Chinese 

Brush 

Painting

The Six Canons of Chinese Brush Painting were codified around the beginning of the sixth century. If you have never heard of this style of watercolor painting, you have undoubtedly seen it at one time or another. It is elegant, simple and steeped in tradition. Yet it is also complex, demanding and evolving. And it is timeless.

If you would like to learn more about Chinese Brush Painting, the following list of books will give you a good start.

• The Mustard Seed Garden Manual of Painting translated from the Chinese and edited by Mai-mai Sze
• The Techniques of Chinese Painting by Wu Yangmu
• Chinese Painting in Four Seasons by Leslie Tseng-Tseng Yu
• Chinese Painting Techniques by Alison Stilwell Cameron
• Three Thousand Years of Chinese Painting by Yang Xin, et al

If you want to dive right in, Nan Rae is a renowned artist who teaches Chinese Brush Painting and offers lessons at her site. In addition she has lovely prints and greeting cards for purchase over the web as well as high quality supplies for the brush painter. Her new book, The Ch'i of the Brush, covers the subject beautifully with color examples of various techniques as well as completed paintings. A full review is available at the link to her book.

For more links to sites about Chinese Brush Painting, Nan Rae's Art Links is a great place to start. Or view my links page that includes a variety of choices from brush painting to seals.