Artistic Excellence—Exhibition of Selected Treasures from the Collection of the Eight Great Mountains Man Memorial Hall

The Eight Great Masters of the Late Ming and Early Qing Dynasties were master figures of China’s freehand painting tradition, representing a “peak” in the history of Chinese art. Shitao praised him, saying, “His style is vividly extraordinary and ancient, just like that of the Eight Great Masters of Nanchang.” Zheng Banqiao marveled, “The fame of the Eight Great Masters has spread throughout the world.” Throughout his life, he faced numerous hardships and experienced both prosperity and profound loss. The simplicity, archaism, serenity, and subtlety found in his paintings all stem from his personal life experiences and are deeply rooted in the traditional cultural heritage of Zen Buddhism and Daoism. His works are imbued with profound reflections on life itself; his artistic style is straightforward yet profoundly mysterious. In his brushwork, he freely expresses himself without being bound by established conventions, yet his lines remain vigorous and perfectly rounded, occasionally infused with an air of spontaneity and elegance. His brushstrokes are effortless and unadorned, shedding all superficiality.

Following in the footsteps of Bada Shanren, a succession of epoch-making masters emerged one after another—among them the Yangzhou Eight Eccentrics, Zhao Zhiqian, Wu Changshuo, Qi Baishi, and Pan Tianshou. Today, more than three hundred years later, Bada Shanren’s brushwork and ink techniques continue to exert a profound influence. The radiant brilliance of his art transcends time and space; for centuries, his artistic legacy has endured, continuously passing down through generations and unleashing tremendous creative energy. Marking the 360th and 380th anniversaries of Bada Shanren’s birth, numerous renowned artists gathered at the Qingyunpu Daoist Monastery, engaging in mutual artistic exchanges through painting and calligraphy. In their brushstrokes and ink flows, some wielded broad brushes with unrestrained vigor, while others infused their works with lively and spirited vitality, all paying tribute to this pivotal master in the history of Chinese art. Since its establishment over sixty years ago, the Bada Shanren Memorial Hall has grown from humble beginnings to its current state of vigorous development. This exhibition focuses on contemporary artists’ reverence for Bada Shanren, featuring works by more than fifty celebrated masters—including Hu Xianya, Wang Fangyu, Wang Jiqian, Jiang Baolin, and Huo Chunyang. Through portraits, landscapes, and depictions of flowers and birds, the exhibition seeks to highlight the contributions made by successive generations of artists in preserving and promoting Bada Shanren’s artistic legacy. It is precisely these dedicated individuals—each generation reaching back to the source and tracing the flow—that ensure Chinese painting will forever remain dynamic, ever-flowing, and perpetually fresh and pure.

The new cultural mission of the new era entails the task of promoting Chinese-style modernization through the flourishing development of culture. It is both an important responsibility of the Eight Great Mountains Man Memorial Hall—and a crucial duty for today’s art world—to carry forward and extol the cultural spirit embodied by figures like Eight Great Mountains Man—spirits that transcend time and space, cross national boundaries, possess enduring appeal, and hold contemporary value. This requires generations of artists to persist in their efforts and work diligently over the long term. The Eight Great Mountains Man Memorial Hall must live up to its museum mission by rallying the strength of numerous artists, inheriting and innovating in the realm of art, deeply immersing itself in the essence of artistic traditions while also transcending them—only then can it continue to evolve and elevate the art world to new heights.