Fu Hua (1928- )

Category
Reference

1120

Fu Hua (1928- ).
Vase with blue flower branches and loquats.
Ink and colour on paper
68 x 66,5 cm (26 x 26 in)
Inscribed, signed
Two seals

Condition: Some minor marks on one edge from being placed in a frame; otherwise good condition

Provenance: Purchased from a collection acquired directly from the artist in the 1990s

Fu Hua uses the xieyi genre of Chinese painting. Xieyi means expressing own\'s emotions, achieved through making bold strokes. This is clearly apparent in the way most elements in the painting have been painted (the pot with its bold curves and geometric lines, the blue flowers and the loquats in the free application of ink wash). The pot is given some depth through layers of paint in black ink and pink-salmon colour, a colour that adds warmth. The use of colour is well balanced and, either intentionally or not, the blue flowers contrast with the orange loquats in that they are opposite secondary colours in the colour wheel. The loquats have been painted using black ink and orange colour mixed with different amounts of water to represent their soft texture and bold colours. The loquat is considered auspicious because it embodies the four seasons: it buds in autumn, blossoms in winter, gives fruit in spring, and ripens in summer.

Fu Hua was born into a noble family of Manchu descent. He has been a kung fu master, a revolutionary (against the Japanese aggression) and a revolutionary (against the Kuomintang regime, which sentenced him to death although he escaped through a prison break). After these events, he continued to work for the Communist Youth League of China. In 1953 he met the Chinese master of flower and bird painting, Jiang Hanting. He became one of his students and art remained at the centre of his life. In 1955 he helped establish the Chinese Painting School in Shanghai. He lived in England for some time and eventually moved to Australia. Fu Hua exhibited at the Mall Galleries several times (where he signed a contract in 1997 for 10 solo exhibitions), at the Art Center in the University of London, the Manchester City Museum and other UK galleries. In 2006 he exhibited 180 paintings produced since 1958 as part of a world tour that took him to Shanghai, Great Britain, France and Australia. His work has been acquired by the British Museum (where his work is catalogued) and Leeds Museums and Galleries, amongst others.

Bibliography:
Sullivan, Michael. Modern Chinese Artists. A Biographical Dictionary. Berkeley and Los Angeles, 2006.
Master Artist Fu Hua. The Mall Galleries, London, October 16-28, 2006.

WEBSITE BY SEEK UNIQUE