An activist's art

The Beijing exhibition features works by He Xiangning, including Plum. CHINA DAILY

Revolutionary path

While Liao studied political and economic sciences at university in Japan, He attended women's schools to study natural sciences and fine arts. She achieved excellence in classical ink painting, a tradition in both China and Japan. She was especially adept at portraying natural landscapes, flowers and animals.

He's paintings present an accumulation of Chinese cultural traditions and a scholarly temperament. They also express her desire for social reform and her devotion to raising the profile of women.

Lion, an iconic work in He's oeuvre in which she painted on silk in 1914, has been exhibited widely and is part of the current display at the Beijing Fine Art Academy's museum.

Yu Feng, a painter and essayist, said He created "smooth, delicate drawings of the beast's loose hairs, its bone structure and muscles, giving the work a lifelike, three-dimensional feel".

"She presented the imposing manner of lions and tigers to symbolize the awakening awareness of a nation," Yu said.

In addition, pine trees, bamboo, plums and chrysanthemums were recurring objects both in the works He made on her own and in landscapes she collaborated on.

Paintings she produced in the 1910s and the early 1920s are highly decorative, featuring vibrant colors, meticulous brushwork and full-bodied composition.

After Liao was murdered in 1925, He's paintings gradually took on a calm, reserved style.