ABOUT

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“Mr. Hong Bo has achieved remarkable artistic accomplishments in Chinese landscape painting. Through his artistic charm, Mr. Hong Bo has enhanced the American society’s recognition and influence of Chinese cultural art.” - Judy Chu, U.S. Congressman, delivered a speech at the ‘Sound of Springs and Pine Rhythms — Hong Bo’s U.S.-China Touring Exhibition’ (U.S. Stop) in June 2009.

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“Chinese-American artist Hong Bo, drawing inspiration from the landscapes of California, creates unique works where ink and color blend harmoniously. His artistic style is distinctive, marked by strong Chinese elements, contemporary symbolism, and innovation. Through the power of his art, he bridges China and the United States, continually refining his craft. His efforts represent valuable attempts and explorations for cultural exchange and integration between the East and the West, and he has found a new path for Chinese culture to expand globally through the realm of art.” -  Gu Jin, Cultural Counselor at the Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Los Angeles, USA.

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“Mr. Hong Bo is a diligent and dedicated artist. Although he lives in the United States, he frequently returns to his homeland, traveling through mountains and rivers, sketching and painting. Mr. Hong Bo’s works come from nature, are of nature, and transcend nature.” - Che Zhaohé, Cultural Counselor of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the United States, delivered a speech at the ‘Congealed Vermilion and Flowing Green' — Hong Bo’s Chinese Painting Western U.S. Touring Exhibition’ in September 2011.

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“Calligraphy and painting are carriers of traditional Chinese art. Mr. Hong Bo uses his brush to depict the natural scenery and cultural landscapes of his homeland. By holding an exhibition in Los Angeles, he helps introduce the unique charm of Chinese calligraphy and painting to the American public and promotes Chinese culture. It can be said that Hong Bo is a rising star in the Chinese painting world, following in the footsteps of master predecessors like Qi Baishi and Zhang Daqian, who helped advance the movement of ‘Chinese learning with Western influences.’” - Chen Huaizhi, Cultural Counselor of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the United States, delivered a speech at the ‘Sound of Springs and Pine Rhythms — Hong Bo’s U.S.-China Touring Exhibition’ (U.S. Stop) in June 2009.

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“I really like Mr. Hong Bo’s works. He started with sketching and eventually developed his own style. You can see traces of traditional masters in his work, but he has fully absorbed the essence of these masters and made it his own. His works have evolved into a unique style.” - Zhao Xu, Executive Director of Beijing Poly Auction Co., Ltd.

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“From brushwork to color, from mountains and rivers to countryside, what is presented is the reflection and understanding of a Chinese painter overseas towards his own cultural tradition, the unique experience and perception of an Eastern traveler residing in California towards American landscapes, and the longing and nostalgia of a wanderer for his homeland.

            The creation and study of Chinese painting in the 20th century is a vast topic, and it is also a core issue of the modern transformation of Chinese culture. This transformation into modernity is also a question of internationalization. Mr. Hong Bo is walking on this path, and the issues and experiences he has accumulated are of great value to our research on this subject.” - Yu Yang, Exhibition Curator, Director of the Department of Chinese Painting Studies at the Central Academy of Fine Arts.

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“American landscapes are typically depicted using Western art forms such as oil painting and sketching. Hong Bo uses Chinese painting techniques to express American landscapes, which is an innovation in the art world. At the same time, it is also an innovation within the realm of Chinese painting.” - Cheng Hong, Head of the Chinese Section at the East Asian Library, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

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“Because Hong Bo’s creative thinking is essentially aligned with that of SINOPHONE novelists, he is able to create interesting paintings that depict familiar scenes using innovative techniques. As seen in the works presented by Hong Bo, these are expressed through an extraordinary form of visual art, deeply rooted in various aspects of Chinese culture. Therefore, even if you are not familiar with Chinese culture, you can still feel the charm of these paintings. They are so beautiful and captivating. You can imagine yourself within the painting and experience its artistic conception. If you want to gain a deeper understanding of these works, learning how to interpret the language of these paintings will undoubtedly be helpful. Hong Bo’s paintings have their fundamental principles and unique vocabulary, and you must learn how to read them.” - Shi Tingquan (USA), professor at the University of California, April 2013.

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“I am deeply impressed by Hong Bo’s paintings. Since 1995, I have traveled back and forth to China multiple times and have gained a profound understanding of the vastness and depth of Chinese culture. Hong Bo’s paintings are unique, and I am particularly impressed by the lines in his works and his artistic style of using ink to depict American landscapes. As a professor of music education, I greatly appreciate the simple and straightforward style that emerges from the rich language of his paintings.” - Dr. Johnny Rock, professor at the University of the Grand Canyon, Irvine, USA.

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“Hong Bo’s recent works exhibit a unique abstract thinking, filled with energy and tension. He integrates the aesthetic concepts of Chinese painting into American landscapes, breaking free from the semantic expression of realism. By weakening the physical symbolism of objects, he uses pure ink and color, along with light, shadow, and calligraphic brushstrokes, to express his inner perceptions and insights. He constructs a spiritual world full of spatial and luminous sensations. This striking sensory stimulation highlights an intuitive beauty, forming a new artistic style for Hong Bo.” - Richard Wayne, professor at the University of California.

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“Hong Bo’s paintings have an intrinsic connection with Western oil painting. I very much hope to meet him in person and gain a deeper understanding of how he handles the relationships between different ink symbols and his use of color. The unique light and shadow effects created by the collision of ink and color have left a deep impression on me.” - Chris Truman, professor in the Department of Art at Jeff University.

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“Mr. Hong Bo has pushed Chinese splashed ink painting forward. His comprehensive foundation is reflected in two aspects: one is tradition, and the other is sketching. His understanding of tradition captures its essence, with brushwork that is very precise. He has added a creative synthesis, which is his innovative approach to sketching. His series of ink sketches display an excellent vision and a deep understanding of tradition, as well as a profound perception of modern life, effectively combining both. His expansion of splashed ink painting, based on the work of Zhang Daqian and Liu Haisu, has taken a step forward, which is very rare and valuable. This is primarily seen in his large-scale brushstrokes and use of ink, where he has successfully incorporated more abstract expressionism into his work. This advances splashed ink art and resonates with the international art scene. Third, his attempt at Chinese-style abstraction, utilizing techniques such as splashed color and ink, and many of the technical aspects between them, is expressed in an abstract, imagery-based form. This pushes contemporary Chinese art onto the international stage, serving as an important vehicle and platform for the revival of Chinese culture.” - Shao Xiaofeng, Head of the Research and Planning Department at the National Art Museum of China.

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“His paintings are not confined to traditional Chinese landscape painting; he does not follow the conventional methods of Chinese landscape painting entirely. He dares to incorporate elements from Western art, including light and shadow, reflections, and Western painting techniques, blending them with traditional brushwork and compositional methods to create his own unique style. This is what makes him truly distinctive. From his works, one can see that he is a refined artist, someone who is deeply concerned with cultivating his artistic sensibility. His creations are not abrupt or restless; they focus on tone and mood, paying attention to elegance and charm. This is the aspect that left the deepest impression on me.” - Shao Dazhen, renowned Art Critic, Professor at the Central Academy of Fine Arts, Honorary Director of the Theory Committee.

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“Hong Bo’s greatest strength lies in his ability to learn and absorb continuously, to make adjustments, and to select and discard as needed. For example, his sketches are all done with ink, using dry and light ink wash, which is quite different. It has a Chinese linguistic style, yet also incorporates modern visual perspectives, making it complete and distinct from others. He skillfully uses a more intense shade of green, creating a very unified and harmonious effect, which somewhat resembles the style of Wang Meng from the Yuan dynasty. What is particularly commendable is his use of ‘niu mao cun’ (ox-hair strokes), and he has integrated Shi Tao’s bold ink splashing techniques into his work. He has put effort into studying traditional brushwork and has turned it into his own, even painting American landscapes.” - Xue Yongnian, renowned Art Critic, Professor at the Central Academy of Fine Arts, Director of the Theory Committee of the China Artists Association, Vice President of the China Painting Association.

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“His paintings have a very distinct personal style. He paints with great dedication, learning from the ancient masters, particularly the dense brushwork of Wang Meng and the artistic spirit of Huang Binhong, which is heavy and profound. Overall, he strives to express in his art what he has seen and experienced, and I feel that the elements of density and weight are most prominent in his work. This is quite difficult; he does not simply imitate or casually learn a style, nor is it a straightforward study of Huang Binhong’s brush techniques. Instead, he incorporates his spirit of sketching into his painting language, seeking a perfect synthesis.” - Sun Ke, renowned Art Critic, Vice President of the China Painting Society.

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“Hong Bo’s works are an innovative take on traditional themes, infusing new ideas into classical Chinese painting. He brings fresh perspectives to old subjects and introduces new themes, especially his landscapes of America, which are a departure from traditional topics. He also strives to convey a sense of the ancient in these new subjects, and I think this is a valuable and rare exploration. I particularly like his American series. I truly appreciate these sketches, including the smaller works, as I believe they represent a vital path beyond the conventional forms of traditional Chinese painting.” - Wang Yong, renowned Art Critic, Editor-in-Chief of Chinese Calligraphy and Painting Magazine.

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“He has drawn from the strengths of various schools and is able to use them freely for his own work. On one hand, this is related to his lack of restrictive habits, or perhaps to the fact that he has not undergone the strict, realistic training in western-style academic sketching, so he is very free. On the other hand, his approach to sketching is very relaxed and unrestrained, with a calm attitude toward nature, engaging in a dialogue with the natural world. He expresses nature based on his own feelings and captures it on paper. This is a process, and this is the true essence of art.” - Chen Zui, renowned Art Critic, Senior Researcher at the China Institute of Art Research.

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“As a young artist, his paintings place great emphasis on tradition, but also on life. He pays attention to both the scenes before him and the feelings within his heart. Therefore, I believe his works are not cold or mechanical, like building blocks. His paintings are emotional. For example, in some of his works, when he paints in dense areas, the ink flows freely, full of passion.” - Xia Shuoqi, renowned Art Critic, Former Editor-in-Chief of Art Magazine.

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“The ‘Four Masters’ of the Qing Dynasty were said to ‘use the brushwork of the Yuan dynasty to embody the landscapes of the Song dynasty.’ I believe Hong Bo is ‘using the brushwork of China to embody the landscapes of America.’ This is a wonderful attempt and beginning… Hong Bo is very talented, with a natural gift for painting. His sketches of famous domestic landscapes, such as Mount Tai, Mount Huang, and Tianmen Mountain in Zhangjiajie, are full of vitality. I hope he continues to work hard and take on the honorable role of a cultural scholar and cultural ambassador of Chinese painting between the two great nations, China and the United States.” - Liu Longting, renowned Art Critic, Senior Editorial Board Member of Art Publishing House.

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“Mr. Hong Bo is a Chinese painter living abroad, who uses traditional Chinese methods to depict landscapes and natural scenery. He has played an active role in spreading Chinese culture and strengthening cultural exchange between China and the rest of the world. His works have a strong classical spirit, embodying the essence of traditional Chinese landscape painting, especially from the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties, and they carry a sense of ancient charm and classical beauty.” - Deng Fuxing, renowned Art Critic, Former Director of the Art Research Institute at the China Art Academy.

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”‘A common person’s mind changes with external circumstances, while a sage’s mind governs and transforms those circumstances.’ If he is able to remain unchanged by external conditions, he is a sage. If he changes with the changes in the external world, then he is just an ordinary person. We are not saying that Mr. Hong Bo has already become a sage, but at least I believe that his creative philosophy is a path leading in that direction.” - Zhao Quanli, renowned Art Critic, Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Art Observation.​​

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“By integrating calligraphy into painting, he emphasizes the stone-like quality of the brushstrokes and the dense, simple structure of the composition, which is likely the orthodox style popular after Huang Binhong’s advocacy of the ‘Dao Xian Zhongxing’ (Revitalizing the Dao). Hong Bo’s efforts align with this value orientation; his practice in calligraphy clearly aids in emphasizing this approach.
         As is well known, the moral and educational duty of Han and Tang dynasty painting was to ‘encourage good and warn against evil’—a moral function that in modern times has been reinterpreted as a tool for inspiring and educating the people. Clearly, Hong Bo does not intend to bear such a significant responsibility. What he embraces is the so-called scholar-painting tradition of the Yuan and Ming dynasties, which gradually became a spectacular form of ‘expression’ and ‘amusement.’ In other words, for Hong Bo, painting is merely a way of expressing individual life experiences.” - Li Weiming, renowned Art Critic, Member of the Theory Committee of the China Artists Association, "'Between Rawness and Maturity' — A Reading of Hong Bo’s Paintings” published in Chinese Calligraphy and Painting, December 2005 Supplement.

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”‘Fortunately, I came, and the mountain is not lonely.’ American landscapes are fortunate because with Hong Bo’s brush, these natural sceneries have gained new meaning. Through his exquisite brushwork, the traditional scholar’s sentiment, and his deep deconstruction of foreign landscapes, Hong Bo interprets the American scenery through his eyes and the mountains in his heart. His landscapes are ethereal and elegant, with clear and pure brushstrokes and profound artistic conception. His work provides a blueprint for understanding an artist who blends both Eastern and Western influences. How Chinese landscape painting can evolve, break through in terms of subject matter and language, and present itself in a unique way, leaving a bold mark in the art world—Hong Bo’s exotic landscape paintings have provided us with his own answer.” - Zhu Wanzhang, research curator at the Academic Research Center of the National Museum of China, Member of the Theory Committee of the China Artists Association, ‘Exotic Landscapes and Hong Bo’s Landscape Painting’ published in Southern Island Perspectives, March 2013, Issue No. 21.

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Translation via the ChatGPT online service