Untitled

Li Keran

20th century · Matted painting; ink and color on paper · Asian Art

Li Keran belongs to the first generation of artists able to learn both Western and traditional Chinese techniques in art schools in China. The new academies introduced significant changes in the training of new artists. There were systematic curricula and calligraphy was detached from its traditional role as the discipline and underlying painting. Li Keran, unlike many contemporary artists is a calligrapher as well as a painter, and his study of Six Dynasties stone inscriptions gives his brush strokes a vigor that distinguishes his style. In this painting, Li's interest in drawing real landscapes if confirmed. He experimented with Chinese forms of Western pictorial conventions. Wash is used to render reflections in water, while reserve white conveys light and air in the foreground trees.

Artist

Li Keran

Date

20th century

Medium

Matted painting; ink and color on paper

Culture

China

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

Gift of Robert Hatfield Ellsworth, in memory of La Ferne Hatfield Ellsworth, 1990