Zhao Shao’ang

Zhao Shao’ang was a Chinese artist considered one of the best flower-and-bird painter of his era. Blending impressionistic brushstrokes, blurred areas of color, and moments of descriptive line, Zhao created a sense of animation in all of his subjects. Born in 1905 in Panyu, China, he studied painting under Gao Qifeng as teenager and became a teacher at Fushan Art Academy by the age of 23. The artist went on to found the Lingnan Art Studio in Guangzhou in 1930. Settling in Hong Kong, Zhao was the subject of solo exhibitions in China, Portugal, and New Zealand. The artist died in 1998 in Hong Kong. Today, his works are held in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, and the Hong Kong Heritage Museum.