Northern Peaks

LI HUAYI (B. 1948) Northern Peaks Scroll, mounted and framed Ink and colour on paper 87 x 181 cm. (34 ¼ x 71 ¼ in.) PROVENANCE Acquired by the present owner from Eskenazi, London, UK EXHIBITED London, Eskenazi, Mountain Landscapes by Li Huayi, 1-30 November 2007; Princeton, Princeton University Art Museum, When Men and Mountains Meet: China as Land and People, 5 March – 26 June 2011 LITERATURE Mountain Landscapes by Li Huayi, Eskenazi, London, 2007, pp. 34-35 Li Huayi’s intricate landscape work uses experimental techniques to blend the new and the old, creating a work reminiscent of the monumental Northern Song painting in spirit. Beginning with splashes of ink on paper which create a free-form formation of grotesque mountains and cliffs, a technique most often associated with Zhang Daqian, Li then adds photo-realistic details to depict jagged rocks and looming pines, using the meticulous gongbi technique and often taking several months over the process. The artist’s detailed approach creates an image at once monumental and intimate, portraying a vast mountainscape, radiating quiet energy, obscured by lofty clouds and bathed in dramatic light.