Li Yanshan was a traditional calligrapher and ink painter from Guangdong province. He was head of the Guangzhou Municipal College of Fine Arts in 1930s, where he invited Lingnan artists of different schools to teach, including Zhao Shao’ang (1905-1998), Deng Fen (1894-1964) and Huang Junbi (1898-1991). Li moved to Hong Kong in the late 1930s.
The six fan paintings displayed here are from a twelve-page album, each page of which depicts an imaginative scenic spot in the Luofu Mountains in eastern Guangdong. Titles and inscriptions on these fan paintings are by Feng Kanghou (1901-1983), who was also from Guangdong and a well-established calligrapher. The Luofu Mountains are a common subject in Lingnan artists’ works. An earlier master Su Liupeng (1796-1862) spent much time in Luofu in the late 19th century. Some of his works are displayed in the exhibition [EA2000.150.a, EA2000.150.e, and EA2007.207].
The inscription reads ‘On top of the Luofu mountains peaks pile high. There are clouds surrounding it even when it is sunny. Zhuzi [a Philosopher in 12th century China] once reached the peak. He got up in the morning and saw clouds and mist below the mountains. Peaks above clouds seemed to be moving in a sea. If mountains could move, what a miracle it would be!’
Vainker, Shelagh, Chinese Paintings in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford (Oxford: Ashmolean Museum, 2000), no. 64 on p. 86, illus. p. 87 fig. 64
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