Movements in Chinese Paintings: the Shanghai School
Chinese art has undergone many changes and movements in its long and renowned history. One of these is the Shanghai School, which took place during the latter half of the Nineteenth Century. This period was notable in China because it was right after the Opium War with Britain. After this war, which China lost, Shanghai became full of foreign merchants. This ended up creating a wealthy class of art patrons, and a market for many chinese paintings. The primary Shanghai School artists is usually considered to be Ren Xiong. Although the Shanghai School was largely motivated by outside influenced, the art itself was quite traditional, with a focus on subjects like bird and flower painting.