Internationally-renowned artist Christopher Zhang leads three-day portrait workshop at West Ashley’s The Studio
by Lorne Chambers | Editor
Local artist Joyce Hall first met Christopher Zhang when he originally came to the United States from China in 1990. Zhang shared studio space with Hall’s late husband. Now, nearly three decades later, Hall is owner of The Studio in West Ashley and Zhang has become internationally-renowned for his portraiture and landscape paintings. In addition to creating subject matter paintings, his versatile styles in still life, Chinese traditional painting, and calligraphy have also won him notoriety.
“He is one of the finest living portrait artists with a resume and international awards too long to list,” says Hall, who will host Zhang at The Studio this month for a three-day portrait workshop. “I love how he personalizes the people in his work, especially the Tibetans and ballet dancers. He will work with any level painter and is a kind and generous teacher. It is worth participating just to be in the same room with him and watch him paint,” says Hall.
Born in Shanghai, Zhang acquired a BFA degree from East China Normal University and an MFA from Rhode Island College. His primary painting medium is oil, although he also works in watercolor, acrylic, gouache, and Chinese ink.
“With more and more works winning prizes and being collected by the public, I have an increasing feeling that art is more about the level of intellectual and cultural understanding than about the level of technical ability. In other words, a painting is not just composition, perspective, colors, and values; it is the interaction of all visual and performing arts, including music, dance, film, and literature, etc,” says Zhang. “One can better understand the painting if one understands such connections. That is a serious artist’s goal and life mission.”
Christopher Zhang leads a three-day portrait workshop April 24, 25 and 26 at The Studio, located at 2408 Ashley River Road, Unit N in the Pierpont Crossing Shopping Center. Space is limited. Cost is $350. You can sign-up by calling The Studio at (843) 766-6664 or Joyce Hall at ( 843)991-2231.
