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Message: <blockquote data-quote="solitaryVSong" data-source="post: 1636719" data-attributes="member: 77930">Many, many, many, many years ago I took a course in Chinese brush painting at City College of San Francisco. I'm not sure how much that relates to contemporary Chinese watercolor painting. But back then you would practice and practice over and over how to make a mark that would look like bamboo or a bamboo leaf. It was an odd combination of spontaneity and extreme control. One reason I say extreme control is that the paper you used was so absorbent that it seemed to leap up 1/16 of an inch and grab the ink right off the brush before you put it down! But it also meant that all but the surest stroke resulted in one big blob. So if you weren't bold you were in big trouble.The other part of this tradition I believe is that you, at least when I studied it, were supposed to study certain classic books on it as well as nature directly. Somehow or other over time this all resulted in an extremely quick but sure painting that captured the essence of nature. I still have my textbook on it but haven't looked at it in many years.It is the oddest combination of boldness, spontaneity and discipline, much like this painter I think!</blockquote>