Foreword
Imagining Hong Kong: Four Visions of Island Landscapes in Ink and Color invites four young ink artists from Hong Kong—Sam Cheng, Chan Kwan Lok, Shum Kwan Yi, and Yau Wing Fung—to present their interpretations of Hong Kong’s landscape, characterized by its various islands, peninsulas, and land surrounded by sea. They will employ techniques rooted in Chinese painting tradition, including ink and color, plain line drawing, and meticulous fine line and color. This exhibition can be seen as a continuation of the 2017 “Picturing Hong Kong” exhibition at the University Library. While the previous exhibition focused on artists’ unique depictions of Hong Kong’s scenery, this exhibition encourages them to explore their subjective perceptions, observations, and imaginations of Hong Kong’s distinctive landscapes, reflecting on the relationship between personal creation, ink art tradition, and the inspiration drawn from nature.
Landscape (shanshui) became the dominant subject in Chinese painting during the tenth century, when the diverse natural sceneries of the North and South inspired various masters to develop unique styles and techniques responding to their regions’ distinct geographies. As artistic schools emerged and techniques were passed down through generations, themes such as following one’s heart, emulating the ancient masters, or learning from nature became central to how artists defined their creative path. From Mi Fu’s notion of “painting as a product of mind” in the Northern Song, to Dong Qichang’s assertion in the late Ming that “each brushstroke should have its own lineage” and questioning “How could one abandon ancient methods to create something entirely new?” to Shitao’s declaration that “Mountains and rivers made me their spokesperson… I draft by collecting extraordinary peaks” and “I use my own method,” the creative philosophies of different artists across various periods reflect their unique emphases and pursuits. In the early twentieth century, the pressures of modernization in China and the influence of Western painting shifted artists’ focus to critical issues such as the preservation or transformation of traditional painting and the rejection or integration of Western artistic traditions. This led to increasingly complex identities in artists’ creative positioning.
Entering the twenty-first century in Hong Kong, the debates of tradition versus modernity and Chinese versus Western influences are no longer pressing issues. Using traditional ink painting as their creative medium has become a personal choice for the artists, allowing them to explore its various styles or techniques without the burden of preserving national culture or the anxiety of whether to adopt Western techniques to improve Chinese painting. The four participating artists are all graduates from university art programs, where they received comprehensive and systematic training in both Chinese and Western art history and techniques. Mastering the brushwork traditions of classical Chinese painting serves as the point of departure for their creation. When faced with how to depict the landscapes of Hong Kong, where they were born and raised, should they follow their own hearts, emulate the ancient masters, or draw inspiration from nature? These questions, once contemplated by ancient painters, seem to re-enter the artists’ creative exploration, now infused with new meanings.
The significant incorporation of Hong Kong’s scenery into Chinese landscape painting began in the 1950s and 1960s, as traditional painters who relocated from the mainland turned their attention to their new home and discovered the city’s scenic beauty. This sparked a flourishing trend of landscape sketching in Hong Kong. As residents’ emotional connection to local culture deepened, various hiking activities and sketching tours, along with exhibitions showcasing Hong Kong’s landscapes, have continued to thrive to this day. The focus of the four participating artists, however, is not on sketching from nature, nor do they concentrate on iconic views or landmark attractions shaped by tourist culture. Instead, they depict places where they have lingered, hidden corners of nature encountered during their hikes, cherished observations of locations preserved as fragments of memory, or perceptions of Hong Kong’s islands and seas that have been segmented and reconnected. The artists aim to transcend previous perspectives, merging their subjective imagination and emotions through a personal lens, thereby offering viewers an unprecedented visual experience of Hong Kong’s landscapes.
Sam Cheng’s small compositions, painted in fine-line-and-color, provides viewers with an immersive meditative experience. In “Breezy Romance,” one is drawn into a quiet seaside under a starry sky, where a solitary sailboat glides into a tidal pool framed by rugged rock walls. The hum of the motor and the gentle waves rolling in the night breeze echo in the isolated space, becoming absorbed into the intricate folds of the rocks. The dark tones of the mineral pigments enhance the feeling of tranquil solitude. “The Vision” evokes the cave the fisherman from Peach Blossom Spring has stumbled into. A curved opening allows beams of light from the sea and sky to pour in. Is this where he has come from, or does it beckon him toward his way home? Serene islands in “Sparkling Dawn” recede into the distance in shades of dark green, deep blue, and ink blue. Scattered white sails rest in the harbor, while the nearby houses remain asleep under the gentle glow of moonlight. The luminous colors of “The Morning Mist” brighten the shimmering sea, where idyllic islands await the arrival of a new day. Cheng broadens the palette of traditional fine-line-and-color, employing a rich variety of tones to evoke the poetic and emotional resonance of different times and spaces.
Chan Kwan Lok’s “Song of the Wanderers” series captures the unique perspective of a lone traveller discovering the secluded corners of the Chuen Long hiking trails in Tsuen Wan. Through his eyes, the lush vegetation and fallen leaves on the forest floor, as well as a waterfall cascading through the tree trunks, transform into surreal encounters. Under his brush, the traditional plain line drawing is imbued with richer variations and expressiveness, ranging from bold to subtle, rough to smooth, and delicate to soft. These lines intertwine to form twisting trunks and grasping vines, cascade into waterfalls, float as dense mist, weave into fragile yet resilient spider webs, and scatter as leaves about to fade into dust. The diverse and dynamic linework resembles a symphony that is at times powerful, at times gentle, and at times melancholic, showcasing the wild creativity of nature and the insignificance and uncertainty of individual lives. In the “Gu Pu” series, Chan employs the ruled-line technique of architectural drawing to depict abandoned village houses stacked into an island. On one side, dilapidated houses are over taken by gnarled old trees and wild weeds, while on the other side, empty houses and boats await the return of their owners after renovation. This contrast highlights the destructive power of nature alongside the vitality of human renewal.
Shum Kwan-Yi, who is captivated by the sea and boats, dissects her observations of the “Ninepin Group,” “Aberdeen Typhoon Shelter,” and “Off Shore of Sunny Bay” into various scenic elements rendered in ink and color. These are organized into compartments in her landscape cabinets, some appearing relatively complete, others fragmented, and some stretching across multiple sections, like fragments of memory that capture specific moments or details. The landscape cabinets remind one of the curio boxes of the Qing Palace, serving both as storage and display for the artist’s collection of miniature landscape treasures, allowing viewers to closely examine and appreciate them. They also function as a repository of sketches for painting, ready for the artist or viewer to recombine them into familiar landscape compositions. In the “Landscape Model Accessories,” the scenery of Kok Po is further deconstructed into parts from architectural model kits. Lighthouses, breakwaters, boats, buildings, and landscape elements remain attached to a board painted in dark ink wash, quietly awaiting assembly. This process mirrors the production of traditional landscape paintings, where motifs can be endlessly replicated, replaced, and reorganized through copying painting manuals. As she documents the Kok Po scenery, Shum also reflects on the learning processes in the production of traditional landscape art.
Traditional landscape painting emphasizes studying through copying. Since the early Qing period, as artists embraced fanggu, or “modelling after the old masters,” preached by Dong Qichang, it has often taken a practiced eye to distinguish one artist’s work from another. This creative repetition is explored by Yau Wing Fung in “Meta-5.” The six hanging scrolls feature the same landscape composition as a backdrop, but with constantly changing colors and brushwork styles, just like different fanggu painters imitating the same ancient master’s work or various singers interpreting the same operatic piece. Is there still room for subjective creativity within this repetitive tradition? The tree trunk in the foreground, stretching vigorously across different panels, serves as a visual metaphor for the artist’s contemplation and struggle.
“Mirage Harmony” offers a profoundly creative response. This work unfolds as a long scroll composed of eighteen independent compositions, each representing the islands and mountains of Hong Kong’s eighteen districts. At first glance, the landscape images, rendered with an harmonious interplay of ink and color alongside delicate line drawing, seem to echo the works of ancient masters. Yet, each mountain range and island can be mapped onto Hong Kong’s aerial views, with the varying dimensions of each segment reflecting the relative areas of their respective districts. The intentional absence of urban scenes allows viewers to immerse themselves in the beauty of nature and to appreciate the artist’s exquisite brushwork. While Dong Qichang found joy in recognizing the brush techniques of ancient masters within natural landscapes, “Mirage Harmony” invites viewers to experience the enchanting beauty of Hong Kong’s islands and mountains through the lens of traditional brushwork and motifs, creating a world that transports them from the familiar to the otherworldly.
The works featured in this exhibition highlight the distinctive perspectives and expressions of four artists as they engage with Hong Kong’s landscapes, reflecting a rich and diverse dialogue with both nature and the tradition of Chinese painting. Through their creations, we witness the vibrant and innovative evolution of tradition in contemporary ink painting; tradition is not merely a reflection of the past, but also a wellspring of inspiration for the future.
Curator
Li-tsui Flora Fu
Division of Humanities, HKUST