Shan shui

Mountains, rivers and waterfalls are common subjects of shan shui paintings.

Shan shui painting first began to develop in the 5th century,[1] in the Liu Song dynasty.

Mountains had long been seen as sacred places in China,[4] which were viewed as the homes of immortals and thus, close to the heavens.

[5] Some authors have suggested that Daoist stress on how minor the human presence is in the vastness of the cosmos, or Neo-Confucian interest in the patterns or principles that underlie all phenomena, natural and social lead to the highly structuralized nature of shan shui.

[6] Most dictionaries and definitions of shan shui assume that the term includes all ancient Chinese paintings with mountain and water images.

Shan shui painting refutes color, light and shadow and personal brush work.

[6] Shan shui paintings involve a complicated and rigorous set of almost mystical requirements[7] for balance, composition, and form.

All shan shui paintings should have 3 basic components: Paths – Pathways should never be straight.