Chen Hsiao-Nan

Chen Hsiao-Nan was a Chinese graphic artist and painter, who attended the department of Chinese painting at the Vocational School of Arts in Wuxi, which he completed in 1931. In the same year, he started his studies at the National Central University in Nanjing under Xu Beihong, also giving art classes, even in Sumatra. In 1935 he began working as an art editor in Nanjing, but was then employed as a war artist in the Sino-Japanese War, and from 1942, he joined the Chinese Academy of Art. After World War II Chen received a scholarship from the British Council to visit the Central School of Arts & Crafts in London, where he specialized in copperplate engraving. During this time, he represented China at the 1948 London Olympics. In 1950, he returned to China and became a professor at the Art Academy in Guangzhou. In 1942 he joined the Research Association for Art and was on the board of the Chinese Graphic Artists and the Chinese Artists Association. He wrote several books, including one about his mentor Xu Beihong.

Chen’s watercolor, which was also created during his stay in London, is shown in the photo section of the 1948 catalogue. The full name of the work is “Defenders of the Great Wall at the Horse Race”.