Qi Baishi
1864 - 1957  
 

From Xiangtan, Hunan Province. He was the Honorary Professor of the Central Art Institute, Chairman of the Institute of Chinese Painting, Beijing, and the Chairman of the Federation of Chinese Artists. In his late years, he taught in the Beijing Art College. His paintings are mostly idea-oriented and his subjects include people, flowers and birds, landscapes, fish and insects. His painting strokes are free, bold and confident. As an artistic proposition, he advocated that "paintings should stand between 'look-alikes' and 'look-unlikes'". His creative ideas opened up a new road for Chinese painting. He was given an "International Peace Award" in 1955. After his death, he was elected as one of the world’s ten "greatest cultural dignitaries".