On the Rise and Fall of Traditional Chinese Figure Painting

Long history witnessed the classification of traditional Chinese painting into the three categories of figure, landscape, and flowers and birds. Among others, figure painting is the first to come into being. With social evolution, figure painting experienced rises and falls. Only until moderm times did such painting techniques as perspective, color, optics, structure, sketch and so on merge into Chinese painting. Especially since the founding of the People's Republic, painters of figure painting in Chinese painting embraced life. In addition, the open politics and economic boom after the reform and opening to the outside world have propelled figure painting in Chinese painting to a new high.