Figure 1. Beijing Yonghe Palace. Oil painting on canvas. Image sources: http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_14b3d4d590102ycin.html

Figure 2. “Nude”. Oil painting on canvas. Image sources: http://www.bestchinanews.com/History/6756.html

Figure 3. “Nine Xi Eighteen Jian(九溪十八涧)”. Ink and paper. Image sources: https://image.baidu.com/search/detail?ct=503316480&z=0&ipn=d&word=%E5%88%98%E6%B5%B7%E7%B2%9F%20%E4%B9%9D%E6%BA%AA%E5%8D%81%E5%85%AB%E6%B6%A7&step_word=&hs=0&pn=0&spn=0&di=99791596300&pi=0&rn=1&tn=baiduimagedetail&is=0%2C0&istype=0&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&in=&cl=2&lm=-1&st=undefined&cs=1360172828%2C1903176811&os=3377012756%2C3725381755&simid=3345463547%2C275901279&adpicid=0&lpn=0&ln=1868&fr=&fmq=1549554374042_R&fm=&ic=undefined&s=undefined&hd=undefined&latest=undefined&copyright=undefined&se=&sme=&tab=0&width=undefined&height=undefined&face=undefined&ist=&jit=&cg=&bdtype=0&oriquery=&objurl=http%3A%2F%2Fimg2.scimg.cn%2Fuserupload%2Fyz%2Fitem%2F1835%2F800x800%2F049643079a897e32ce72a3aa0.jpg&fromurl=ippr_z2C%24qAzdH3FAzdH3Fyz_z%26e3Bfffv_z%26e3BvgAzdH3Ftg1jxAzdH3Ftpj4%3Ft1%3D8a9acn9&gsm=0&rpstart=0&rpnum=0&islist=&querylist=&force=undefined

Figure 4. “Mount Huang.” Oil painting on canvas. Image sources: https://image.baidu.com/search/detail?ct=503316480&z=0&ipn=d&word=%E5%88%98%E6%B5%B7%E7%B2%9F%20%E9%BB%84%E5%B1%B1&step_word=&hs=0&pn=0&spn=0&di=12394937830&pi=0&rn=1&tn=baiduimagedetail&is=0%2C0&istype=2&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&in=&cl=2&lm=-1&st=-1&cs=2015401022%2C4031801979&os=249663734%2C3345674939&simid=4228623963%2C633724599&adpicid=0&lpn=0&ln=1883&fr=&fmq=1549554513526_R&fm=result&ic=&s=undefined&hd=&latest=&copyright=&se=&sme=&tab=0&width=&height=&face=undefined&ist=&jit=&cg=&bdtype=0&oriquery=&objurl=http%3A%2F%2Fimg4.artfoxlive.com%2FuploadFile%2FproductImg%2F201607%2Fl%2F1468586731091_275749_origin.jpg&fromurl=ippr_z2C%24qAzdH3FAzdH3Fooo_z%26e3Bw6pu5xstej_z%26e3Bv54AzdH3Fr6517vpAzdH3Fd0c09l_z%26e3Bip4s&gsm=0&rpstart=0&rpnum=0&islist=&querylist=&force=undefined

Liu Haisu was born in Changzhou. He went to Shanghai to study oil painting when he was 14. From then on, he started his entire life “betraying” the traditional Chinese art. Instead of traditional Chinese painting, he learned a lot about oil painting, which is a western painting style. The first picture is an example of his early oil painting. Its style is very similar to western oil painting, and he portraited a famous palace in Beijing. He then established the Shanghai School of Fine Arts. This is his second things of “betrayal” to traditional Chinese art. He had a class of painting the nude bodies of live people. They paid a lot to those male models at first. In 1920, he first invited female models into the classroom. The second painting is his drawing on the nude female model. However, the whole society went against him. People all regarded him as the traitor in Chinese art. He was then wanted for not stopping the sketching class on nude bodies. French offered help to him. He, at the same time, gained support from Liang Qichao, Kang Youwei, and Cai Yuanpei which were the leader in the New Culture Movement. He went to Japan to see the masterpiece from Matisse and van Gogh which were the representatives of the western modernism style. In 1929, his teacher, Cai Yuanpei, wanted to turn the turn Shanghai School of Fine Arts into a national college. He sent Liu Haisu to Europe to study the western style more thoroughly. This was his third “betrayal” to traditional Chinese art.
The third picture was drawn when he was in Europe. He also gained an award for this painting. After the liberation of China, Liu Haisu became the principal of Nanjing University of Arts. However, Liu Haisu did not have excellent interpersonal relationships. He was banned in the Cultural Revolution. However, he did not stop his creation. After the Cultural Revolution, he did his forth “betrayal” to Chinese traditional arts. He combined western modernism style with traditional Chinese style. Only a few people have tried the combination before. Liu Haisu is the leader. The fourth picture is his painting of Mount Huang. He used lots of bright color in his painting instead of just dark colors in the traditional Shan Shui painting. His “betrayal” has led Chinese traditional art into a new era where all kinds of ideas are added into the traditional painting and offered Chinese art a bright future.