Though its themes have remained constant, the Chinese tradition of painting birds and flowers has evolved much in its long history.

In recent years, emerging painters have begun to break rules in an effort to breathe fresh life into the venerable art. Jia Guangjian is one of them.

"Jia Guangjian's paintings of birds and flowers remind me of a lecture from the renowned painter Huang Binhong, in which he asked his students to learn from ancient and contemporary artists as well as from nature," said Long Rui, honorary director of China National Academy of Painting.

"Jia Guangjian is such a learner who made success from constant practice," Long said.

Long believed that it's better to stick to the tradition than randomly make your own innovation and for Chinese painters today, it is worth thinking deeply about.

For a bold painter like Jia, his attitude is somewhat "old-fashioned", Long said. Most of his peers like to talk about the changing elements of contemporary Chinese painting instead of the old traditions.

"Jia understands that as long as you can capture the unchangeable feature of the Chinese painting, you can make good innovations on the basis of the traditions," said Long.

"Jia seems to get the essence of traditional Chinese painting," Long said.

A graduate of the Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts in the early 1990s, Jia has practiced the art form for several decades. His passion, faith and his own unique philosophy for arts have brought his works to famous galleries around the country.

Jia said the reason why art can last from generation to generation is because of its spirit, not appearance. The appearance of art can be observed but the essence of it can only be understood through thoughtful reflection.

Jia likes to read traditional Chinese classics. "Every time I read I will have new feelings and new findings," he said.

He said that tradition is like running water that has everlasting charm.

That's why his paintings emphasize the real understanding of traditions.

This belief can be found in his fine brushwork of flowers and birds, which is well organized, precise and carries a profound meaning. It shows his respect for and understanding of the paintings in the dynasties of Jin, Tang, Song and Yuan.

Jia's natural and meticulous painting style can be found in many of his works.

He often depicts the beauty of quiet, lonely and graceful natural scenes, such as peaceful autumn nights, rivers in a pale winter sunset, shallow brooks after snow, thin fog at dawn, the moon over his hometown, or a lotus on a green lake.

Such works not only represent his achievements in traditional realistic paintings but also measure up to the accomplishments of his contemporaries, art critics say.

Some of Jia's works do have the touch of a painter of his time. He likes to create paintings of a large scale, to deal with major topics and to pour his ideas into every brush of ink. Long said his work has the beauty and grandeur of an epic.

"Jia's meticulous painting of birds and flowers is outstanding in contemporary Chinese painting and has magnificent impact," said Wang Weisheng, renowned art critic.

The art critic added that Jia uses a modern perspective to depict the beauty of the nature. "He loves the nature, feels it and expresses it. The atmosphere created by the painter is both fantastic and realistic. His works have rich contents through unadorned appearances. They are great art both for the eyes and for the mind," Wang said.

Bird-and-flower painting

Bird-and-flower painting is one kind of Chinese painting named after its subject matter. It deals with a wide range of natural topics, including plants (flowers), fish, insects, birds, and pets (dogs and cats).

According to painting techniques, bird-and-flower painting can be put into four categories - ink and wash painting, fine brush painting, freehand style, and fine brush with freehand style painting.

Bird-and-flower painting is never merely a copy of the natural objects. It is more about the emotion and idea of the painter delivered via the objects. So the painting is usually realistic yet with a touch of the painter's personal style.

xuxiao@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 03/09/2014 page10)