The Herders: original oil painting on canvas by Dapu (Ai Min Zhang) (2009) Painting by Chong En Cao

Dapu, aka Ai Min Zhang, is an up-and-coming artists, so it is an opportune time to buy his works. His mentor is the famous painter-philosopher Zheng Tian Li, who gave him his name, which means "without guile", and his style is like that of a young Guang Zhi Zhang. Dapu, moreover, has moved to Qinghai, in the mountains next to Tibet to chronicle the life and natural scenic beauty of the area. Indeed, not many artists have dared to venture into the high-altitude of that area, much less lived there, so paintings of the area are relatively rare. We especially loved this painting because of its balance and the unusual pose of the herder girl, in the foreground, which reminds us, a little, of dancers in a Degas painting. Her simple, yet colorful, native clothing makes her stand out against and complement the colors of the background, and the colors of the wild flowers help to fix our attention on her. One little lamb looks on, curiously, as the herder goes about her work, in the field, and it is a wonderful expression on his face. He also helps to lead our eye back to the center of the painting where a larger flock of sheep acts to anchor the center and to lead our eye back around to the other details. Behind the flock, on the right, a woman stands by the tents in which the herders live, while following their flock around the mountains, and the details include laundry strung up on lines of rope. There are cattle resting in front and more sheep to the side, and in the far background at the base of the mountain, on the left, is the remainder of the herd. In sum, it is a wonderful painting and shows the potential of this young artist who we discovered at a recent art event. We believe this this artist's work has great potential for appreciation, as he is gifted, yet relatively undiscovered.

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Painting Of Tibetan Herder Girl In The Himalays