Huáng Bīnhóng (; 1865–1955) was a Chinese literati painter and

art historian Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today ...

born in

Jinhua , alternately romanized as Kinhwa, is a prefecture-level city in central Zhejiang province in eastern China. It borders the provincial capital of Hangzhou to the northwest, Quzhou to the southwest, Lishui to the south, Taizhou to the east, ...

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Jiang ...

province. His

ancestral home An ancestral home is the place of origin of one's extended family, particularly the home owned and preserved by the same family for several generations. The term can refer to an individual house or estate, or to a broader geographic area such as a ...

was She County,

Anhui Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze River ...

province.Cihai: Page 2056. He was the grandson of artist Huang Fengliu. He would later be associated with

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...

and finally

Hangzhou Hangzhou ( or , ; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), also romanized as Hangchow, is the capital and most populous city of Zhejiang, China. It is located in the northwestern part of the province, sitting at the head of Hangzhou Bay, whi ...

. He is considered one of the last innovators in the literati style of painting and is noted for his freehand landscapes. His early painting style showed the influence of Li Liufang (李流芳),

Cheng Sui Cheng Sui (; 1605–1691) was a Qing dynasty Chinese landscape painter, poet, seal cutter, and calligrapher. Cheng was born in She County, Anhui. His courtesy name was 'Muqian' and his sobriquet A sobriquet ( ), or soubriquet, is a nickname, so ...

, Cheng Zhengkui,

Kun Can Kun Can (髡殘) (1612 to after 1674) was a Chinese Buddhist monk and painter during Ming and Qing dynasties. He hailed from Hunan, but spent most of his life in Nanjing. He became a Chan Buddhist monk at an early age and in Nanjing was abbot of ...

, Hong Ren and the Yuan and

Ming The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

masters. It emphasized on the importance of the unification of positive and negative space; dark and light shades. Each brush line is powerful and precise. The compact touches, the graceful outlines and the elegant styles of Xin’an School of painting (新安画派) had a profound influence on Huang throughout his life. His style before the age of sixty is called the White-period.Wen, Guanghua (文光华) ''中国文化风采录·徽州文化 hinese culture and history · Huizhou culture'' (2010) After sixty years old, Huang went to

Guichi Guichi District () is a district of the city of Chizhou, Anhui province, People's Republic of China and the seat of the city government. The district has a population of 636,000 and an area of .It was called Guichi City before 2000. Administrati ...

. The scenery of Guichi not only attracted the artist, but also had a great impact on his style. Huang changed from focusing on brush and line to focusing on ink and wash. He started to practice the painting style of Wu Zhen. In 1928, Huang visited

Guangxi Guangxi (; ; Chinese postal romanization, alternately romanized as Kwanghsi; ; za, Gvangjsih, italics=yes), officially the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region (GZAR), is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of the People's Republic ...

and

Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020) ...

and created a lot of works by sketching the real landscapes. Huang started to transit from his “White style” to “Black style”. At the age of sixty nine to seventy, Huang visited

Sichuan Sichuan (; zh, c=, labels=no, ; zh, p=Sìchuān; alternatively romanized as Szechuan or Szechwan; formerly also referred to as "West China" or "Western China" by Protestant missions) is a province in Southwest China occupying most of the ...

. He was inspired by the atmosphere of

Mount Qingcheng Mount Qingcheng () is a sacred Taoist mountain in Dujiangyan, Chengdu, Sichuan, China. It is considered one of the birthplaces of Taoism and one of the most important Taoist religious sites in China. In Taoist mythology, it was the site of the ...

in rain and the

Qutang Gorge The Qutang Gorge () is the shortest of China's Three Gorges. Immediately downstream of the ancient village Baidicheng (白帝城) the Yangtze River passes between the Chijia Mountain (赤甲山) on the north and the Baiyan Mountain (白鹽山) ...

under moonlight. He utilized dripping, staining and layers of dense ink to illustrate the misty wet feeling of rain and the nightly view of mountains. Since then, his "black, dense, thick, heavy" style became his significant feature. From 1937 to 1948, Huang lived in

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

for eleven years and most of his Black period paintings were done during that time. After that, he moved to

and started another new horizon in his art. Inspired by Western

Impressionism Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating ...

, he integrated the two major Chinese painting systems (Ink and wash painting and color painting) into a unity. Dots of red, green and blue pigment merged with layers of dense ink creating a luxuriant and richly integrated style in which he deftly manipulated solid and void. His varied style and creativity not only won him an honorary title, but also brought light into the modern Chinese art history.Zheng, Chenghang (郑成航) https://news.artron.net/20170330/n919987.html ''“内美静参——黄宾虹山水画展”浙江美术馆开幕 uang Binhing Landscape painting exhibition at Zhejiang Art Museum'' (2017) He also had significance for creating several societies devoted to painting and

calligraphy Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...

References

Additional Sources

* Ci hai bian ji wei yuan hui (辞海编辑委员会). Ci hai (辞海). Shanghai: Shanghai ci shu chu ban she (上海辞书出版社), 1979. *''Chinese Paintings in the Ashmolean Museum Oxford'' (67)

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

External links

Asia ArtnetBrief biography of and Paintings by Huang BinhongHuang Binhong - ''Sights Beheld While Travelling Along a River''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Huang, Binhong 1865 births 1955 deaths Chinese art historians Republic of China historians People's Republic of China historians Qing dynasty painters Republic of China painters Painters from Zhejiang Commercial Press people People from Jinhua Jinan University alumni Historians from Zhejiang