My immediate reaction on attending my first exhibition of the works of Professor Liu Guo was a conditioned negative response fueled by a personal prejudice on Chinese ink landscape painting. My impression was that the repetitive black mountains, pine trees and waterfalls were unoriginal and stringently compliant with works of old masters and were being replicated relentlessly by modern Chinese artists. This impression and perspective was to change very rapidly as I viewed Liu Guo’s paintings and was introduced to the distinguished artist with the firm handshake and warm smile. Later, I was to learn that Liu Guo so closely resembled the young Mao Tse Tung as a young man that he once acted as the famous leader in a local Chinese television series. Though we could only converse indirectly through my Chinese wife Grace, there was clearly an immediate connection and bond with this charismatic man. I queried him on the motivation for his paintings. He replied succinctly that he was motivated to capture the mystique of nature in his work .He then proceeded to narrate an amusing anecdote of a young couple who are one of his most prolific collectors. I can vouch for the veracity of the story as I had the honour of meeting the charming Teo couple recently and affirmed the details of their experience. These collectors could barely afford the cost of Lui Guo’s artwork in the early stages of their life and despite having to buy his paintings by tapping their savings and their children’s education fund; they have over time accumulated an impressive collection of the artist’s works. They framed their first painting of Lui Guo’s majestic pine woods and mountain scenery and proudly displayed it in their small apartment .These collectors owned a pair African lovebirds and a cockatiel, which were domesticated and kept at their home where they were free to move with minimal restraint. The birds were released to roam their apartment where the painting was hung and curiously all the birds flew instinctively and directly into the painting probably assuming that the painting was a natural landscape. Fortunately, the birds though traumatized and disorientated were not hurt when they smashed into the reality of the glass frame. The owners were distressed yet amazed, by this very unusual occurrence. When the owners released the recovered birds again in the next few minutes, they repeated the same behavior. Again, the birds escaped relatively unharmed but confused by their experience. The incident made the owners realize that Liu Guo’s paintings were endowed with a realism and natural aura that caused their pets to behave in this manner They saw it as a sign and vowed to continue collecting as many works of the artist as they could afford .This captivating story illustrates to some degree why Liu Guo has a large following of many varied and passionate collectors of his works who recognize and appreciate the unique quality of his paintings.

　　To understand this passionate fervor generated by his admirers it is necessary to critically evaluate both the artist and his work. All of the observations and opinions below are the result of personal conversations and the strong bond of friendship evolved over many years with the artist and the writer as his critic, collector and aspiring artist.

　　Liu Guo has all the credentials for success. A well educated, well read university art professor with a passion and demonstrable success for innovation and originality in ink painting. He has been groomed and apprenticed under highly regarded and legendary Chinese artists of the 20th century. He has a keen sense of the commercial and artistic aspect of his craft and a personality that allows him to successfully market his art. One would expect him to branch out to the popular and commercially successful contemporary trend of painting and the oil medium pursued by many main stream collectors. However, the man is a purist and proud of the traditional Chinese heritage of ink painting which he considers the most difficult and complex style to develop and excel. His personal objective is to promote the grandeur and versatility of this style of painting to the world. He does not remain complacent and has developed, updated and enhanced many new ink painting techniques to enhance appreciation of the medium and added bold and expressive colours to his art work to emphasise its versatility. His paintings are mostly huge majestic pieces as he feels that the nature cannot be confined into limited space .In most Chinese paintings calligraphy will have a either subservient or dominant impression over the primary work. However, in Liu Guo’s works, the artistic strokes, colour and intensity of the calligraphy tend to harmonise seamlessly with the painting. I am unable to appreciate the full poetic language being Indian and untrained in the Chinese language and I have to rely on the expertise of Chinese scholars who have commented that the calligraphy is both appropriate and eloquent and the characters used in his paintings convey the strong,sensitive and passionate nature of the artist.

　　Many painters and photographers have tried to capture the beauty of natural landscapes. Most of them are able to capture the physical beauty of the landscape but very few are able to capture the aura and rhythm of nature in all its magnificence. Liu Guo’s paintings can be aptly described as spectacular views from a large high verandah and stretching for miles into the distance and creating a feeling of being enveloped by the expanse of nature. Through his art we are able to feel and experience the pulse of nature, wander through its wooded paths, experience the icy coolness of winter and the brilliance of summer. Liu Guo is able to wrench this natural beauty from a distant physical location and translate it onto his canvass retaining the physical majesty of nature without compromising its emotional content.

　　We can better understand his skill and talent by examining the man and his approach to his art. The principle adopted by the artist is clearly one of assimilation with nature. Liu Guo lives and breathes his art. Nature has shaped and continues to shape his art . The Mountains of Jiling and its seasons are where you will find this artist, spending months at a stretch in many desolate beautiful locations since his early days as a student and apprentice artist. As a young artist, he recounts how he recklessly kidnapped two young bear cubs from their parents so that he could draw them at close range .He quickly returned them to their ferocious parents when they threatened to overrun the village. He has buried himself underground with a small opening to breathe and for observation so he could watch animals and birds in their natural surroundings .The Chinese believe that mountains, rivers and trees generate positive energy called Chi. Liu Guo believes by being in these places of beauty he slowly over the years has assimilated and merged with the Chi of nature and when he achieved enough immersion he was able to translate this energy and emotions into his paintings. His immersion is so complete that even in his sleeping hours he dreams of these images . He strives continually to reproduce these images and no matter how polished and improved his paintings become with each passing year he feels that he will continue to achieve higher levels of perfection until his death .Nature he believes, has a limitless capacity for beauty and emotional energy and man’s strive to capture its essence in works of art will be a never ending one .

　　His paintings are in his words a “reflection of the soul of nature”. It is the decades of association and the continual presence of nature in his life that allows him a rare glimpse of this phenomenon. He believes that beyond assimilation is the integration and merging of the human Chi spirit with aura of the natural environment to create a resonant harmony. The images of animals and human in his paintings serve the dual purpose of achieving artistic depth of field in his work and to emphasize this symbiotic relationship between man and nature. This feeling is evident by viewing his paintings which have a calming effect on the mind and spirit. The flow of trees, waterways and mountains seem natural and the overall effect has clearly no artificial or manufactured feel .Looking deep into the paintings we can find ourselves gradually integrating into the surrounding as we walk along the paths into the mountains in the mist or snow. We can visualize the sensation of coolness and warmth and the rugged beauty of isolation .

　　Lui Guo has destroyed many of his paintings because they failed to capture this essential spirit of immersion and integration to achieve the harmony with nature. He has often lamented that it is easy to produce landscape paintings with photographic accuracy even with the smattering of originality using the many painting techniques he has developed but it is not always possible to create that emotional balance that comes from the soul of the artist. When he paints he is a virtual recluse for weeks confined to his stunning studio facing the Jiling Mountains with sketches made at the many natural locations. Steeped in a meditative state he paints, avoiding any human contact as it will hamper his momentum and concentration and keeps a relentless pace until the painting is complete. During this period, he is in dreamlike euphoria and the images of the natural scenery dominate his energy and mind until they are reproduced on his canvass .

　　Though most would view his lifestyle and painting regiment as harsh but he is most happy when he is in the midst of nature and capturing its beauty. His paintings are a panorama of nature in its purest and unadulterated form. As a painter he aspires to bring this natural beauty into the homes and heart of his audience. By all counts he has succeeded in this endeavor.

　　Ravinder & Grace S. Manocha

　　August 2010

　　Singapore

　　Email : clowns85@hotmail.com

　　Invition to Singapore Exhibition for the First Time in January 1992