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    Chinese painting is painted on Chinese rice paper (often called Xuan paper or Xuan Zhi), not oil canvas. The artist takes the brush dipping in the water-based ink and the other pigments to draw on rice paper / Xuan paper.
    Chinese Rice Paper has a history of over 1,000 years. It is made from the bark of the wingceltis (Pteroceltis tartarinowii) mixed with rice straw. The making of xuan paper is a painstaking procedure involving 18 processes and nearly 100 operations and lasting over 300 days from the selection of materilas to the finished prouct.
    The xuan zhi is praised as the king of all papers and is supposed to last a thousand years. This is because it is white as alabaster, soft and firm, resistant to ageing and worms. It absorbs but does not spread the ink from the brush, which goes over it with a feel neither too smooth nor too rough. For these qualities, the xuan paper is not only used for painting and calligraphy, it is increasingly used nowadays for diplomatic notes, important archives and other documents. In addition, it may also be used for blotting, filtering and moisture-proof purposes.
    Campared with canvas for oil painting, Xuan paper is much thinner than canvas. The most and only flaw is that it’s easily torn like other papers. But after mounting to protect it, it become much firm.
    The first book which recorded the use of race paper by artists is The Famous Painting in History was published in Tang dynasty(BC 618~917).
    Because the best rice paper is made in Xuanzhou(Xuancheng in Anhui Province today), it is called Xuan Zhi(the paper from Xuanzhou).

    The bamboo grows as high as a tree and belongs to the same family as grass. Its stems – hard, straight and hollow – are always pointing upwards. Its leaves are green at all seasons and beautiful under all conditions struggling beneath the winter snow or swaying with the storm, under the moon or in the sun.
    Although bamboo is distributed throughout the subtropical and mild temperate zones, the heaviest concentration and largest number of species is to be found in South-East Asia. There are about 1,000 species of bamboo, some growing to heights of between 100 and 120 feet and having stems up to 12 inches in diameter.
    Bamboo has always played a key role in Chinese culture and art and has helped generally to shape the country’s life style. Poets and painters are inspired by bamboo’s beauty and strength, Su Shi, a peot in Song dynasty,  said, ‘I would rather eat no meat than live without bamboo. The lack of meat will make me thin, but the lack of bamboo will make me vulgar.’ During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, a group of seven men of letters were known as the Seven Wise Men of the Bamboo Grove, so wisdom came to be associated with bamboo. As the bamboo grows upright, weathering all conditions, so it came to represent the perfect gentleman who always remains loyal.
Wen Cheng-ming wrote:
    A pure person is like a tall bamboo;
    A thin bamboo is like a noble man.
    If any one subject area could be said to epitomize Chinese Painting and in particular shades of black, then it would certainly be bamboo. The structure of bamboo is allied in many ways to the strokes required in Chinese writing. When painting there can be no hesitation as brush meets paper, since the power that propels the brush to action comes entirely from within. Tranquility combined with confident brush control is needed to achieve a successful bamboo painting.
    Because of the popularity of the subject matter, a great deal has been written about bamboo painting. The following is a compact version of the principles involved in this specific area of Chinese brush painting, where composition, brush control and ink stones are all essential elements of a successful bamboo painting.

  Flowers painted in the Chinese style are extremely popular in the West. They can be painted in a variety of styles, both simple and cpmplex. Extreme simplicity means that each strokes must be very good, while the Gongbi, or meticulous, style needs excellent, fine brushwork. Some artists specialize in one style or the other, and academies in China teach the Gongbi style as part of a long and rigorous training, leading to better skills in the Xieyi style. In the West, due to the lack of academy-trained teachers and Western preferences (as well as patience levels!), the process is often the other way round.
    When painting flowers it is best (for a beginner) to paint the petals first. This will allow concentration on the angles and distribution of flowerheads. Follow these with the leaves, and lastly add the stems. This technique will prevent a very common mistake, which is to show too much stem, or not to leave spaces for the leaves and flowers to pass between the stems and the viewer. Once you are more experienced, the order is immaterial. (if working on a new subject, however, you may need to revert to this original order of painting.)Details such as veins, stamens, and thorns can be added at an appropriate time. Veins need to be painted while the leaves are still slightly damp, as they form part of the plant surface. Stamens and thorns can be added when the painting is dry, as they are separate elements. Ensure that these are not evenly spaced.
    Some flowers can be formed with very few strokes, others need several to form each individual flowerhead or petal. Many flowers will require the tip of the brush (therefore a vertical brush), others the side (an oblique brush). A composition should contain buds, fully open flowers, and perhaps some seedhead, too. Arrange the flowerheads so that they face in different directions, and if you add insects, make sure that the “bees have space to fly,” and do not give the composition a regular shape.
    If painting the flower in the solid-stroke technique, as in the day lily, turn the tip of the brush toward the outer edge of the petal. Complete the flower and leaves, then add a few light lines to clarify the edges of the petals and leaves only where needed.
    Narcissi, also called “water fairies,” should be painted in loose outline first, then add the color and freestyle leaves.

    In Chinese traditional painting, birds are rarely painted by themselves. They usually sit on the branch of a tree, pause near a flower or rest at the side of a watery pool. They help give life and movement, albeit gentle, to the calm, unruffled serenity of the traditional Chinese flower and blossom paintings. They also refer symbolically to character traits or imply unstated associations. A crane suggests longevity (the Chinese believe that the bird lives to 1,000 years of age), so for an old man’s birthday, a crane under a pine tree is considered lucky. Mandarin ducks(鸳鸯) and swallows often occur in pairs – ducks on a water lily pool or swallows among willow trees mean happy matrimony. Ten magpies are a very lucky omen and usually appear in large official celebratory paintings.
    The Chinese say ‘To paint a bird, do not go away from the form of an egg’. A bird begins life in the egg and that is also the basic body shape. Two egg-shaped ovals provide the framework for the bird.
    The preceding pictures give the general body shape and format. However, when starting to paint the bird there is an accepted Chinese order of painting which has to be followed. Since the bird must first be able to eat and then to see, the first part of the bird to paint is the bill. Next, paint the eye that is near the roof of the bill.
    Although, occasionally, the eye can be painted before the break, the eyes and beak are always painted before the body of the bird. Following the beak and the eyes, the head should be completed, then the bird’s back, wing feathers, breast feathers, tail, legs and feet.
    The two diagrams explain the order for both the ‘brush-line’ and ‘solid-stroke’ methods of painting birds. The bird can then be placed on a branch or in a tree as appropriate. Both methods use a fine brush for the break, eyes and claws.
    Birds give life to a painting of a rather static branch, or tree, and can, therefore, be painted in rather quiet, indistinct way. Alternatively, the bird can form the main element of the painting and, as such, will be required to demonstrate rather more of its own character. Some painters are expert in the art of depicting two or more birds in natural interaction in a fine and detailed manner, while Chai Pai Shih could convey the fluffiness of a baby chicken with three wet brush strokes.
    As with all other subjects in traditional Chinese Painting, it is necessary to observe and enjoy birds in their natural habitat until a clear picture can be retained in the mind, before attempting to commit brush to paper. This observation of nature is a pleasure in itself and one of the many side benefits to be obtained from the study of this ancient oriental art form.
    The Chinese are so enamored of their birds that, like a pet, they take them out for walks, either still in their cages, or perhaps sitting on their shoulder.
    Arrange your flower and bird paintings so that they both look natural. In some places things may appear crowded, in other areas of the picture there may be much open space. According to the ancient Chinese, ‘Where expansiveness is required, let there be room for a trotting horse, where compactness is required, let not a needle pass through’

Lichi and Pigeon

  The peony is regarded as the king of flowers, the flower of riches and honor and is held in high esteem by the Chinese since the Tang Dynasty.
  It is an emblem of love and affection, a symbol of feminine beauty, and also represents the season of spring. The peony is sometimes called the ‘flower of wealth and rank’. From the Song period onwards it has often been a favorite pottery motif, both on its own and in composition with rocks.
  If the plant becomes loaded with flower heads and heavily leafed in green this is regarded as an omen of good fortune; but if the leaves dry up and the flowers suddenly fade, this presages poverty for the flower’s owner, or even some appalling disaster to the whole family.
  Flowering plants are divided into two kinds; those with woody stems, usually perennials, and herbaceous plants which are usually annuals.

Chinese tiger painting is mysterious. Chinese symbols come from painting or drawing. Ancient Chinese people paint or draw some figures. As it evolves, it become Chinese tiger calligraphy and painting.

Chinese tiger painting is now very popular. You can see a lot of people have Chinese tiger painting on their body. Art works contains calligraphy Chinese tiger such as Chinese painting and Chinese calligraphy are great gift ideas and great decoration of rooms. Many people have calligraphy Chinese tiger on their t-shirts.

The tiger is a symbol of courage and bravery and has the power to drive away demons and evil spirits. In Chinese culture the tiger is the king of the wild animals and is a “yang” creature with a male principle. Tiger paintings are sometimes displayed in a office building in efforts to bring the company good fortune and strength. The tiger is the third sign in the Chinese Zodiac.

The Chinese Tiger represents the king of all animals in Chinese culture (Just as we see the Lion as the king in western culture). The tiger is often seen as the Chinese symbol of strength and power. Chinese people have taken this association a step further by claiming that tigers have the symbol of a king on their heads. If you have ever looked at a tiger face to face, you will see the fur on the tiger’s head is in a similar shape to this “Wang character”.

To the Chinese, the lotus is one of the most important of all the cultivated flowers, grown for both its beauty and its usefulness. It has large blossoms, tinted pink, creamy white or yellow, growing on stalks six or seven feet high, appearing from the centre of very broad, (sometimes three feet in diameter), nasturtium-shaped leaves.

Every part of this plant has special use; the fruits and leaves are used as food; the dried yellow stamens are used as an astringent and as cosmetic; the seeds can be used as medicine or eaten as a dessert. The kernels are boiled in soup, roasted or eaten raw, while the stems are sliced and boiled. The leaves can be taken medicinally or used dried to wrap food.

The lotus is also known as a symbol of purity and perfection, growing out of the mud into a state of blossoming beauty and fruitfulness. The flowers are open for a mere three days, then petal by petal they disintegrate, leaving the green seed head exposed.

It has become very positively connected to Buddhism, partly because of the symbolism; partly because of the visual representation of the Wheel of the Law by the flower form, with the petals taking the place of the spokes. Buddha is usually represented as seated on the sacred lotus and, in imitation of this, Buddhist priests have developed the ‘lotus posture’ – a cramped position which develops a state of bodily peace. The flower is also one of the eight treasures’, said to be auspicious signs seen on the sole of Buddha’s foot.

It is not only a symbol important to Buddhists, that the lotus is recognized, but also as an emblem of one of the Eight Immortals of Taoism – the other main Chinese religion. The seed-cup on the lotus stem, holding as it does many seeds, becomes and emblem of offspring.

The lotus is also regarded as representing summer and fruitfulness; it appears in stylized form in paintings, in embroidery, on carpets and as ceramic decorations.

Although it is not an easy flower to paint, mainly because of the disproportionate size of the leaves and the fact that Western painter may well never have seen a lotus bloom, it is the most important flower in Chinese traditional painting and as such is well demonstrated by the power and versatility of shades of black.

There are two ways to display a Chinese Painting – Scroll vs. Framing
Although the Chinese hanging scroll format is very traditional in the eyes of westerners, we highly recommend framing all ink paintings under glass (smaller paintings) or acrylic (medium to large size paintings) for protection from damage. Displaying a painting in the hanging scroll format for extended periods of time, even for a few days may expose the painting to damaging amounts of dust, humidity, and other natural elements that will in a short period of time cause damage to the painting. The hanging scroll format is mainly used by collectors as a method to safely store a painting. The scroll is then unrolled to show the painting to friends and other collectors or hung for special occasions only. In China, scrolls are frequently hung in temples and public places but only when there is not a concern about the painting or calligraphy work being soiled and damage.