The Shanghai School () is a style of Chinese art present in the late 19th century and centered in

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 ...

. Late 19th century China, or the last years of the

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

formed a tumultuous time in China's history. This period immediately followed the defeat of China in the

First Opium War The First Opium War (), also known as the Opium War or the Anglo-Sino War was a series of military engagements fought between Britain and the Qing dynasty of China between 1839 and 1842. The immediate issue was the Chinese enforcement of the ...

by the

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts esta ...

and opened several ports, such as Shanghai, to foreign trade. This period was further destabilized by the

Taiping Rebellion The Taiping Rebellion, also known as the Taiping Civil War or the Taiping Revolution, was a massive rebellion and civil war that was waged in China between the Manchu-led Qing dynasty and the Han, Hakka-led Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. It lasted fr ...

and the unequal treaties signed with European imperial powers. Shanghai, as an open city, became a sort of Asian melting pot where the various European powers could freely express their influence on the city. In turn, this influence gave rise to a new middle class which supported a new style of art known as the Shanghai school. The three hundred years of Chinese art history prior to the advent of the Shanghai School was dominated by the Literati style exemplified in the paintings of

Shen Zhou Shen Zhou (, 1427–1509), courtesy names Qi'nan () and Shitian (), was a Chinese painter in the Ming dynasty. He lived during the post-transition period of the Yuan conquest of the Ming. Luckily, his family worked closely with the government an ...

in the 16th century. The Shanghai-style marked the first major departure from traditionalist Chinese painting by breaking the elitist tradition of Chinese art, and focusing less on the symbolism emphasized by the Literati style and more on the visual content of the painting itself. The inspiration for this new style of painting came from 17th-century eccentrics shunned by the Chinese art community at large and 18th Century

Yangzhou Yangzhou, postal romanization Yangchow, is a prefecture-level city in central Jiangsu Province (Suzhong), East China. Sitting on the north bank of the Yangtze, it borders the provincial capital Nanjing to the southwest, Huai'an to the north, Yan ...

style painters. However, the Shanghai school was characterized by its even greater form exaggeration and brighter colors. The Shanghai School was unable to gain significant traction against the traditional painting style because of greater Western interest (and money) in the Literati tradition. In an era of rapid social change, works from the Shanghai School were widely innovative and diverse and often contained thoughtful yet subtle social commentary. Some important artists of the Shanghai School include

Wu Changshuo Wu Changshuo (, September 12, 1844 – November 29, 1927, also romanised as Wu Changshi, ), born Wu Junqing (), was a Chinese calligrapher, painter, and seal artist of the late Qing Period. Life Wu was born into a scholarly family in Huzho ...

Pu Hua Pú Huá (Wade–Giles: P'u Hua, traditional: 蒲華, simplified: 蒲华, pinyin: Pú Huá); c. 1834–1911 was a Chinese landscape painter and calligrapher during the Qing Dynasty (1644–1912). Information Pu was born in Jiaxing in the ...

Zhao Zhiqian Zhao Zhiqian (; 1829–1884) was a renowned Chinese calligrapher, seal carver and painter in the late Qing Dynasty, "the leading scholar-artist of his day." Zhao's seal carving had profound influence on the later masters, such as Wu Changshuo a ...

Ren Bonian Ren Yi (; 1840–1896), also known as Ren Bonian, was a painter and son of a rice merchant who supplemented his income by doing portraits. He was born in Zhejiang, but after the death of his father in 1855 he lived in Shanghai. This move placed hi ...

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He Tianjian He Tianjian (; 1891 – 2 April 1977), formerly romanized as Ho T'ien-chien, was a Chinese '' guohua'' painter and a leading member of the Shanghai School of art. Biography He Tianjian was born He Jun (贺骏) in Wuxi, Jiangsu province in 1891. ...

Xie Zhiliu Xie Zhiliu (; 1910–1997) was a leading traditional painter, calligrapher, and art connoisseur of modern China. He was a noted member of the Shanghai School of art. Xie and his wife Chen Peiqiu are one of the most famous couples in Chinese art ...

, and

Cheng Shifa Cheng Shifa (; 1921 – June 17, 2007) was a Chinese calligrapher, painter, and cartoonist. Cheng was born in a small Chinese village outside the city of Shanghai in 1921, in modern Fengjing township. He originally studied medicine before deciding ...

References

{{art-movement-stub Arts in China Qing dynasty art Art movements in Chinese painting Culture in Shanghai