Wu Zuoren

Wu Zuoren was a Chinese painter who practiced both traditional Chinese ink painting and European oil painting. He was born in Suzhou, Jiangsu, in 1908, and grew up in an intellectual family. His grandfather was a noted ink-wash painter and his father was an expert in poetry and calligraphy. Wu studied art at Shanghai Art University, where he was recognized by Xu Beihong, one of China's top modern artists. He followed Xu to study at the National Central University in Nanjing, and then went to Europe in 1930 to study at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris and the Royal Academy in Brussels. He adopted oil painting as a technique, not a style, applicable to Chinese artistic aims. He returned to China in 1935 and worked as a professor and the first provost of the China Central Academy of Fine Arts. He also joined the China Artists Association and became its vice president. He was a permanent member of the National People's Congress and a prominent member of the central committee of the China Democratic League. In 1958, he became the principal of the China Central Academy of Fine Arts. He was also tasked to design three postage stamps featuring giant pandas, which became the emblem of the new China. He was known for his ink paintings of yaks, camels, and Tibetan dancers, which he created after traveling to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in 1943. He also painted portraits, landscapes, flowers, and animals. He was influenced by both Chinese and Western art traditions, and sought to create a modern Chinese style that was both realistic and expressive. He was awarded medals by both the French Ministry of Culture and the king of Belgium for his artistic achievements. He founded and endowed the Wu Zuoren International Foundation of Fine Arts, the earliest art foundation in China, in 1989. He died in 1997 in Beijing. His second wife, Xiao Shufang, was also an artist known for her flower paintings.