Giclée print / fine art etching paper

Changyu (1895-1966), real name, a young book, from Nanchong, Sichuan. Born in a wealthy family, he studied painting with his father Chang Shuyun from a young age, and also studied calligraphy with the famous family Zhao Xi. In 1919, he went to Japan to study, and in 1921, he was inspired by the "work-study" trend called by Cai Yuanpei. With the help of his elder brother Chang Junmin, he went to Paris to study art and started a career in law. Chang Yu's natural disposition was to pursue the freedom of life and art, not to follow the formal art school, but to enter the Académie de la Grande Chaumière (Académie de la Grande Chaumière), which had a free atmosphere. Unlike the law students of the same era, such as Xu Beihong and Lin Fengmian, he did not return to China after completing his studies, but chose to stay in Paris for the rest of his life, becoming one of the few Chinese representatives of the Paris School of Painting in the○ 1920s.

In the○ 1920s and 1930s, Chang Yu obtained well-known works such as Henri-Pierre Roché, a famous French writer, collector and painter, and Johan Franco, a famous Dutch composer. Not only did he become famous in Europe, but also famous poets and writers in the east, such as Xu Zhimo and Shao Shoumei, also respected him. Under the impact of Western modern thought, Changyu experimentally reinterpreted the Chinese art tradition and achieved an aesthetic concept that crossed cultures. Naked women, flowers and animals were the three major themes in Changyu's creation. His early works were elegant in color, smooth in line, and pink and white tones exuded a pleasant romantic atmosphere. In the○ 1940s, Changyu briefly went to New York to develop and forge a deep friendship with American photographer Robert Frank. After returning to Paris in the○ 1950s, he met Zhang Daqian from Tongxiang, Sichuan Province, who came to France for an exhibition. The two were married late. With the ups and downs of life experience and the thought of going to China for a long time, Changyu's works in his later years were richer in oriental colors, more like the projection of his own image.