Fan Shao Hua
As the lotus is known for its unpolluted quality and the Chinese literati, since the ancient days, have looked upon it as a symbol of holiness, purity and beauty. After painting it for over a thousand years, there are now different schools of thought on the flower.
I chose to paint the lotus simply because I love it and for what it represents. The lotus demands qualities that I myself wish to attain in life, such as dignity, nobleness and strength. I have tried creating the lotus of my heart but that has been a very challenging task so far.
When I began to paint my lotuses in oil, I used oil and representational painting techniques in Western art to express them in the xieyi, or free expression style, as in Chinese ink painting. In this way, I blend the characteristics of Chinese ink into Western art, particularly its abstract elements, thus allowing the oils to even show effects similar to those in Chinese ink works. I later created folded lines in the background to give a crumpled effect. This was how I gave birth to my abstract lotuses in oil with their lasting appeal, and similar to those created in Chinese ink.
Excerpt from ‘Journey in Art’ by Fan Shao Hua