Chinese Landscapes in a New and Industrialized World

Chinese landscape painting has a long history and is one of the most practiced traditions in Chinese art. There are many different styles within this genre, from the larger and bold style of the Northern Song dynasty to the smaller, softer paintings of the Southern Song dynasty. Yang Yongliang is a contemporary Chinese artist that was born in 1980 in Shanghai, China. He was trained in traditional Chinese painting styles from a young age and, during his university schooling, he focused on digital art and graduated with a degree in Visual Communication. Yang combines these two distinct backgrounds in his art by creating pieces inspired by classical Chinese genres in a digital manner, using composite photographs. He creates different scenery by piecing small clips of pictures together to create one larger image. Yang takes the traditional style of work and changes it to comment on modern Chinese and global values. While many artists that focus on social or political messages create works that are not visually appealing, Yang has been able to create works that are powerful through their message while still being beautiful. Through his works, he successfully brings together both “New China” and “Old China” within every piece.