1. The Artist
Du Yongqiao (1934–2007), an oil painter and professor at an art academy, is a legendary figure in Chinese art history with profound influence, whose complexities defy simple characterization.Dividing his career by eras, prior to the mid-1980s, his work was a model imitated by countless artists in China's Western painting community, and in the vast southwestern region, he was nearly a collective idol for several generations. However, with the sweeping wave of new art movements following China's reform and opening-up in the 1980s, he quickly became labeled as an "outdated relic of a bygone era." By the 1990s, as the art world gradually became more pluralistic, his work was no longer dismissed as old and stale, but instead became a familiar and ordinary presence within the broader painting field.
In the years that followed, academic trends quietly returned among elite circles. As these individuals increasingly focused on the study of painting language, the long-forgotten Du Yongqiao gradually regained respect, and his reputation steadily grew, reaching its peak in his later years. As his exhibitions and symposiums unfolded, official publications recorded praise from notable figures across different artistic fields and painting schools, such as "once-in-a-century talent," "a national pride," "an unsurpassable peak of technique," and so on. among others, recorded in official publications (see also the proceedings of the 1997 and 2007 exhibition symposiums).However, due to his personality and reclusive nature, his influence remained largely confined to senior peers and the academic realm of oil painting, while in the public sphere, his name has always been an unfamiliar one.
His life was filled with endless tragedy.In the first half of his life, he suffered under political pressure, endured extreme poverty, and was frequently bedridden, facing critical illnesses. Due to his consistent refusal to abandon his beloved artistic themes in favor of following official ideologies, he endured continuous hardship and humiliation for decades.He often couldn’t even afford basic painting materials, so that whoever provided him with canvas and paints would often be able to own the resulting artwork.Even when critically ill and in intensive care, his source of nutrition was limited to just a few spoonfuls of soybeans made into soy milk, and he nearly sold his only painting box due to financial desperation. For a full 18 years, he, his then-wife, and son were crammed into a dark, damp, 12-square-meter semi-basement (the kitchen and bathroom were not inside but were shared by all families),of which only 2 square meters were reserved for painting. However, many masterpieces were born here. Meanwhile, his eyes exhibited a phenomenon that defied natural laws, allowing him to manipulate colors just as effectively in darkness (at a time when household lighting was severely limited), leaving his peers both puzzled and amazed. His colleagues and neighbors recall that he painted frantically day after day, as it was the only way for him to escape reality—without it, he found it hard not to suffer a mental breakdown, even to die young. In the 1980s, just as he emerged from the shadows of political oppression, the "85 New Wave" art movement dealt a severe blow to his confidence in art, shaking it for the first time. His sole emotional support collapsed, and he completely lost creative inspiration,falling into deep despair. Eventually, he left the city and retreated to a remote mountaintop house without electricity. Years later, he gradually regained his creative passion, and maintained a high output until his death.
As a painter, he was one of the rare individuals who remained indifferent to fame and fortune. From Mao's era to Deng's era, he consistently went against the tide: he neither painted revolutionary themes nor followed the commercial trends that emerged after political reform, nor did he accept patronage from top-level government officials (politely declining multiple offers, even during the 1980s when his artistic situation had already hit rock bottom). He was content with obscurity and led a simple life. Nevertheless, his students—who to this day remain active in both domestic and international art scenes, with works valued from tens of thousands to millions of dollars—though each proud of their own talents, all held their teacher's art in high esteem. In an art world often divided by factions, where many masters faced controversy, his work was universally recognized as classic oil painting. In commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, the government planned a series of biographies on top artists. Among the five or so oil painters selected in the 60-year history of national art, he was one. Although the publication was ultimately canceled, the editorial committee still wished to publish his biography alone, but his family declined for certain reasons.
During his lifetime, he consistently refused to hold exhibitions, with the only two exceptions being due to the insistence of friends and family. Each was hastily organized without notifying the media; yet, the exhibition halls were overflowing with people, packed so tightly that movement was impossible. The two exhibitions successively created unprecedented spectacles in two metropolises where art exhibitions are frequent. Some universities even rescheduled their graduation defenses to accommodate his exhibitions, which were repeatedly extended. Even after the exhibitions officially closed, there were still a number of people rushing in, attempting to force their way in. This resulted in clashes that forced the art museum to reopen for several hours. Despite his reclusive lifestyle, after his passing, numerous artists rushed to attend his memorial service. Wreaths filled the area like a sea, with people standing shoulder to shoulder. Additionally, a professional honor guard, spontaneously arranged and urgently brought in from another province by his admirers, also paid their respects to him, causing a stir. For a time, his art and life became a subject of heated discussion.In the first half of his life, he sacrificed his political future to safeguard art, refusing to turn back even as fate dragged him into the abyss. In the latter half, he gave up countless opportunities and paid a dire price with his own artistic circumstances in order to realize his artistic blueprint—yet he never harbored regret. He had clearly enough talent to carve out a successful life, but from youth to old age, he consistently made self-destructive choices solely to elevate his works to their ideal heights.His legend still circulates in elite art circles. Even a sculptor, moved by his legacy, created a statue to honor him. His hometown has also expressed a desire to establish a memorial hall for him, though his family, respecting his humble nature, has yet to respond.
Today, his image in the art world holds layers of intriguing complexity: in the realm of fame and fortune, he is a forgotten figure; in academic painting circles, he is a deeple revered master; and among those who are spiritually devoted to art, he has become a symbol of deep veneration.Naturally childlike, genuine, kind-hearted, he converted from Buddhism to Christianity in his later years, with profound devotion. His final words brought many to tears.
He left behind a significant body of work, but for many years after his passing, no exhibitions were held, leading to widespread misunderstanding and criticism of his family. Fortunately, the family is no longer delaying and now hopes to present his posthumous works to the public as soon as possible.
2. Style Development
Early Style: He was influenced by the Russian Society of Traveling Art Exhibitions, later drawing nourishment from Impressionism to enhance his representation of light and color.
Middle Period Style: He incorporated the brushwork of large freehand Chinese painting and Chinese calligraphy into his oil paintings, gradually forming a style that blends Eastern and Western influences.
Late Style: Inspired by Western Expressionism, he pursued ultimate imagery-based expression through the aesthetic emotions of Chinese art.
His artistic resources come from four painting schools of the East and West, forming two artistic lineages: one traces from the European traditional academic school to Impressionism, and then to the historical depth of Expressionism; the other stems from the horizontal fusion of Western oil painting and large freehand Chinese painting. These two lineages intersect vertically and horizontally in his works, resulting in a profound and richly layered effect.
For decades, many oil painters have sought to bridge the aesthetic spirits and painting languages of the East and West. A typical approach involves first dissolving the space or volume of the object before introducing elements of Chinese painting. While this method may indeed be easier, it requires reconciling two drastically different painting languages, necessitating concessions from both sides. Consequently, neither aesthetic is fully realized, which significantly diminishes artistic quality. This outcome is, in fact, quite inevitable.
However, Du Yongqiao took a rare and highly challenging approach, ultimately forging his own path. On one hand, he retained the advantages of oil painting in terms of space, light, and color, while on the other hand, he infused the essence of large freehand Chinese painting and Chinese calligraphy into his brushwork. As a result, his works not only retained the core of Western oil painting but also exuded a strong Chinese aesthetic character. In his hands, these two elements coexisted harmoniously, blending seamlessly into a rare example of East-West artistic fusion. This also made him one of the few successful masters in the oil painting world who crossed the barriers between Eastern and Western painting languages. The two distinctly different artistic languages, while preserving their inherent strengths, surprisingly merged together. This was pioneering in the field of oil painting and has provided important research topics for the history of oil painting.
3.Language Characteristics
His paintings have a strong sense of Chinese classical poetry, and he is considered an outstanding lyric poet in the painting world. Due to space limitations, here we will only talk about his unique achievements in painting language and the main topics he left for the history of oil painting.
1）Rare Color Achievement
He is recognized as a master of color in the oil painting world. His color system is elegant, complex, and subtle, so unpredictable to the point that it becomes elusive, which is rarely observed in the history of Chinese and Western art. His artistry of various shades of gray is particularly spectacular, a realm that countless oil painters aspire to attain.
2）Comprehensive and Profound Revolution in Brushwork
He innovated oil painting techniques by infusing the unique, complex, lively, and diverse brushwork of Chinese calligraphy and large freehand Chinese painting into oil painting. He successfully merged Eastern brush and ink forms, along with their emotional spirit, with Western oil painting. His brushwork, characterized by great freedom and richness, not only demonstrates independent aesthetic value but also substantially enriches the aesthetic layers of realistic oil painting.
3）Integration of Figurative and Abstract Aesthetic Tastes
By mastering the rhythm of brushstrokes, he fully achieved the aesthetic effect of abstract painting in parts. His figurative images are almost composed of countless abstract units, which are both complete and substantial, resulting in a seamless fusion of figurative and abstract aesthetic interests, creating an exceptionally rich visual impression. Moreover, he seems to simultaneously sense the different effects of viewing his work from near and far during the creation process, with the viewer's aesthetic experience changing according to the viewing distance, providing a multi-faceted, multi-layered, and marvelously wondrous aesthetic experience.
4） Late-stage transformation: A classic of imagery-based Expressionist oil painting
With Chinese emotions and perspectives, this painting draws the essence from Western Expressionism, aiming to pursue the ultimate in imagery-based expression. Building on highly refined objects and emphasizing vitality and rhythm, the brushwork is bold and free-flowing. Its strong and distinctive Chinese character forms a striking contrast with Western Expressionist oil painting.
A highly condensed summary of his contributions: The use of color in realism reached a historic new height through his hands (its complexity, subtlety, and high level of difficulty being rare). Meanwhile, he successfully brought the lyrical brushwork of Eastern romanticism to its fullest expression while requiring no dissolution of spatial volume,achieving a transcendent level in Figurative Realism.
hosen artistic path from the beginning challenged the painter’s talent and explosiveness.Every stroke required accuracy, speed, and strength.Moreover, his unique pursuit of brushwork, which contributed to the overall difficulty of his style, led his followers to change course midway, and it is rare to find a successor today.However, this did not stop people from benefiting from his artistic language in different ways, particularly in terms of color.As for his mystical and superior brushwork, although people revered it, they did not dare to imitate it, as they lacked the Mastery and Cultivation in traditional Chinese painting and calligraphy.Today, the traditional Chinese spiritual lineage has almost vanished, making it impossible for today’s oil painters to base their work on the accumulation of practicing traditional calligraphy and studying Chinese painting from an early age, as he did.His distinctive path determines both the originality and uniqueness of his painting style.If the aesthetic perspective of Western oil painting is the initial gateway to understanding his art, then the aesthetic perspectives of traditional Chinese calligraphy and painting are the essential gateway to the deeper realms of his art.