While I am no art expert, I decided to start this series of my favourite artists with Wu Guan Zhong 吴冠中 because I felt the connection to his paintings the first time I saw them in Singapore. Perhaps it is that mix of western and chinese influence that captivates me, or that the simplicty of brushstrokes that capture the smallest details. I always thought that the paintings were ahead of his time, keeping in mind that the artist was born in 1919.
Many of my friends know that for personal reasons I travelled to Hangzhou pretty often in 2019 and I had the opportunity to visit one of the art museums there with his paintings as well. Interestingly, he spent some time at Hangzhou’s China Academy of Art after transferring there in 1936 from engineering school against his father’s wishes. After spending some time in the school campus and also parts of beautiful Hangzhou, I seemingly feel that I could see the sources of inspiration that built the foundation of his works.
The western influence of his art came from his time spent in France, and it seemed that the differences of western and chinese culture and religion; and post-impressionism built his work.
For those in Singapore, you can still visit his works at the National Gallery here until 10 April 2022.
More work here: http://www.artnet.com/artists/wu-guanzhong/
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