Introduction to the work:
Water powder and watercolor paintings came to China nearly at the same time. However, water powderping is not as easy as watercolor to collude with traditional Chinese painting, so there are few water powder painters. This type of art popularized when arts &crafts were in need and usually applied to designing and publicizing. Guan Guangzhi is a pioneer of using water powder painting to present architecture sceneries. Born in a common family of Jilin, and Guan Guangzhi (1896-1958) became the first Chinese student studying water powder and watercolor paintings in British Royal Art College in 1931. Later he learned printmaking from Lekam Ausbin. He worked as a teacher in Beijiing after he came back to China in 1939 and he had been a professor in the Architecture Department of Tsinghua University. He combined European classical art forms with European realism and impressionism in his paintings. At the same time there are Chinese elements in his works since he had learned Chinese painting in the middle school. His paintings are also influenced by traditional Chinese architecture, which adds east grace to his works. "Hall of Praying for Good Harvest" is a masterpiece of his. The looking up view presents the holiness of the hall. Covered by heavy pine trees, contrasted by the variegated color on the wall and the floor the painting is full of western art elements. The color effect similar to oil painting and the variegated lines presents the beauty and strength, as well as an artistic conception of the building.