Flower, Bird and Insect Paintings Curator Charles Chu, Professor Emeritus, Connecticut College

A typically traditional literati painting observes certain rules: 1) accurate lines 2) powerful brush movements 3) contrast gradations of ink 4) interplay between dark and light. 5) painted and unpainted space. These are all considered necessary in order to bring out the harmony and vitality of nature. This time-tested tradition has prevailed over the thousand year history of Chinese literati painting. Flower, Bird & Insect painting has been a popular style in Chinese traditional art. It goes back at least to the tenth century when court painters painted these subjects which became models for later generations of artists to follow. Outside the Court Academy of Painting some leading literary-scholar painters advanced their own ways of painting this genre. As a result, Bird and Flower painting became second only to landscape painting in national taste. History proves that except a brief time after 1949 when Bird and Flower painting was considered bourgeoisie, this form of painting has existed for the millenium just past. It is still alive and well today. Generally, there are two different ways of painting birds and flowers. One is carefully done in detail. The other is rather sketchy with direct application of ink or color. the former tends to be more realistic, elaborate and decorative; the latter, more immediate, spontaneous, playful, and even wild.

CHU-GRIFFIS ASIAN ART COLLECTION 11. Chang Shu-ch'i (1899-1956) Eagle on Pine Framed, Ink and Color on Rice Paper, 19.5 x 25 in. (50 x 64 cm.)   Even in this country people in their seventies may know this name. He was the one whose various post cards circulated widely in the forties into the sixties. And he was the one who painted a painting of one hundred pigeons to honor President Franklin Roosevelt on the occasion of his third election. The government in war-time capital Chung-kung gave an elaborate cocktail party to celebrate the event. This painting is now in the FDR Museum in Hyde Park, New York. Professor Chang was subsequently invited to tour America and demonstrate his painting. This Eagle was a demonstration piece done in Boston in 1943. Mary B. Goodwin watched the artist as the eagle appeared. Richard and Esther Goodwin, who inherited the painting, have generously given it to the collection for safe keeping. I knew Professor Chang while I was a student at National Central University where he taught painting. As an admirer, I watched him paint several times. He was trained at Shanghai School of Art and was attracted primarily to "Bird and Flower" subjects. This is painted on "hard" or non-absorbant paper, using Chinese ink, watercolor and white paint. It is an excellent example of the way he portrays the lively image of the subject with powerful calligraphic skill to catch the eyes of the observer. Donated by Esther and Richard Goodwin, professor Emeritus, Connecticut College

CHU-GRIFFIS ASIAN ART COLLECTION 12. Li K'u-chan (1898-1983) Mynah bird on a Palm Tree Hanging Scroll, Ink and Color on Rice Paper, 37.5 x 17 in. (95 x 43 cm.)   Li K'u-chan, a native of Shantung, earned his reputation as a painter of flowers and birds through persistence, skill and endurance. Hunger in his early years, imprisonment during the Sino-Japanese War or distress through the "cultural revolution" could have broken him. He once compared himself to a worm because when it is cut into pieces each section survives. In 1918, at the age of nineteen, Li ventured into Peking, where he eked out a living by pulling a rickshaw. His intention was to study art. Four years later he enrolled in the National Art Academy in Peking (Beijing) where he studied by day, continuing to pull his rickshaw by night. At the academy he majored in oil painting. In 1923 he met Chi Pai-shih, who later became one of the best known artists of the twentieth century. Chi encouraged Li K'u-chan to paint in a more traditional style. Their close master-student relationship lasted all of Chi Pai-shih's life. Chi had found in Li a true successor who painted familiar objects with boldness, simplicity and humor. As early as1924, Chi Pai-shih inscribed one of Li's paintings with the words, "If Li Ku'chan does not gain repute when he is old, it must mean there is no God." After graduation, Li taught at Hangchou, then Peking, but during the war years he had no teaching position and times were lean again. In 1949 Li accepted a teaching position at the Central Academy of Fine Arts, but the days of hardship were not over until after the Cultural Revolution. As his reputation grew his brushwork became bolder, stronger, steadier and more precise. Our painting was done just a year before his death and it represents one of his favorite subjects, mynah birds. Mr. and Mrs. Robert Farwell, parents of Nancy '73 and Sally '76, donated funds to purchase this painting.

CHU-GRIFFIS ASIAN ART COLLECTION 13. & 19. - Jen Hsun (1835-1893) Ducks on the Pond Hanging Scrolls, Ink and Color on Rice Paper, 59 x 16 in. ea., (150 x 41 cm.ea.) Jen Hsun is an artist of the Shanghai School of Art in the late 19th century. The name "Shanghai School" was a derogatory epithet given by the traditionalists who criticized those Shanghai artists engaged in developing much freer, high spirited and, at the time, exaggerated styles to suit the taste of the rich in this commercially well-developed treaty port. Times had changed. It was only natural that professional artists flocked to Shanghai to make a living. Jen Hsun, his brother, his nephew, and a student of his brother, Jen Po-nien were among the professionals at that time. These four Jens were all from Chechiang, south of Shanghai. They joined art clubs which owned galleries, stores and rooms for artists all under one roof. In these clubs art activities took place and business was conducted. Jen Hsun was one of the active members. Generally speaking, professional artists may not be erudite scholar-painters, but they were highly trained technically. This has been true historically. Their favorite subjects often were birds and flowers and figure painting. Our artist, though not considered by art historians best among the four Jens in Shanghai at that time, created this couplet with a few skillful brush strokes to portray ducks swimming among reeds in a pond. It may be regarded as a playfully done work, but it was executed by a trained hand. Western influence was obvious in the fresh colors Jen Hsun used in place of the monochrome ink of earlier centuries. The inscription reads: "Painted in the summer of 1872 in the reign of Emperor Tangzhi by Fuchang, Jen Hsun, in Wumen." Purchased with funds given by David and Susan Zimmerman in 1992.

CHU-GRIFFIS ASIAN ART COLLECTION 15. Shih Lu (1919-1982) Peaches Hanging Scroll, Ink and Color on Rice Paper, 53.75 x 27 in., (136.5 x 69 cm.) I can not help but feel for Shih Lu. He was a talented, idealistic and artistic man whose life was full of adventure, frustration and tragedy, especially in the last twenty years of his life. His achievements, however, will always be recorded in the history of Chinese art. Shih Lu was born to a landlord family in Sichwan. As a teenager he attended an art school for two years, then had two years in a university before the war started in 1937. Filled with patriotism and political ideals, he left home in 1939 for the north and a year later went to Yenan, the stronghold of the Communist party under Mao Ze-dong. He plunged right into art-related assignments such as drawing cartoons, stage designs and mass art to promote communist causes. He raised Mao's banner and even became a party member in 1946. When the Communists took over China in 1949, Shih Lu was sent to Xian where he was a leader in both political and art organizations. Art became his main focus. He shifted his attention to traditional styles of painting, putting the mass art movement behind. However, socialist realism which had prevailed under the new regime still affected him. He coined a motto to remind himself and others that in painting one should "grasp tradition in one hand and grasp life in the other." Shih Lu's first decade in Xian was probably his most creative period. He sketched laboring people and painted sheep and goats on the highland and in the lofty mountains of the area. Among them was a painting (1959) entitled "Shifting to Fight in North Shaanxi," his province. In it, he painted a picture resembling the Chairman with a horse and two aides on top of a cliff looking at a long stretch of mountainous land. It was a strong and impressive work. During this time Shih Lu and a few others in Xian initiated the Xian School of art, referring to artists in their region. Today the school has faded, but the name remains. During the next two decades, Shih Lu and innumerable others in all circles in China were swept before the storm of the Cultural Revolution, (1966-76.) He was a major target. The painting mentioned above was attacked for invented reasons, (Chairman was on the edge of a cliff in danger of falling.) Shi Lu was tortured, beaten, jailed, starved. His paintings were branded "crazy, odd, black and chaotic." Shih Lu continued to paint in the old-fashioned literati style. He often gave paintings as gifts to friends, showing his rebellion and spirit of individualism. Wine became a necessity. His health deteriorated. He was taken to Beijing for treatment in 1979 4. Three years later, on August 25, 1982, Shi Lu died at home in Xian. The inscription translates as follows: "Ten branches of luscious peaches add to best wishes for longevity." This painting was purchased with funds provided by John Faigle, Jr. ( '93), the Robert Farwells, the John Faulkners, the Gregory Gardiners, Jeanette Hersey, Kathy Willis and Susan Zimmerman in September, 1997.

CHU-GRIFFIS ASIAN ART COLLECTION 20. Chang Li-chen (1939-) Butterflies Hanging Scroll, Ink and Color on Rice Paper, 54 x 27", (137 x 68.5 cm.) In the era of new literati painting in China, traditional painting, considered obsolete since 1949 is alive again. The preservation and innovation in brush-ink painting can be seen in this painting by Chang Li-chen, chairman of the Department of Chinese Painting at the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing. In the past millenium, brush and ink have been the basis of Chinese painting. Individual artists interpret and apply these, changing form and content, yet the fundamental theories, principles and rules of this painting style have stood firm. Mr. Chang is convinced that there are good reasons for keeping this tradition at a time that many other art forms are popping up like mushrooms after rain, as a Chinese proverb says. He has said that he does not want to be a peddler of some of the old methods that restrict his mind. He insists upon three things: 1. Aquire technique; 2. Experience life; 3. Exploit the power of art. Only after one becomes experienced with these three things can one forget the Tao of painting and oneself. He constantly keeps these rules in mind and thus teaches his students. Chang Li-chen is a man of character, enthusiasm, courage and sentiment. In this painting, reeds in wind, black butterflies over a pond are reminders of Changs' childhood home in South China. The wind may bend the reeds, but not break them. That might be a subtle implication of his own nature. Technically, one sees the dashing leaves, swinging stalks and splashed dots of different sizes and densities harmoniously composed. They are all done in the style of cursive writing. Where does Mr. Chang get the inspiration for his creative style? He often mentions his favorite literati masters in the Ming (1368-1644) and Ching (1644-1911) periods such as Hsu Wei, Chen Lao-lien (Ming), Pa Ta and Shih Tao (Ching). The most direct influence comes from Mr. Pan Tian-shou (1897-1971), former president of The China Academy of Fine Arts in Hangzhou, Chang's teacher through his college years. All these have indeed influenced him, but not restricted his own creativity. He should be proud of his accomplishment. In this traditional style of painting, one of the three perfections is poetry. The inscription reads as follows: Look at you fluttering after the fresh rain, wild cat-tails swaying in the wind over the autumnal pond. Li-chen, 1996 This painting was purchased in 1997 with funds provided by A. Wang.

CHU-GRIFFIS ASIAN ART COLLECTION 16. Ch'i Pai-shih (1863-1957) Lotus Hanging Scroll, Ink and Color on Rice Paper, 38.5 x 21 in., (98 x 53 cm.)   Ch'i Pai-shih has been known as the Picasso of China. This is one of the two paintings of his we have in our collection. Simple composition, economy of brush strokes and often bold contrasts in color make his style unique and easily recognizable. His fame did not come easily. Early in life he had only four months of elementary education, and worked as a carpenter for fifteen years. He learned to paint in order to decorate woodwork he had created, thus discovering that he enjoyed the artistic and decorative work more than building furniture. He decided to switch to art. First he learned to paint insects and grasshoppers in a detailed manner. Then he travelled within China concentrating on landscape painting. During these travelling years (1902-1907) the sale of his paintings did not make him rich. In 1917 it was the sale of his carved seals that kept him from poverty. As his painting skills progressed, his fellow artists, recognizing his natural talent, encouraged him to develop his own painting styles. In 1919 Ch'i Pai-shih moved to Peking and began to concentrate on birds, flowers, fish, shrimp, crabs and many other objects. Simplicity characterized his paintings. He aspired to minimize strokes to capture the spirit of his subjects. This is where his strength lies, and that is how the world recognizes him. Prices for genuine works by Ch'i Pai-shih continue to soar. In 1949 the People's Republic of China recognized him as a national asset, naming him a "People's Artist." His ten thousand original paintings are in great demand. Our painting of Lotus blossoms was given to the collection by the family of Liz Lee Lewandrowski, a Connecticut College alumna, class of 1982. It was a family treasure of the Lee's until the parents of Liz kindly and generously donated it to the Chu-Griffis Collection.

CHU-GRIFFIS ASIAN ART COLLECTION 17. Lin K'ai (1924-) Rooster & Hen Hanging Scroll, Ink and Color on Rice Paper, 26 x 17.5 in., (66 x 44.5 cm.)   Bird and Flower painting has been a popular style in Chinese traditional art. It goes back at least to the tenth century when court painters painted these subjects which became models for later generations of artists to follow. Outside the Court Academy of Painting some leading literary-scholar painters advanced their own ways of painting this genre. As a result, Bird and Flower painting became second only to landscape painting in national taste. History proves that except a brief time after 1949 when Bird and Flower painting was considered bourgeoisie, this form of painting has existed for the millenium just past. It is still alive and well today. Generally, there are two different ways of painting birds and flowers. One is carefully done in detail. The other is rather sketchy with direct application of ink or color. the former tends to be more realistic, elaborate and decorative; the latter, more immediate, spontaneous, playful, and even wild. To paint in either form requires good training, whether the artist is a professional or amateur.Our painting in this show is done by Mr. Lin K'ai, a remarkable artist and a good man. He was trained at the China Academy of Fine Arts (formerly Hangchow Academy of Fine Arts,) an outstanding national art academy since the thirties. He was a student of Professor Pan Tian-shou, the late former president of the Academy and a well known artist and art historian. This painting shows Mr. Lin's bold and controlled calligraphic skill, and his humorous portrayal of a rooster and sleepy hen. Don't you think that learning to share the direct feelings and experiences of the artist is our key to understanding and delight? This was the impression Lin painted and has inscribed: Deep in spring, After sky clears, Flood subsides, by the window I play with the ink. Purchased in 1992 with funds donated by Martha and Robert Farwell, parents of two alumni.

CHU-GRIFFIS ASIAN ART COLLECTION 18. Hsu Pei-hung (1895 - 1953) Magpie Hanging Scroll, Ink and Color on Rice Paper, 44.5 x 11 in., (113 x 28 cm.) Hsu Pei-hung is another well-known artist whos work we are proud to have in our collection. I remember him well as professor of art in National Central University where I was student during the war. His entire life was spent on art--painting, collecting and teaching. He has had broad influence in China. Reaching his high reputation in art was not easy. As a child his father taught him how to paint. The family was poor. He struggled to find a job in nearby Shanghai, but failed. He managed to go to Japan to study for a short time. All that happened before his father died when Hsu Pei-hung was nineteen. finally at the age of twenty-four, with the help of a scholarship, he went to France and Germany to study Western art. Six years of hard study in Europe earned him a reputation as a "Western artist" in China. He kept some of his western living habits when he lived and taught art in Shanghai. One book describes his first two years back in China as "living in the Bohemian manner,wearing long hair, a velvet coat, flowing tie and suggesting the Latin Quarter." As his teaching and art administration career flourished in different universities in Shanghai, Nanjing and Peking he switched to long gowns and even painted in a new and largely Chinese manner. It is understandable that he wanted to bridge the gulf between his Western training and Chinese painting experienceand cultural background. He favored realism and stressed rigid training in a sketching method as the basis of painting. This differs markedly from the traditional way of copying and tracing works by old masters. Today his insistence upon intensive sketching practice prevails among many current artists. Professor Hsu died in 1953 while he was president of Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing, leaving over 1,200 pieces of his own paintings to the government which has since established an impressive museum in his honor. Hsu was a versatile painter. In addition to figure painting, his horse paintings are eagerly sought after. Other subjects are birds, ducks, and so on. Our Magpi is an example of this versatility. It was painted for his friend Chiang Yee, the world famous author known as the "Silent Traveller." This painting was purchased with funds provided by our friends Mr. and Mrs. Willard Brown in March, 1997.

CHU-GRIFFIS ASIAN ART COLLECTION 14. Wang Ya-chen (1892-1996) Wild Orchid Framed, Ink and Color on Rice Paper, 25.5 x 15.75 in., (65 x 40 cm.) Wang is the only artist in our collection who has lived for one hundred and five years. He died in April, 1996 in Shanghai after suffering a stroke in August, 1995. Wang started to paint at the age of nine and painted all of his life. For the first thirty years he painted oils. After 1949 he switched to Chinese ink and watercolors in traditional styles. This he did by studying Sung and Yuan masters without the benefit of contemporary teachers. His first traditional paintings were in the manner of these artists, then he developed his individual style. Influenced by Western artists, Wang uses brilliant colors and quick, bold strokes. Our painting is a good example of this spontaneity. The orchid is a wild species which grows by streams, not the cultivated kind found in the study of a scholar. Wang wants to portray naturalness, freshness and energy. People who knew him describe his personality as romantic and gentle. He, himself, said, "Under my brush I prefer bold strokes. I use color in a forceful and carefree manner -- not using many colors, but variations of one color." Mr. Wang was born near Shanghai in Tai Tsang to a well-to-do family. Through wars, revolutions and political hardships he sought new directions in art. In 1981 on the occasion of his nintieth birthday, he gave an exhibit in Shanghai which stimulated national and international interest. At his one hundredth birthday exhibit he was even more celebrated. In 1991, he was lavishly welcomed in the United States by art dealers, fellow artists and admirers and in 1995, a museum was built in Shanghai to honor Wang Ya-chen, a tribute to a man of integrity and his goals in the art world. This painting was purchased in 1996 with funds provided by George Jagger and George Willauer.