Inherit For Three Thousand Years

Xu Beihong is the founder of modern Chinese art, an outstanding painter and art educator, especially famous for his paintings of horses.

The galloping horses in his works may gallop or jump, neigh or whine, in various poses and with different poses, distinguished from others, with strong vigor and majestic writing power.

The first painting that Xiao Yao took out was Xu Beihong's representative masterpiece "Eight Horses".

This painting is full of ink and brush, with a majestic atmosphere and a vivid image. It should be Xu Beihong's middle-aged masterpiece.

In this work, the brushwork is strong and powerful. In terms of technique, Chinese ink and wash is used as the main means of expression, and Western perspective and anatomy are also used to vividly depict the heroic posture of the horse.

Looking at the smudged dyeing, all are applied according to the shape and structure of the horse. The ink color is thick and light, which not only shows the shape of the horse, but also does not affect the charm of the ink color.

Xu Beihong's horses are the product of the fusion of Chinese and Western styles, and this fusion is extremely successful.

This work shows extremely high artistic skills and extensive artistic accomplishment, and is a model of using the past for the present and foreign for China. The horses in the painting are unique in shape and magnificent in momentum, creating a novel and unique style, giving people vitality and strength, and expressing an exciting and positive spirit.

"The Picture of Eight Steeds" can become Xu Beihong's masterpiece, and it is famous all over the world, which is indeed admirable in terms of artistic height.

There are two main reasons why it is so popular:

First of all, the horses he painted clearly express the author's thoughts and feelings and the spirit of the times, and this kind of feelings and spirit are closely related to the thoughts and wishes of the general public, and are easier to be understood and welcomed by the public.

The horses he painted are all uninhibited horses without saddle or rein, or galloping in the field covered with autumn grass, or standing and looking at the willow bank in spring breeze, or drinking in the long river, or lingering in the grass. This is very different in artistic conception from the group of horses in the royal stud farm or the famous steeds contributed by foreigners drawn by ancient Chinese painters.

The horse in his works is a symbol of longing for freedom and galloping forward. It mainly expresses the heroic momentum and tireless spirit of the horse, and sometimes reflects the mood of bewilderment and anxiety. This is the mental state of the horse in his paintings, and also exactly It is the expression of the author's own mood and personality, which is more in line with the characteristics of the era in which he lived.

Secondly, his artistic achievements in horse painting are closely related to his creative path, which is worth noting.

The years when he learned, grew, developed, and matured in art,

It was an era of intense turmoil and transformation from around the May 4th Movement to the founding of New China.

In terms of painting, there are contradictions between the long-standing national tradition and the strong influence of Western painting, the contradiction between the content of new ideas and the old form, and the contradictions among various tendencies such as innovation, conservatism, eclecticism, blind copying or simple blending.

Although Xu Beihong is well versed in both Chinese and Western cultures, the leading ideas in his creations have always insisted on reflecting real life and expressing the spirit of the times. Insisting on innovation and creation, opposing blind obedience and conservatism; insisting on carrying forward the excellent traditions that are popular with the public, while absorbing beneficial external factors to develop and enrich traditional art. expressive ability.

In his practice of painting horses, he creatively embodies these spirits and principles. He not only gives full play to "expressing the spirit with form" and the vivid rhythmic changes of brush and ink skills in Chinese ink freehand brushwork, but also combines boldness and subtlety. Shows the author's strong personal style. Therefore, his achievements in horse painting also clearly reflect his creative path worthy of attention.

Xu Beihong has many horse-themed paintings, and this painting is definitely a masterpiece among similar works. In addition, it is a large-scale work, about one meter wide and three meters long. Xiao Yao estimated that this The value of the painting should be around 120 million.

Next, what he got in his hand was the "Zodiac Book". This album is not only an orphan in Xu Beihong's life, but also one of the rare works in the history of painting.

Xu Beihong is a master of modern animal painting. This album is based on the twelve zodiac signs, and "Twelve Zodiac Pictures" is the only painting in his life, and it is also a unique copy at home and abroad.

The animal shapes in the whole set of albums are accurate, the composition is ingenious, and the colors are elegant.

In order to highlight the different characteristics of animals, the creative techniques change accordingly.

In the past, the chic, mighty, and heroic temperament and charm of animals in Xu Beihong's works have been transformed into cute, elegant, and docile.

For example, when depicting a thin and agile mouse, the bones are first applied, and then the beard and hair are slightly drawn; the honest and diligent cow is combined with lines and blocks to highlight the body structure; the ferocity of the tiger is weakened and replaced by docility; the rabbit is cute; Clouds, spouting water jets, borrowing from traditional composition, using different levels of ink to express light and shadow; spirit snakes entwined with branches, with a calm appearance; painted horses highlight their momentum and robust posture; warm goats stand still frontally; The monkey is outlined with scorched ink to highlight the texture of body hair; the rooster is vigorous and stands proudly; the loyal and law-abiding dog and the fat round pig are also outlined with ink bone to reflect the body structure.

Xu Beihong's solid sketch foundation and realistic skills are vividly displayed in this album.

Considering the artistic value of this painting and the uniqueness of the subject matter, Xiao Yao estimates that the value of this painting should be at least around 100 million.

The next three works are relatively ordinary, and the one with the highest price does not exceed 20 million.

After seeing the last three oil paintings, Xiao Yao was both surprised and delighted.

Each of these three oil paintings is a masterpiece, but Xiao Yao has never seen relevant records.

These three oil paintings are "Self-Portrait", "Little Soldier" and "Blood and Fire".

The artistic achievements of these three works are very high, even surpassing "Portrait of Miss Jenny" and "Drop Your Whip".

Especially "Blood and Fire", even if compared with Mr. Xu's fine oil paintings "Jiufanggao" and "The Foolish Old Man Moves the Mountain", it is not bad at all, and even surpasses it.

This is a rare work depicting the theme of the Anti-Japanese War. The particularity of the theme and the superb artistic appeal, once this painting is revealed, it will surely become the most influential work of Mr. Xu!

In addition, this is a large-scale oil painting, and its value is incalculable. Once it is put up for auction, it will definitely shock the art world and create the highest auction record for Mr. Xu's work. If a price must be estimated, Xiao Yao thinks it should be at least 300 million yuan, even if it is sold at 500 million yuan, it is normal.

Even "Little Soldier" and "Self-Portrait", once they are put up for auction, they will definitely fetch over 100 million yuan.

These three fine oil paintings of Mr. Xu are definitely a surprise, and Xiao Yao thinks that these are probably one of the 40 fine oil paintings that Mr. Xu lost.

Mr. Xu created more than 100 oil paintings in his life, 40 of which were lost in Singapore due to the war, and most of them have not been heard of until now.