Zhang Daqian: Summer on California Mountain

ZHANG DAQIAN (1899-1983), *Summer on California Mountain*, Scroll, mounted and framed, ink and colour on paper, 115 x 65.5 cm. (45 ¼ x 25 ¾ in.), Inscribed and signed, with three seals of the artist, Dated autumn, dingwei year (1967), Image Source: Christie’s

“In spite of Summer on California Mountain’s imposing, immediate and effortless appearance, such ‘splashed-ink’ paintings were not made quickly, and required the help of his students and family members to dry each layer of colour or wash over a fire, and later with a hair dryer. This painting process was complicated and involved mounting and remounting the paper to absorb the liquid layers of pigment, sometimes taking weeks, months or even years to perfect. It is in this saturation of colour, precision in composition, and dedication by the artist that perhaps gives his splashed-ink works such weight and richness…Here, the power of the brushstrokes and the dynamism of the composition effortlessly capture the breathtaking magnificence of nature. It is this unique quality that positions the artist as a singular force in Chinese modern paintings for his grand synthesis of Abstract Expressionism and Impressionism, making Zhang Daqian one of the greatest painters of his generation.
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