This classic bestseller has been reissued with a striking new cover for a modern audience. Cheng Yan guides the artist through all the traditional techniques, illustrating how to create atmosphere and light in landscapes, focusing on trees, water, mountains, sky and clouds. He shows how to capture liveliness and movement in animals, birds, fish and insects, and he transforms flowers and plants into beautiful works of art skilfully showing how to master composition, inks, paints and traditional brushstrokes. Detail is as important as a spontaneous style; leaves, stems bamboo, feathers, scales and blossom are clearly depicted and Yan also explores texture, blending colors to define shapes and outlines.