Scott No: 3163-8
Serial number: 2002-2
Values in set: 6
Denomination: 8.40 yuan
Date of issue:20th January 2002
Designer: Wang Huming
Size of stamps: 30*50 mm
Perforation:12
Sheet composition: 15
Printing process: gravure
Printer: Beijing Postage Stamp Printing House

The stamp set is cataloged as 2002-2, titled Selected Works of Bada Shanren. It was issued on January 20, 2002. The set consists of six stamps in a photogravure edition printed by Beijing Stamp Printing Works. The designer is Wang Huming, with original works by Zhu Da (Bada Shanren). The total face value is 8.4 yuan. Each stamp measures 30×50 mm, with a perforation gauge of 12 degrees. Each sheet contains 15 stamps, with a decorative border at the lower right corner.

Bada Shanren, originally named Zhu Da, was a master of painting and calligraphy in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. He was a descendant of Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty. After the fall of the Ming, he withdrew from the world and lived in seclusion, expressing his inner feelings through painting and calligraphy. His freehand flower-and-bird paintings are minimalist and ethereal, with condensed brushwork. The fish and birds he painted often appear with "white eyes" turned upward, embodying his longing for his lost country. His work had a profound influence on later Chinese literati painting. This stamp set features six representative surviving works, showcasing Bada Shanren's mature ink art achievements.

Stamp Designs and Historical Background

Two Eagles

A masterpiece of Bada Shanren's later flower-and-bird paintings. The image shows two eagles perched on the branches of a withered tree. The forms are concise and powerful. The wings are outlined with dry brushwork, and the eagles' gazes are cold and aloof, with heavy, substantial brushwork. Bada Shanren's eagle paintings emphasize capturing the spirit. Through the solitary, majestic image of the eagle, he expresses his unyielding inner spirit. It is a classic representative of his large-scale freehand flower-and-bird work.

Lone Pine

The stamp depicts an ancient pine rising from the ground, with twisted and vigorous branches. The pine needles are rendered with just a few strokes, simple yet powerful. In traditional Chinese painting, the ancient pine symbolizes unwavering integrity. This work has a bold and unusual composition with extensive negative space, using minimalist brushwork to express the ancient tree's upright posture despite wind and frost, reflecting Bada Shanren's characteristics of minimal brushwork and profound artistic conception.

Ink Lotus

A famous ink lotus work by Bada Shanren. Several long, upright lotus stems are depicted. The lotus leaves are painted with broad strokes in light ink, and the lotus flowers are simple and understated. The composition features extensive negative space, creating a serene and empty atmosphere. The lotus symbolizes purity and self-restraint. The entire work removes complexity for simplicity, achieving more with less, creating an ethereal and distant literati artistic conception. It is a model of his ink freehand style.

Vase with Chrysanthemums

The stamp depicts an antique vase holding several branches of autumn chrysanthemums. The branches are sparse, and the lines are steady and composed. Autumn chrysanthemums symbolize resilience against frost. The work includes a signature and seals, with calm and warm brushwork and no intense emotional expression. It is a work from a period when Bada Shanren's state of mind had become more tranquil in his later years, simple and understated with enduring charm.

Two Magpies and Large Rocks

Two rugged rocks occupy the main part of the composition, with two magpies standing on them. The birds' eyes are turned upward, a signature "white-eyed" image. The rocks are painted with rough, light strokes, and the birds are depicted with exaggerated, simplified forms. Through anthropomorphic expressions, the artist conveys his own state of mind. The composition balances movement and stillness. With just a few strokes, the flowers and birds are endowed with strong spiritual character. It is also the most familiar image of Bada Shanren's style to the general public.

Landscape after Dong Yuan

A rare landscape work by Bada Shanren. The image shows gentle distant mountains, with ancient pines on the near shore. The rocks are rendered with light ink texture strokes. The composition is quiet and simple, drawing on the landscape style of Dong Yuan of the Five Dynasties period while incorporating his own minimalist freehand personal style. Different from his flower-and-bird subjects, it demonstrates his profound brushwork skills in landscape painting.

Artistic and Design Features

The stamps use the photogravure process, accurately reproducing the ink tonal layers of the original works and recreating the wet and dry variations and line textures of Chinese ink painting on the stamps. The stamps use a vertical format, fitting the viewing habits for ancient hanging scrolls. Each stamp retains Bada Shanren's cursive signature on the right side, preserving the original inscriptions and seals and maintaining the complete composition of the ancient paintings. The entire set uses a uniform, elegant light background, minimizing extraneous decoration and placing the visual focus entirely on the original brushwork, fully presenting Bada Shanren's large-scale freehand literati painting style of "simplicity, lightness, unusualness, and coolness."