *e ^

^

(Apollo) , (Chariot) ,

and hsiao-k'an jte ^*1 (School Magazine).

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

335

Peking: Kuo-li Pei-p'ing i-shu chuan-k’o hsueh-hsiao ^ *3^ ^ 3%

^

(National Academy of A r t , Peking)--

Founded in 1 9 1 8 as Pei-ching mei-shu chuan-men hsuehhsiao

^

director.

1 9 2 6 became Pei-ching i-shu chuan-men

hsueh-hsiao.

^

with Cheng Chin as

its first

1 9 2 7 became a department of Peking Uni­

versity and in the next year expanded into I-shu hsueh-yuan

'-ji% (College of Fine Arts) of Peking

University, under Hs(i Pei-hung.

1934- reorganized

into Pei - p ^ n g i-shu chuan-k’o hsueh-hsiao.

At the

outbreak of the Sino-Japanese War ( 1 9 3 7 ) , it travelled to Southwest China, amalgamated with Kuo-li Hang-chou i-shu chuan-k’o hsueh-hsiao in 1 9 3 8 .

1 9 4 6 returned

to Peking, with Hsu Pei-hung as director.Wu Tso-jen succeded him on his death in 1 9 5 3 . Pei-p’ing mei-shu chuan-k’o hsueh-hsiao ->b

^

|

( Peking School of Art)--Founded in 1 9 2 4 by Wang Yuehchih.

Known first as the Pei-p*ing mei-shu hsVieh-yuan.

*u ^ % Vfo ^ & Canton: Kuang-chou shih-li mei-shu hsfoeh-hsiao (Canton Municipal School of Art)--Founded in early

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f th e copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout perm ission.

tiji

336 twenties. Hung.

Faculty included Ting Yen-yung and Ch'en

Published Mei-shu

Ch'un-shui hua-yuan

(Fine Arts). |

(Ch' un-shui School

of Art)— Founded in 1916 by Kao Chien-fu. the ling-nan p'ai.

Center of

Destroyed by the Japanese in 1938;

reconstituted in 1947 as the Ssu-li Nan-chunq mei-shu ytian

£>,fa y

^^(Nan-chung School of Art).

Soochoxv: Su-chou mei-shu chuan-k'o hstieh-hsiao ^ w | #3 "| ^ (Soochow Academy of A rt)--Founded by Yen Wen-liang in 1922.

1952 amalgamated with Shanghai mei-shu

chuan-k1o hsueh-hsiao #3

and Shan-tung ta-hsueh i-shu hsi

(Art Department of Shantung University)

to become Hua-tung i-shu chuan-k'o hsueh-hsiao ^ 1| -J-3 '-f frlc

(Hua-tung Academy of Art).

Chungking: Hsi-nan mei-shu chuan-k'o hs&eh-hsiao fa \

(Southv/est Academy of Art)--Founded in 1925

by Yang Kung-t’o and Wan T s ’ung-mu.

An important

art center in Southwest China, producing close to three thousand graduates in twenty years' time.

R ep ro d u ced with p erm ission o f the copyright ow ner. Further reproduction prohibited w ithout p erm ission.

337 Appendix C List of Chinese and Japanese Names

Ai Ch'i-meng Akida Ujaku An Te-i An Tun-li A-po-lo i-shu hsueh-hui A-po-lo i-shu yen-chiu-so Chang Cheng-chiang Chang Chih-tung

Site 1 w I# % % 3k &k Jf n %m f f n ^ %r %#3 W] t ^ ^ * 31 ^ Mf]

Chang C h ’ung-jen Chang Erh Chang Keng Chang Li-ying Chang P*eng-nien Chang Shu

31 1? ll ik 311, * W * 31 I

'

Chang Shu-ch i Chang Ta-ch'ien Chang Tao-fan

5%& ft

Chang Yen-yuan Chang Yu-kuang C h ’ang Shu-hung

3^ $ b % %4

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338 Chao Chih-ch'ien Chao Wan-yun vc. Vs

Chao Wu-chi Che-chiang ti-i ssu-fan

5 lff v t % -

Chen-li kuo-ku

%

Ch'en Chih-fu

ft i IS)?

ijc, *

i tec

Ch'en Ch'iu-ts'ao Ch'en Hsiao-nan Ch'en I-fan

|L

ft

Ch'en Jen-hao

a '■!%

Ch'en-kuang mei-shu hui

|

Ch'en Pao-chen

ft ft i

%

I ® t

Ch'en Pao-i Ch'en Shih-wen A.

Ch'en Shu-jen

f$

Ch'en Tu-hsiu

*1-1% fl

C h 'en Yen-ch'iao Cheng Ch'ang

if

Cheng Chen-to

it 4

Cheng Chin

ff fij>

Cheng K'o

If t

Cheng Mam -t *o

I f 4 ft

Ch'eng Shih-fa

\ % -f %

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339

C h ’enej-shih mo-yuan C h ’i Pai-shih

%

ch'i-yun

t ft

& k

chiang Chiang Feng

f

Chiang Hsiao-chien ( Hsin )

°'

Chiang Shao-wen

-1^

Chiang Tan-shu

•Jr

< it

%

Chiao Ping-chen Chieh-tzu yuan hua-chuan

if * is \ 4

Chin Chieh

't

*i!

chin-shih

&

-t

Ch'in-kung chien-hsueh hui Ching Heng-i

&

Chiu-fang-kuo

jb % -|*

C h ’iu T ’i

*•

%

4.

C h ’iu Tzu-an Ch'iu Ying Chou Chin-hai

M

Chou Hsiang

JH

Chou K ’uei

JU

Chu Ta

*

Chu Ying-p’eng

t

ft

£

fi- ^-1

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340 chu-jen

|

^

Ch'uan-hsueh p'ien Chueh-lan she Chung-hsi t ’u-hua hsueh-hsiao

M

u

ya m %t«

Chung-hua i-shu ta-hsueh Chung-hua tu-li mei-shu hsieh-hui

f

It

Chung-kuo hua-hui

y m

Chung-kuo hua-hsueh yen-chiu hui

vi 1 $ & t |D % m ^ £ |t>

Chung-kuo i-shu fu-hsing yiin-tung Chung-kuo liu-fa i-shu hsueh-hui Chung-kuo mei-shu hui Chung-kuo min-tsu i-shu yiin-tung

i t

* ¥ ID 1*&ir ^ ID

f 1

Fan Ch'i Fan Shou-k'ang

& 1

% fi

Fang Chiin-pi Fang Hsiieh-ku

ft

* t4

Fang Jen-ting fang t fai-hsi pi-xa

m % ft? 5|

Feng Kang-po

'4

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Feng Tzu-k’ai Fu Pao-shih

tin,*

Fu Yen-ch'ang Hai-shang t'i-ch’ing kuan chin-shih shu-hua hui

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341 Hashimoto Gaho

% %% fj*

Hishida ShunsS

^ Tfi % ^

Ho-p'u-ssu hui

^ ^

hsi-hua

tB?

hsi-i

tth

%:

Hsi-yanq chii-ch'anq t'u

tB?

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hsi-yang hua

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Hsiao Chiin-hsien

ID

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Hsiao-shan hua-p'u

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hsieh-i

$

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Hsieh Kung-chan hsieh-sheng Hsin-an p'ai

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Hsin-hsing mei-shu yiin-tung Hsin-hua i-shu chuan-k'o

tff t®- %. #3 if,

hsueh-hsiao

^ #3 If *3t

Hsin i-shu pan-yiieh k'an

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Hsin kuo-hua yiin-tung Hsin wen-hua yiin-tung

^ & %i)

iff

^

Hsii-chia-hui Hsu Chih-mo Hsii Hsin-chih Hsii Pei-hung

^ ^5-^1 ' ji%

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342 Hsu Ta-Shun

&

*

Hsu Tun-ku

Vf

Hsii Yung-ch’ing

^

%% %

Hu Hsien-yu

M

% t?-

Hu I-ch'uan

n

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Hu Shih Hua-fa yen-chiu hui

n i | 'Aw? n t

Hua T'ien-yu

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Hua-pei hsiieh-yuan

$ * 1

ro k,

Huang Hsien-chih Huang Kung-wang

Huang Pin-hung

I. % % ■M ^

Huang Shao-chiang

i. 'V %

Huang Lang-p'ing

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Hui-hua tsa-chih I-feng

%'

ft

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I-feng she I-lin hsiin-kfan I-pa i-she

% *>■ u —' /N.

^

I-shu I-shu chieh

%

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I-shu hsiieh-hui I-shu hsiieh-yuan

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^

i it

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343

I-shu lun

*>• % fr-J

I-shu p'inq-lun

^ ^ ^

I-wen-ssu

^ ^

Imaizume Yusaka

^

Ishii Hakutei

^

^ ?T

Itagaki Takaho

^

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Jen Hsiung

^

Jen Hsun

^

Jen I

^

^ ^

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K ’ang Yu-wei Kano Hogai

&

Kao Ch'i-feng

%} % Hjr

Kao Chien-fu

& ^

$ %

Keng-chih T'u

^

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Kosaka Shodo

v5' ^

Ku Ch'i-yiin

$1- ^ ^

Ku-huan chin-yu chin-shih shu-hua she

^

Kuan-hsueh p ’ai

1 1

K'un-ts’an

jLj

^ ^ ^ ^ ^ % fj H

* *

Kung Hsien

^

«f-

Kuo-chfao hua-cheng lu

^

^ S ^

kuo-chia

^

&

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Kuo-li Nan-ching kao-teng ssu-fan hsueh-hsiao

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344 Kuo Mo-jo

z& % &

Kurihara Tadato

% \%

Kuroda Hoshin Kuroda Seiki

1- ^

Lang Shih-ning

If « t

t?

'if

t %

Lei K'uei-yuan Leng Mei Li Ch'ao-shih

i ** *

Lu Chien-ch'en

\ IjJ |c

Li Chin-fa

I I I

Li Feng-pai

i )$l te

Li Hua

$

iU-i i ft% % '-M %L

Li I-shih Li Jui-ch'ing Li Shu-liang Li Shu-t’ung

(Hung-i Fa-shih)

%

a* i*] * 3* - >£

Li Yu-hsing &

Liang C h ’i-c h 1ao

&

fe f f

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Liang-chiang ssu-fan hsueh-tang it

Liao Hsm-hsueh Lin Feng-mien IT

Lin Hsueh-ta

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Lin Wen-tseng Ling-nan p'ai

K

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345

Liu Ai-chu Liu Chi-p’iao

%I

>5. f

Liu Chih-p'ing Liu Hai-su Liu IC'ai-ch’u

$i ** % S’J M $

Liu K'ang Liu T'ieh-hua Liu Ya-fan Lou-tung p ’ai Lu Ch'uan-wen t? Lu Hsun

I'j m s 1- & FI if

% & sfc 3ml

Lu Ch*in-chung

\ & £ I% W

Lu Ssu-pai

&

Lu Cheng If

Mang Ku-li Mao Tun

5

ft

Matsumura Goshun Mei-chuan p ’ai

1 1

Mei-kan chiao-yu

4*^1

mei-shu

\

M Mei-shu kung-hsueh she Mei-shu tsa-chih Mei-yu

I 1

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346

Mi-feng hua-she

% ^

min-chien

tk ?b3

Min-li pao min-tsu i-shu tT

Mo Ta-yuan

%

Nan-kuo i-shu hsueh-yuan

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Nan-mei tsa-chih

i5> $L I f ft

Ni I-te

\% %

nien-hua

^

\% 4

Okakura Tenshin

l^)

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Pai-o hsi-hua hui

fa

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Pai-o hui-hua pu-hsihsueh-hsiao

fa ?i%

\ %$ '■$ %

P'an Ssu-t'ung

%

l ra

,ft ^

P'an T'ien-shou

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P'an Yu-liang

l j% 5> |c

P 'ang Hsun-ch'in

^

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Pei-ching i-shu chih-yeh chuan-k *o hsueh-hsiao -)t$•% A $ 3 \ Pei-ching i-shu chuan-k'o hsueh-hsiao Pei-ching i-shu chuan-men hs#eh-hsiao

% tf:3 ^ -3^ 'f 1%. -)t $• % #3 l| (*3

Pei-ching mei-shu chuan-men hsueh-hsiao

3- % Vft \ H

Pei-ching mei-shu hsueh-hsiao

->t 75- $.

Pei-ching mei-shu hsueh-yuan

-ft,

Pei-yang ssu-fan hsueh-t'ang

yt -/% ftp

\ Wi

1-3

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^

347 Pu-te-i P'u Ju

\%

^\

P ’u-lu-hua

%

Sai-yin-ssu hsien-sheng

%■ I?)%“ f\ %

Sha-lun Shang-hai i-shu ta-hsueh

po £

%

Shang-hai mei-shu chuan-men hsueh-hsiao £ ^

^

It #3 % ?3 ^ |s Hi

Shang-hai mei-shu yuan Shanghai t 'u-huamei-shu yuan Shao-ch *ing

Hi X

t

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Shen C h ’i-Ch'iao Shen C h ’uan

~ j%

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Shen X -ch'ien

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^

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sheng-i sheng-mei shu-kuan

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Shih P 'o-fu

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^

Shih Shih-chen

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Shih-tai mei-shu she

P% W %,

Shiomi Kyo

^

Su-chou mei-shu chuan-k'o hsueh-hsiao

-H £ «y**

Su Ho-lung

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348

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Sun Fu-hsi Ta-chung hua

X

\

Ta chung yu

*

Ta-hsin chieh

X Iff $3

Tai Yo

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T'ai-meng mei-shu hui

%%\ W3t

Takeuchi Seiho

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% %

T ’ang I-ho

3

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T !ang-shan chen-chi c h fuan t'u 11 it T'ang Yun-yu

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T 'eng Ku Tien-shih chai hua-pao T 'ien Han

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T'ien-ma hua-hui Ting I-Isiung-ch ’uan

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Ting Kuan-p'eng

Tf % i W &

%

Ting Sung Ting Yen-yung Ting Yu

Tf

*6

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349

M Ting Yun-kung Ts'ai Jo-hung Ts'ai Yuan-p'ei

%

Tsao-hsing mei-shu Tsao-hsing mei-shu yen-chiu hui

&

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% %

^

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i %

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Tung Ch'i-ch'ang

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Tung-fang hua-hui

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Uchiyama Kakichi

& ^ 1^%

Ueda Bin Umehara Ryusaburo Wada Eisaku

^

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Wada Sanzo Viang Chi-yiian

i

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Wang Chih-ch'eng

i-

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Wang Chun-ch'u

5- % -fa?

VIang Jih-chang

-A B ^

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350

Wang Ling-i Wang Meng-pai

5- f &

Wang Tai-chih Wang T s ’ai-pai

H

Wang Tzu-p1ing

2, if. /-f

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Wang Tzu-yun Wang Ya-ch'en

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Wang Yuan-ch’i

i T& iHjf

Wang Yuan-po n Wang Yueh-chih

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Watanabe YQjiro

^

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Watari Hironosuke Wei-lai-p’ai

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Wen-jen hua

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Wu C h ’ang-shuo

* & 4

Wu Fa-ting

4

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Wu Li

4

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Wu Meng-fei

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Wu Ping

1

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Wu-sheng shih-shih

&

Wu Shih-kuang

vljf’ P $-

V/u Tai

4

V/u Tso-jen

4

^

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351

Yamamoto Shunkyo

» •'5'. ■4;-

Yang C h ’iu-Jen

3* A.

Yang Kuang-hsien

^ h % %j

Yang San-iiang

t 4 ^ if

Yang T ’ai-yang Yang Ying-fang Yao Kuei-chu Yao Pao-ming

# b f. vt*

Yen Wen-liang

M

* 13

yin-yang Yoshilcae Shuji

-jj iti -,i 3.t-

M Yu Chi-fan

1&% A*

ft Yu-kuang hua-hux Yu Ta-fu

% |'t

if 4 *

11

Yu Yu-Jen " Yuan-ming-yuan (Yuen-mxng yuen)

® ^ ®

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B IB L IO G R A P H Y

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353 Periodicals

A-po-lo (Apollo). Bimonthly. Hangchow: Hsi-hu kuo-li i-shu chuan-k'o hsfleh-hsiao -M IfB % VPi f ^ % % (Hangchow National Academy of Art). Founded 1931; No. 10 appeared October, 1932, No. 13 appeared March, 1934. A magazine of Western art and theory. Chen-hsiang hua-pao 3-0 | Jjffc (The True Record) , Fortnightly. Shanghai: Sheng-mei shu-kuan % % % (Sheng-mei Publishing Co.). Founded 1912; Vol. 1, Nos. 1-17 appeared May 6 , 1912-March 6 , 1913. A pictorial magazine of current affairs and art, Contributors: Kao C h 1i-feng, Kao Chien-fu, Ch'en Shu-jen, and others. Chi-mei ssu-fan yueh-k'an 3.\ W? $6 0 (Chi-mei Normal School Monthly). Amoy: Chi-mei she if.\ it (Chi-mei Society). Founded April, 1926. A magazine of art, both Western and traditional. I-Jsin i-shu pan-yueh k'an Utj % Shanghai: I-shu hsueh-hui Art). Founded circa 1922.

^

(New Art Fortnightly) . (The Society for

Hsueh-i "'I (Wissen und Wissenschaft). Founded 1917. An important academic and intellectual magazine, de­ voted to science and the arts; articles on Western aesthetics. Hui-hsueh tsa-chih ^ ^ %% %%• (Painting Magazine). Monthly. Peking: I-Iua-fa yen-chiu hui (Painting Method Research Association) at Peking University. Founded May 16, 1920. Contributors: IIsu Pei-hung, Ts'ai Yuan-p'ei, Ch'en Shih-tseng. Devoted to painting and aesthetics. I-ching ^ % (The Book of Art). Fortnightly. Peking I-thing pan-yfleh k'an she *-j • Founded December 5, 1935. Devoted to painting, drama, and cinema. I-ching ^ Sfc, (The Book of Leisure). Fortnightly. Shanghai: I -ching she & \Jtit. Nos. 1-36 (March 5, 1936-August 20, 1937). Devoted to literature and the arts.

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354

I-feng (Art Wind). Monthly. Hangchow: I-feng tsachih she Founded January 1, 1933; ceased publication 1936. Editor: Sun Fu-hsi. An important art magazine devoted to the pursuit of a new art. *** -i* I-kuan ,(,Art v^ew) • Monthly. Shanghai: Chung-kuo i-shu hsueh-hui ^ ^ (Society of Chinese Art). Founded 1926; Nos. 2-6 dated April-August, 1929. I-lin hsun-k'an (Art Review Collection) • Ten-day. Peking: Chung-kuo hua-hsueh yen-chiu hui ® ^ ft■*§■ (Research Association of Chinese Painting)• Founded 1928; Nos. 1-72 appeared January 1, 1928-December 21, 1929. I-shu lik (The Arts). Shanghai: I-shu hsueh-hui (The Society for Art). Founded about 1922 and ceased publication before 1927. I - shu & (L’Art). Shanghai: Mo she %-ji • An issue appeared January, 1933. Devoted to Western art and theory. I-shu chieh (Art World). Weekly. Shanghai. Founded January 15, 1926. Editor: Fu Yen-ch'ang and others. An art magazine devoted to contemporary Chinese art. I-shu p'ing-lun |$^S(Art Criticism). Shanghai: Tungfang i-shu yen-chiu hui $.55 % ifi Wf % % (Eastern Art Research Association) and Ch'en-kuang mei-shu hui ^ ^ %. Vfc ^ (Dawn Art Association). Founded about 1922 and ceased publication before 1927. I-shu yueh-k*an % #3 0 *'J (Art Monthly). Shanghai : I-shu she % H * Founded March 16, 1930. A magazine of pro­ letarian art. Kqyukai Geppo 3 (Alumni Association Monthly Report)• Tokyo: TSkyo bijutsu gakkO | #5 '-f • Founded 1902. Kuo-ts *ui yueh-k*an f§) 0 W (National Essence Monthly). Shanghai: Chung-kuo shu-hua pao-ts *un hui tj»If)| % c| Society for the Preservation of Chinese Calligraphy and Painting). Founded 1929; Vol. 1, No. 2 dated March, 1929.

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Liu-i y, || (Six Arts) . Monthly. Shanghai: Founded February, 1936.

Liu-i she

Mei-shu % (Fine Arts). Monthly. Canton: Kuang-chou shih-li mei-shu hsueh-hsiao fy +M (Canton Municipal School of Art). Founded October, 1935. Mei-shu ^ # 3 (The Art). Chengtu: Chengtu kao-teng ssufan mei-shu hsueh-hui Vp % H'3 '£ "f1 (Chengtu Higher Normal College Art Society). Founded March 15, 1923. n Mei-shu liang yueh-k 1an 1 B (Art Bimonthly). Shanghai Shanghai mei-shu hsUeh-hsiao £. 'ih % ^ (Shanghai College of Fine Arts). Founded April, 1919. Contributors: Liu Hai-su, Hs(i Pei-hung, Wang Ya-ch!en, and others. Mei-shu tsa-chih \ (La Revue des Beaux Arts). Monthly. Shanghai: Shanghai mei-shu tsa-chih she i VS % 1fttyltt-fo Founded 1937; Vol. 1, No. 4 dated June, 1937. Resumed publication July, 1939. Vol. 1, No. 2, special issue on Cezanne, appeared July, 1939. Mei-yu \ % (Art Education). Monthly. Shanghai: Chunghua mei-yu hui ^ ^ (China Association of Art Edu­ cation). Founded September, 1920. Contributors: Li Chin-fa, Lu Cheng, Feng Tzu-k'ai, Wu Meng-fei. Min-li hua-pao fc j|g_(People 's Stand Pictorial). Shanghai: Min-li jih-pao^ q People's Stand Daily. 6 vols. April-October, 1911. Collection of cartoons which appeared in the daily. Nan-mei tsa-chih & (Nanking Art SchoolfMagazine). Nanking: Nan-chinq mei-shu chuan-men hsueh-hsiao ife $• % H 'I (Nanking Art School) . Founded June, 1923. Sha-lun -A J3o (Siren). Monthly. Shanghai; Sha-lun ch *u-pen she ity % Hktyl (Siren Publishing Co.). Founded June 16, 1930. A magazine of proletarian art and literature.

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Ta-chung wen-i -X (Proletarian Literature and Art). Monthly. Shanghai: Ta-chung xven-i she • Founded 1929; Vol. 2, No. 3 dated March, 1930. A magazine of proletarian art and literature. T ’ien Hsia. Monthly. Shaghai. Founded August, 1935. A magazine in English with many articles on the new trends in Chinese art. Tsao-hsing mei-shu ^ ^ \ (Plastic Arts)• Peking: Tsao-hsing mei-shu yen-chiu hui ^ i W ^ (Plastic Arts Association) at Peking University. Founded June, 1924. Ts *ung-ling • Quarterly. Shanghai: Shanghai meishu chuan-men hsueh-hsiao v, If P (Shanghai College of Fine Arts). Founded April 1, 1929. Tung-fang tsa-chih (Eastern Miscellany). Shanghai Shang-wu ying-shu kuan %% 6? % (Commercial Press) • Founded 1904; ceased publication 1949. One of the first magazines to introduce Western art into China.

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357 Books and Articles

Ah-ying P?j (ch'ien Hsing-ts’un . Chung-kuo nien-hua fa-chan shih lueh t)*jfjj)£ % 3$ % t. ^ (A Brief Histroy of New Year Pictures in China). Peking, 1954. Alexander, William.

The Costume of China.

London, 1805.

Allom, Thomas. China, Its Scenery, Architecture, Social Habits. 4 vols. London, 1843. Amsterdam, Stedelijk Museum. Chinesche Schilderkunst. An Tun-li %- 1 I-feng 3* yg.

Barrow, John.

Tentoonstelling van Moderne May-June, 1934.

. nTa-chung yu ho ta-chung hua” %. (Popular Language and Popular Painting) , , 2:10 (October, 1934), 65-66.

Travels in China.

2d ed.

London, 1806.

Berger, John. Art and Revolution: Ernst Neigvestny and the Role of the Artist in the U. S. S. R. New York, 1969. Biggerstaff, Knight. The Earliest Modern Government Schools in China. Athica, New York, 1961. Boorman, Howard L. Biographical Dictionary of Republican China. 4 vols. New York, 1967-71. Boivie, Theodore (ed.). East-West in Art: Patterns of Cultural and Aesthetic Relationships. Bloomington, 1966. Brandt, Conrad, and others. A Documentary History of Chinese Communism. Cambridge, Mass., 1952. Britton, R. S. The Chinese Periodical Press 1800-1912. Shanghai, 1933. Cahill, James.

Chinese Painting.

New York, 1960.

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358 Cahill, James (ed.). The Restless Landscape: Chinese Painting of the Late Ming Period. Berkeley, 1971. Carter,Dagny« "Modern Chinese Painters," (April, 1934), 224-229.

A s i a , 34:4

Chang Jo-ku ■ft . "I nien lai ti Shen-pao I-shu chieh" ~ % (I-shu chieh Supplement of Shen Pao in the Past Year), I-shu chieh ^ ^ ^ , 1:1 (January 5, 1927), 33-41. Chang Keng 2 vols. Chang Tao-fan ij, Vc Constable.

. Kuo-ch'ao hua cheng lu 1895 .

®

% t&L

>1 &

(tr.). Chin-tai Ou-chou hui-hua (Modern European Painting), by W.G. Shanghai, 1928.

. Suan t'ien k !u la ti hui-wei (Memories that are Sour, Sweet, Bitter, and Spicy). Taipei. 1068. Chang Wang % (ed.). Lu Hsun lun mei-shu \ \& ffe (Lu Hsun. on Art). Rev. ed. Peking, 1956. . "Lu Hsiin mei-shu kung-tso nien-p'u--ch'u kao" % & % ffi*^ Tti% — \nVk (Chronology of the Artistic Activities of Lu Hslin--First Draft), Mei-shu %.tt? ,10 (October, 1955), 13-17. Chang Yuan-chi . "I yfieh lai chih Chung-kuo huat 'an" - fl% 'vf i€>% (Chinese Art World in the Past Month), I-feng ^ yil. , 2:9 (September, 1934), 89-93. Ch'ang Shu-hung ^ . "Chung-kuo hsin i-shu yun-tung kuo-ch'u ti ts'o-xvu yil chin hou ti chan-wang" tf>f0 %/jj-$s» Up & %\ VfcV- ? itW J&t (The Past Mistakes of the Chinese New Art Movement and Its Prospects in the Future), I-feng ^ 7fl, , 2:8 (August, 1934), 33-44. . "Pa-li Chung-kuo hua-chan yu Chung-kuo hua ch *ien-t *u" R % 4 fo @ I-feng & , 1:8 (August, 1933)", 9-15.

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359 Ch'en Ch'i-tien shih M o d e m China).

. Chin-tai Chung-kuo chiao-yu t. (History of Education in Reprint ed. Taipei, 1959.

.

Tsui chin san shih nien Chung-kuo chiao-yu shih (History of Chinese Education in the Last Thirty Years). Reprint ed. Taipei, 1962. Ch'en I-fan. "The Modern Trend in Contemporary Chinese Art," T'ien Hsia, 4:1 (January, 1937), 35-48. . Hsia,

"The Younger Group of Shanghai Painters," T'ien 5:2 (September, 1937), 147-151.

Ch'en-kuang mei-shu hui |l ^ Yin-hsAng p'ai hua-chia %. % %< Painters). Shanghai, 1927.

(Dawn Art Association). (Impressionist

Ch'en Pao-i ^ . Yang-hua A B C % Aac of Western Painting). Shanghai, 1928.

(The A B C

Ch'en Shu-jen A. . "Hsin hua fa" % '•& (New Painting Methods) , Chen-hsiang hua-pao J (The True Record), 1:1-16 (May 6, 1912-February 1, 1913). Ch'en Tu-hsiu ^ ^ ^ . "Hsin wen-hua yun-tung shih shenmo" g.\i, ^ % (What is the New Culture Movement), Hsin ch'ing-nien a* %. (La Jeunesse) 7:5 (April 1, 1 9 2 0 ) 7 ^ ---Cheng Ch'ang . "Chung-kuo hua chih jen-shih" ^ ( To Know Chinese Painting) , Tung-fang tsa-chih jt-$$$!£( Eastern Miscellany), 28:1 (January 10, 1931), 107-119. ________ . Chung-kuo hua-hsueh ch'uan-shih ^ ® ^ f 4. ( A Complete History of Chinese Painting). Shanghai,1929. Cheng Wei (ed.). Tien-shih chai hua-pao shih-shih hua hsuan v|f % % & . * % $ % (Paintings On Current Affairs Selected ^From Tien-shih chai Pictorial) . Peking, 1958.

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360

*>' Ch'i-fan t w Jg|_

,1

If . "Ch*uan-kuo mei-shu chan-lan hui" -tf.3 IT (All-China Art Exhibition), I-pan (May 5, 1929), 258-259.

Chiang Fang-cheng %% % % • Ou-chou wen-i fu-hsing shih 3. (History of the Renaissance in Europe). Shanghai, 1921. Chiang Pi-wei

^ ^ . Chiang Pi-wei hui-i lo #§ (Memoirs of Chiang Pi-wei). Taipei, (n.d.) .

Chiang Shao-shu $■ W % 7 chuan. (l690).

.

Wu-sheng shih-shih

^ |f ^

Chiang Tan-shu i -S % . "Q-kuo wu-shih nien lai i-shu chiao-yu shih chih i yeh" ft a+ 3* 3 5L - (A Page in the History of Art Educa­ tion in China) . Mei-shu yen-chiu ^ , 1 (1959), 30-33. Chien Yu-wen JS] a. "Ti erh tzu ch*uan-kuo mei-shu chanlan hui" z-jf. & \ \$i -f (The Second National Exhibition of Art), I-ching , part 1: 28 (April 20, 1937), 3-8; part 2: 29 (May 5, 1937), 55-61. . "Chieh-shao hua-chia Fang Jen-ting chien t*an t*an hsin kuo-hua" -,rft | $, * a. %_ % \% f& if | (Introducing the Painter Fang Jen-ting and Chatting on New National Painting) , I-ching % > 30 (May 20, 1937), 36-41. C h ’ien Tao-sun ^ & (tr.). Tsao-hsing mei-shu % ^3 (Plastic Arts), by Theodor Volbehr. Shanghai, 1924. Chin Kuang-ts'an % & *!£ . "Ta-chung i-shu" ^ (Popular Art), I -f eng *£ r*l , 3:7 (July, 1935), 40-41. The China Year Book, 1938, ed. H. G. W. Woodhead. 1938. Chinese Woodcutters* Association (ed.). time China. Shanghai, 1946.

Shanghai,

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361

Chipp, Herschel B. (ed). Theories of Modern Art: A Source Book by Artists and Critics. Berkeley, 1968. Chou Ch 'u=shan It! ** . "I-shu yu shih-tain ’f (Art and Epoch), I-feng & ^ , 2 : 9 (September, 1934), 58-61. Chou Ling-sun $ & Shui-ts*ai feng-ching hua )?l ^ ^ (Watercolor Landscape Painting). Shanghai, 1915. Chow Tse-tsung. The May Fourth Movement: Intellectual Revolution in Modern China. Stanford, 1969. . Research Guide to the May Fourth Movement: Intellectual Revolution in Modern China 1915-1924. Cambridge, Mass., 1963. Chu Kuang-ch'ien . Wen-i hsin-li hsueh (Psychology of Literature and Art). 1936. Chuang Che 3* ^ . Hsien-tai hui-hua san lun (On Modern Painting). Taipei, 1966.

sc 3$ Shanghai,

4/| § %%

Chuang Wen-ya ^ i fe . Ch*uan-kuo wen-hua chi-kuan i-lan f§) £ Ifk [$) (Survey of the Cultural Institutions of China). Shanghai, 1934. Committee for the Construction of Chinese Culture (ed.). Shih nien lai chih Chung-kuo ■+' ^ ^ > ty (§1 (China in the Last Ten Years). Shanghai, 1937. Re­ printed as IC’ang-chan ch'ien shih nien chih Chung-kuo 1h' T$i •*’^ V @ (China in the Ten Years before the War of Resistance). Hong Kong, 1965. Department of Chinese, Peking^Normal University (ed.). Chung-kuo hsien-taiwen-hsueh shih t s ^ n - k ’ao tzu-liao y ® 'A S. >§ t % (Reference Materials for the History of Modern Chinese Literature). 2 vols. Peking, 1959. Downing, Toogood. 1838.

The Fan-Qui in China.

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362 Ellis, Henry. Journal of the Proceedings of the Late Em­ bassy to China. London, 1817. Fairbank, John K . , and Masataka Banno. Japanese Studies of Modern China: A Bibliographical Guide to Historical and Social-Science Research on the 19th and 20th Cen­ turies. Tokyo, 1955. ________ , and Liu Kwang-ching. Modern China: A Bibliogra­ phical Guide to Chinese Works 1898-1937. Cambridge, Mass., 1950. Fain Chiang It ^ . "Shih-nien i-lai Chung-kuo chen q-chih t 'ung-lan^hiao-yti p ^ e n " ■+q ® tt V& & .. % (Survey of Chinese Politics in the Last Ten Years: Ed­ ucation) . Tung-fang tsa~chih (Eastern Mis­ cellany) , 9:7 ( January 1913) , 86. Fan Shou-k'ang it, % % . I-shu chih pen-chih (The Essence of Art). Shanghai, 1927.

ft

^

________ (ed.). Mei-hsueh kai-lun \ ^ ^8 (Survey of Aesthetics). Shanghai, 1927. Fang Chun-pi 7? % % . Chun-pi su-hsieh hua-chi % ^ % § % (Album of Sketches by Fang Chun-pi. Shanghai, 1932. ________ . Fang Chun-pi hua-chi h % \l. (Album of Paintings by Fang Chun-pi), Shanghai, 1932. ________ . Fang Chun-pi kuo-hua ghi -g ^ ? . (Models for Painting Selected by Hsu Pei-hung). Shanghai, 1939. , Hsu Pei-hung: su-miao W Sketches). Peking, 1958.

,%^‘b (H^ii Pei-hung :

. Hsu Pei-hung: t s ’ai-mo hua ]% ^ '>% ,%■)& % (I-Isu Pei-hung: Paintings in Color and Ink). Peking, 1959.

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366

. Hsu Pei-hung: yu hua 3 3-3il'*% ,v4> Paintings in Oil). Peking, 1960. . 'i ^ £ ^

% (Hstt Pei-hung:

"Pa-li Chung-kuo mei-shu chan-lan hui" S ^ ^ ® »> ^ (Exhibition of Chinese Art in Paris) , I-feng , 1:11 (November, 1933), 72-76.

_______ . Pei-hung mo hua hsuan chi 3t| % \ %,*|.(A Selection of Ink Paintings by Hsu Pei-hung). Peking, 1955. Hsil Ta-shun *•Vfc . "Shu mei-hsileh" '&■%'% (On Aesthetics), Tung-fang tsa-chih > 12:1 (January, 1915), 5-8. Hsileh-chuan % h% . "Erh-shih-erh nien-tu chan tsung chien-ylleh" r -r- %. ffl S. % (An Inspection of Art Exhibitions in Year 22 of the Republic), I-feng sg - 1934), 61-63.

ti Nan-chinq hua& if- % ffl Nanking in the , 2:2 (February,

Hu Chin i>0 2$. . Hu Chin Shu-hua k'ao san chung *j$ % \ % 5 chuan 1, Kuo-ch'ao yUan-hua lu ?%,%%$■• Peking, 1934. Hu Ch ’iu-yuan T%- . Wei-wu shih-kuan i-shu lun ®l£ ^ Theories Based on Materialistic Historicism) . Shanghai, 1932. Hu Keng-t'ien . "KM an liao ti i tzu ch'uan-kuo meichan Hsi-hua cbMu-p^n ti yin-hsianq" \ ? . >% $ Ig) % %.' »p (Impressions from the First National Art Exhibition) , I -kuan ijj* , 3 (March 15, 1929) , 3740. Hu Mang 'fcB^ . Chung-kuo mei-shu shih of Chinese Art). Yenan, 1946.

(History

Huang Chou % % . Huang Chou tso-p*in hsuan-chi 3I.'I & 'J> % (A Selection of Works by Huang Chou). Peking, 1963. Huang Meng-t ’ien ~p. % ® . Hua-chia yti hua % \t (Painters and Paintings). Hong Kong, 1957. . Hua-lang shui-pi % Jlf ^ Galleries). Hong Kong, 1970.

%

(Random Notes at the

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.

367 Huang Ch'an-hua ^ ^ . Mei-hsfleh ltieh shih ( A Brief History of Aesthetics). Shanghai, 1924. _

.

Mei-shu kai-lun \ ^5 Shanghai, 1927.

^

(Principles of Art).

Huang Pin-hung ~p.\ W

. "Chin shu-shih nien hua-chia p'ing" (Review of Painters in the Last Few De­ cades) Tung-fang tsa-chih , 27:1 (January, 1930), 155-157.

_

.

Huang Pin-hung shan-shui hua chi %. %. ^ | (Landscape Paintings by Huang Pin-hung). Shanghai, 1955. . "Mei-chan kuo-hua t*an" % %■ ® \ (Traditional Painting in the Art Exhibition), I-kuan a* fit, , 3 (May 15, 1929), 33-35.

Huang Yung-yu *.5/ . Huang Yung-yfl mo-k'o chi: 1946-1957 \ & £ % %. '? (The Six Principles of Chinese Painting). Shanghai, 1931. . Jih-pen hsin mei-shu ti hsin yin-hsiang b |fi 'i ^ (New Impressions of New Art in Japan). Shanghai, 1921. . "Ku-tien chu-i yu lang-man chu-i chih mei-shu chi ch'i p 1i-p1ing" -fc S. * f, & Vl \\ I % v % tfs * % **

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371 (The Art of Classicism andRomanticism and Their Criticism), Tung-fang tsa-chih Jj.i , 21:22 (November 25, 1924), 112-115. . Liu Hai-su yu hua by Liu Hai-su). Vol. II.

%&% (Oil Paintings Shanghai, 1935.

. Ou yu shui-pi Eft'-M >1, % (Random Notes from My Trip to Europe). Shanghai, 1935. . Po-lin jen-wen po-wu kuan so ts'ang Chung-kuo hsien-tai ming hua chi # a.\ Ui M ti-l*% % % (Album of Contemporary Chinese Painting in the Collection of the Berlin Museum). Shanghai, 1936. ________ . Shih-chieh min hua chi : Liu Hai-su \ . V6 % (Album of Famous Paintings of the World: Liu Hai-su). Vol. II. Shanghai, 1934. ________ (ed.) . T'u-hua chiao-k'o shu (H % 33 % (Textbook for Drawing and Painting). 6 vols. 1924.

Shanghai,

Liu K'ang if*- . Liu K'ang hua chi f 1|. (A Collection of Paintings by Liu K'ang). Singapore, 1967. Liu Pai-min t?) and others. Chung-Jih wen-hua lun chi B 5t m VSo (A Collection of Writings on Chinese and Japanese Cultures). 2 vols. Taipei, 1958. Liu Ssu-hstin %•>l(tr •) • Lo-ssu-chin chih i-shu lun S^, % v^ (The Artistic Theory of Ruskin). Shang­ hai, 1927. Lo-lo % . "Lu-t'ing chih i-shu" tr * % ^ (The Art of Rodin), tr. from Current Opinion, Tung-fang tsa-chih %%%$%% > (September, 1919), 89-93. London, Arts Council. George Chinnery, Exhibition Cata­ logue . London, 1957. Lu Hstfn (tr.). Chin-tai mei-shu shih ch'ao lun \$i t. Vlfl \%> (Trends in Modern Art History) , by Itagaki Takako £&. *\ . Shanghai, 1929.

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-K

?72 ____________ (ed.). K'ai-sui I^o-le-wei-chih pen hua hsuan chi %/Lm$ (A Selection of Prints by Kaethe Kollwitz). Shanghai, 1936. . Lu Hsun ch'ilan chi Lu HsUn). Shanghai, 1946.

& •?■’). (Complete Works of

Lu Mei-lin $F- and others (tr). Ma-k'o-ssu Lieh-ning chu-i mei-hsueh yllan-li %%$$$$%■ \ 1%. (The Aesthetic Principles of Marxism and Leninism). 2 vols. Peking, 1962. Lu Cheng & . Hsi-yang mei-shu shih fc vf % (History of Western Art). Shanghai, 1921. . Mei-hsfleh ch*ien shuo Aethetics). Shanghai, 1923. . Mei-hsueh kai-lun Shanghai, 1923.

\

yk

%~

(Elementary

'f-.^ - W i ( S u r v e y of Aesthetics).

________ . Wan chin mei-hs&eh shuo ho mei ti yuan-li 1%, & % ^ \fa lI (Recent Theories of Aesthetics and the Principles of Beauty). Shanghai, 1925. . Wan chin mei-hslieh ssu-ch*ao (Recent Trends in Aesthetics). Shanghai, 1924. Lu Ch*in-chung & . "Hsin-p'ai hua lueh shuo" Ifpfa (Brief Notes on Paintings of Modern Styles ) 9 Tung-fang t sa-chih a , 14:7 (July, 1917), 99-100. Ma Cheng-lin ^ . Chung-Hsi hua hsueh kanq-yao #3 % ^ % (A Summary of Chinese and Western Painting). Shanghai, 1933. McIntosh, Gilbert. 1895.

The Mission Press in China.

Sharg hai,

Mao Tse-tung. Talks at the Yenan Forum on Literature and Art. Peking, 1956. Mei-chan t'e-k'an % Uf 54 (The National Fine Arts Ex­ hibition of 1929). 2 vols. Shanghai, 1929.

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373 Mei-i % . % • "Shen-mo chiao mei-shu"'tf' M % W (What is Art), Tung-fang tsa-chih , 16:12 (December, 1919), 209-212. Ming-te }f£ . "Chting-hua tu-li mei-shu hsieh hui chan p ' i n g ^ l j ^ f j V - M ( R e v i e w of the Exhibition of the China Independent Art Association), I-feng , 3:12 (December, 1935), 65-66. Ministry of Education (ed.). Chiao-yu pu ti erh tzu c h ’uankuo mei-shu chan-lan hui chuan chi fa ^ HD % ^ Special Collection of the Second National Exhibition of Chinese Art under the Auspices of the Ministry of Education). 3 vols. Shanghai, 1937. ___________ (ed.). T s fan-chia Lun-tun Chung-kuo i-shu kuochi chan ^(Participating in the International Exhibition of Chinese Art, London). 3 vols. Shanghai., 1936. Miyagawa Tarao. Modern Japanese Painting, tr. Imai Toshiso. Tokyo, 1968. Munsterberg, Hugo. York, 1949.

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Nakamura Tanio. Contemporary Japanese-style Painting, tr. I to Mikio. Tokyo, 1969. NC 1947, see Wang I-ch’ang. Ni I-te 1fe pftif.. Shui-ts’ai hua kai-lun >]< (A Brief Survey of Watercolor Painting). Shanghai, 1926. Omura Seigai t®% . Chung-kuo mei-shu shih % 1ft A. (History of Chirese Art), tr. C h ’en Pin-ho ?$.**) t&k . Shanghai, 1928. ________ . Wen-jen hua chih yen-chiu si ■*.\ v Wf fL (A Study of Literary Painting), tr. C h ’en Heng-k’o * Peking, 1922. Orange, James. The Chater Collection: Picture Relating to China, Hong Kong, Macao, 1655-1860. London, 1924.

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374 P ’an T 'ien-shou it.. Chung-kuo hui-hua shih ^ (History of Chinese Painting). Shanghai, 1926. Pao, Ignatius T. P. 1964.

A History of Chinese Museums.

\ $.

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Paris, Musee du Jeu de Paume. Exposition de la Peinture Chinoise. (May-June, 1933). Pelliot, P. "Les ConquJtes de l'Empereur de la Chine," T'oung Pa o , 1920-1922, pp. 183-274. Prague, National Gallery. Masters of Shanghai School of Painting. Prague, 1968. Pu-chi ^ . "Chieh-fang c h ?ien ti 'yueh-feng p'ai* nienhua shih-liao" ^ fa 5-% 4. (Source Material for Calendar New Year Pictures" before the Liberation) , Mei-shu yen-chiu ~j , 2 (1959), 51-56. P ’u Sha * . "Chung-hua tu-li mei-shu hsieh hui hua-chan chi ch'i c h ^ o hsien-shih chu-i" f}>% \ ^ fy ft. i»t-i%i|i(Exhibiti°n of the China Independent Art Associ­ ation and Its Surrealism), I-feng f&L , 3 : 1 2 (Decem­ ber, 1935), 55-58. Read, Herbert. . 1966. ________ .

Art Now.

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The Philosophy of Modern Art.

Roy, Claude.

Zao Wou-ki.

5th printing.

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Paris, 1957.

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375 . Jih-pen wen-hua kei Chung-kuo ti yin-hsiang B % & -WVS @ ws $4 1 (Influences of Japanese Civili­ zation upon China), tr. Chang Min-san . Shanghai, 1944. Sansom, G. B. The Western World and Japan: A Study in the Interaction of European and Asiatic Cultures.„ 4th printinj. New York, 1962. Schwartz, Benjamin I. "The Limits of ’Tradition Versus Modernity' as Categories of Explanation: The Case of the Chinese Intellectuals," Daedalus, 101:2 (Spring, 1972), 71-88. Scott, A. C. Literature and the Arts in Twentieth-century China. London, 1963. Shanghai mei-shu chuan-k’o hsueh-hsiao v, '-/7& %. 1ft f S-3 1-%. (Shanghai College of Fine Arts). Erh-shih-wu chou-nien chi-nien i-lan - + % ® $ i/fcS (Survey (of the College) in Commemoration of the Twenty-fifth Anni­ versary). Shanghai, 1936. Shang-wu yin-shu kuan Ifc) % ■?$. (Commercial Press). Hsin-chaun chung-hsdeh hua-hsHeh lin-pen %xi 1$. y ^ \ $1,% (A New Edition of Model Paintings for Middles Schools). 8 vols. Shanghai, 1907. . Ou-chou minqhua chi tyk-M %■%*§■ (Selection of Famous European Painting). 4 vols. Shanghai, 1916. Shen Liang-neng :j% % ft (tr.) . T ’ou-shih hsueh ^ Vi ^ (Practical Treatise on Perspective), by Armand Cassagne. Shanghai, 1917. Shih Chih-ts’un % % 1V (tr.). Chin-jih chih i-shu ■£-g (Art Now), by Herbert Read. Shanghai, 1935. Shu Hsin-ch’eng . Chin-tai Chung-kuo liu-hsileh shih (History of Education of Students Abroad in Modern China). Shanghai, 1927. Sickman, Lawrence, and Alexander Soper. The Art and Ar­ chitecture of China. Baltimore, Maryland, 1958.

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