Wang Xiaoguang

On December 28, 2013, the closing ceremony of "Four Directions Salon" invited Mr. Le Xianghai from Beijing Academy of Painting. Of course, Mr. Le is a senior figure, but his views surprised me a bit.

Teacher Le gave three examples of Chinese painters, namely Huang Binhong, Zhang Daqian, and Qi Baishi.

I thought these three artists were all equally impressive, the only difference lies in their different styles. Unexpectedly, listening to Teacher Le's lecture, it was really not that simple. For Huang Binhong, Teacher Le has the highest evaluation.

This is Huang Binhong's work:

Due to Huang Binhong's lack of recognition during his lifetime, the bitterness of his life influenced his painting style, which was both poignant and profound. Teacher Le also gave high praise to Qi Baishi, "from grassroots to master," and "always harboring childlike innocence.".

Only towards Zhang Daqian, Teacher Le openly disregarded him and called him a "skilled operator", believing that the value of his works was greatly overestimated. I was surprised to hear this viewpoint for the first time.

On the same day, not far from the "Shenzhen Guanshan Moon Art Museum" where I was listening to the lecture, across a road and a small square, was the "Shenzhen Museum (New Museum)" where the "Zhang Daqian Works Exhibition" was being held. In the afternoon, there was also a lecture on "Zhang Daqian's Works". Naturally, both the art exhibition and lecture held Zhang Daqian as a model.