Drunken Beauty gains wide-spread fame

Liu Linghua, a well-known artist with a growing reputation, is talented at painting flowers, plants and the characters in Peking Opera.

Embroidery versions of his oil painting Drunken Beauty, depicting Yang Yuhuan, consort to Tang Dynasty (618-907) Emperor Xuanzong, have been given to celebrities and delegations from various countries.

Liu, a native of Xi'an, Shaanxi province in northwest China, began learning traditional Chinese painting in his early years.

He majored in engraving at the Xi'an Academy of Fine Arts and devoted himself to the study of oil painting after graduation. He spent over 10 years perfecting a combination of Chinese painting, engraving and oil painting techniques, gradually developing his own style.

His paintings have the rich colors of Dunhuang mural art while preserving the realistic characteristics of portraits. He also uses the freehand brushwork of Chinese painting and blends in the lines of engraving.

Liu's Drunken Beauty, his portrait of the tragic heroine of the Peking Opera Guifei Zuijiu, gained him wide acclaim. The work was first exhibited at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation venue in Shanghai and then in Paris and Tokyo, stirring a sensation.

Many media outlets publicized the artwork, which in turn attracted numerous scholars, artists and buyers from the West.

Liu's works are managed by Shanghai Chinese Quintessence Art Co Ltd, which is making derivatives of the portrait such as hand embroideries, scarves, limited series post cards, gold and silver work as well as replicas of the painting itself.

The delicate derivatives are exquisite, integrating product with design and execution for those who seek refinement.

Shanghai Chinese Quintessence Art Co Ltd has displayed the work at various events, including donation of 20 embroideries to the 2007 Special Olympics Games.

An embroidery piece of Liu Linghua's oil painting "Drunken Beauty" is presented as a gift to Chairman of Special Olympics Timothy P. Shriver and Don Mischer, director-general of the opening ceremony of the 2007 Special Olympics World Summer Games.

The company cooperated with Hong Kong Wen Wei Publishing Co Ltd to publish the super luxurious Chinese quintessence art album entitled "Famed over the APEC" and presented 5,000 copies to over 1,700 cultural organizations in more than 200 countries and regions.

An embroidery of Liu's Drunken Beautywas selected by Shanghai's Luwan district as an official present for Bruno Racine, president of the Pompidou Center's modern art museum in Paris.

At the China Luxury Summit 2006, the organizing committee chose silver foil works of Liu's Drunken Beauty as gifts to VIP guests. It was also selected as the cover for oriental cultural cards issued in Shanghai on New Year's Day last year.

World-famous singer Celion Dion was presented an embroidery piece of Drunken Beauty during her vocal concert in Shanghai in April 2008. Keen in her new gift, she enquired the embroidery craft in details.

Such extraordinary promotion of a single painting reflects the public's passion for art, as well as Liu's deep understanding of Peking Opera and his vivid presentation.

Critics note that the characters in Peking Opera painted by Liu have the strong flavor and penetrating air of realism, in part due to his superb use of colors.

Peking Opera and Chinese embroidery are the traditional Chinese arts that reflect the nation's cultural characteristics. The combination of Peking Opera and Chinese embroidery has rich cultural connotations.

Through different events, the Shanghai Chinese Quintessence hopes embroideries will express the amity of the people here and reveal the charm of their culture.

(China Daily 08/08/2008 page45)