A Lao
previous vice dean of China Central Art Institute
Seeking Natural Beauty - The works of Mr. Zhang Dichen
Mr. Zhang Dichen has been fond of painting since his childhood. The power of understanding and hard work makes his works not only have the characteristics of the traditional Chinese painting, but also not adhere to tried methods, with particular attention to innovative research and exploration. His paintings show an interesting new approach, being lucid, lively and pithy, and having a style of his own. In particular, his scenic landscape, absorbing wet painting of western watercolor with the splash-ink, is a technique of Chinese ink-painting.
Mr. Zhang attaches great importance to and follows the principle that life is the source of art, so he frequently travels to famous mountains and great rivers. He experiences beauty and romantic charm of nature and never stops exploring life. He takes nature as his teacher and admires the beauty of it. He loves it so deeply that it seems he has combined it with his life. Whether great mountains, undulating hills or misty rains in rivers and lakes, it will always be rendered into moods in his inner world.
In his work “Fresh”, the special effect of harmony of water and ink fully shows the mood that drizzles moist things silently. Where mountains, forests and houses are all fresh, it makes readers relaxed and joyful. In his work “After rains”, he successfully combines ink with western watercolor, showing scenes after it rains. Dark ink in the close shot pushes a small boat and green rice field into the distance. A rainbow cast light upon the crops in the horizon and in the distance, with a small boat gliding on the river. It is combined with a horizontal green of several levels and unevenness, which form a tranquil and transcendent beauty.
These two works show Mr. Zhang creates his own natural world through his feelings with regards to nature, fully demonstrating natural beauty.
Mr. Zhang Dichen has always been in exploration of his own way. He paints his feelings and also gives nature his distinctive character. His paintings are completely subordinate to his subjective requirements, in the form of strong personality and sense! This subjective creation is understandable and can be communicated with anybody. It has also been made more succinct and perfect through his constant exploration, deep-thinking, and filter of his inner feelings by using different ways under different modelling structures. Sometimes he makes ink five colors and other times he lets it flow freely. It is neither too deep nor too pale (just the right shade of color), cleverly making the ink reach its fullest effect.
Mr. Zhang Dichen’s works are based on long-term life practices and he is strict with himself. He works seriously and heartedly, and what he thinks and seeks hard is to express the natural world in his heart in the form beauty of strong spirits of the times.