Exploring Shanshui 澄懷觀道

Exploring Shanshui: Mountains and Rivers in Chinese Landscape Paintings showcases a captivating selection of paintings from the collection of the University Museum and Art Gallery (UMAG), The University of Hong Kong.

This publication spans from the early Qing dynasty (17th century) to contemporary times. The represented artists come from diverse backgrounds and employ a variety of approaches, highlighting the genre’s interdisciplinary nature and cross-cultural aspect. The works reflect the influence of various schools, painting traditions and regional styles.

This project presents the depth and virtuosity of Chinese landscape painting, tracing its development from the orthodox Four Wang masters of the early Qing dynasty to the Nanjing, Jiangxi and Shanghai schools of Chinese painting. The collection features iconic works by renowned 20th-century masters and influential art educators and scholars—such as Huang Binhong (1865–1955), Zhang Hong (1891–1968), Liu Haisu (1896–1994), Fang Zhaoling (1914–2006), Jao Tsung-i (1917–2018) and Wan Qingli (1945–2017)—along with other outstanding contemporary artists who trained in the leading Eastern and Western art academies.  

This publication explores and reconsiders the profound connections between humans and the natural world, a theme central to Chinese artistic inquiry. Through their art, generations of Chinese landscape painters have sensitively conveyed their perceptions of locations, sites and landforms, providing viewers with insight into the connections between humans, places and spaces.

《澄懷觀道：中國山水畫紀遊》邀讀者徜徉於港大美術博物館所珍藏的中國山水畫的迷人世界。此出版涵括橫跨清初（17世紀）至當代的山水畫作。這些藝術家來自不同的背景，畫風及技法迥異，呈現出對中國山水畫的多元理解和表現。他們體現了山水畫這一藝術類型在跨學科和跨文化交流視域下的發展，並反映了不同流派、繪畫傳統典範和地域風格的影響。

此書甄選的畫作涵蓋了佔據畫壇主導地位的清初四王、金陵畫派、江西派以及海上畫派等傑作，鮮有對外展出的畫作包括二十世紀著名大師和有影響力的藝術教育家、學者的標誌性作品 — 如黃賓虹 (1865–1955) 、張虹(1891–1968) 、劉海粟（1896–1994）、方召麐（1914–2006）、饒宗頤 (1917–2018)、萬青屴（1945–2017）— 以及其他在東西方頂尖美術學院受訓的傑出現當代藝術家。

本書探索並重新思考人類與自然世界之間的深厚聯繫，即中國藝術的核心精神。高山流水青山白雲，畫家們以山水題材描繪歸隱和寄情山林的意境，經營胸中丘壑，聊寄個人感懷。經過世代傳承，歷代中國山水畫家敏銳地傳達了他們對地點、場所和地景地貌的感知，表達探索著人與地域空間維度的連接與互動。

Shuo Hua is an assistant curator at the University Museum and Art Gallery (UMAG), the University of Hong Kong. She received her BA from the University of Pennsylvania and a PhD from the University of Hong Kong. Her research focuses on East Asian paintings and art market studies in a transcultural context.

華碩是香港大學美術博物館的副研究員。她畢業於賓夕法尼亞大學，獲學士學位，並在香港大學取得博士學位。她的研究專注跨文化視域下的東亞繪畫和藝術市場研究。