Miss Jane Yap's sharing:

"There are artists who are major in Chinese Painting but they are also artists who are flexible in any medium. However, if you are saying are there any people graduate from chinese painting, i don't think so. To cite an example, during my dad's time or even earlier than that, there are no ways you are able to learn chinese painting from teacher that came from China. You can only self-learning it from reference books. Therefore, most of the generations during that time will usually go to Nanyang art school to learn or they will go Taiwan or Hong Kong to learn. Thus, it is like follow-up a teacher like that. Based on what i can remember, most of the artist went to Hong Kong and learn.

Chinese painting has many factions. For those people that went to Hong Kong and learn are considered Lingnan faction. Usually, it is like one follow one particular teacher. So, during that time Lingnan has the most influence. Using Chinese painting to portray malaysia kampung, fish village, cultural village or using batik method. Only Malaysian artist will implement the Malaysian elements. In China, they will categorise in what you need to learn in chinese painting. Let say, you will be focused either in drawing people or flower or birds or scenery things like that. It is very clear. However, there is no such thing in Malaysia. There is one artist called Zhongyu, he did a lot of research on Nanyang art.

If you are saying right now the difference of Chinese painting in Malaysia, people who know how to change, they will change, but of course there are still people who are not changing. For example, my dad, he learned by himself. He did not learn it from any teacher. He usually will bring his work to school and ask teacher for advice. Because he did not really follow a teacher so his work did not reflect any certain faction's style. His style is more to color ink painting. If you are saying is there any artists who have been putting effort , or do activities to be honest there are not much. In China, the artists are quite old-fashioned but right now it is like too modern. Chinese painting now i think it is still in the process.

In 1970s, my dad he actually started changing the traditional style of Chinese painting. He started implementing what he sees in Malaysian especially implementing the sparrow. It is something very personal. You can see the artists from China, they usually will paint like the typical flower, people. Whatever they learn from their teacher they will just follow, no creativity. It has to be like personal life-style. He painted things like the sparrow eating Nasi Lemak. Chinese painting you can see poem written beside but my dad he actually wrote some song lyrics to replace.

If you are still remaining the old style not many people will know how to admire it. I think my dad he is more modernise. However, he is able to jump out of the box. Drawing is supposed to be something that is close to you. You don't have to intentionally following something. Chinese painting it is just a term, i changed the material but technique wise it is still the same. Can't that be considered as chinese painting?

You need to know how to change. China is quite old-fashioned but Korea their chinese calligraphy are so wide so free so creative! But they are still people who choose not to change.

For me, i will implement the things that i like, be it oil painting, acrylic or pastel in chinese painting."

In between she did introduced some artists to me but they are not local so i doubt whether i should find him?

"..You need to change based on the situation. For example, my dad actually used acrylic to paint chinese painting on canvas because you can really use chinese ink, it will come off easily. You need to have a basic foundation of what you need to learn. However it is not about whether it is important to implement the local culture, it is just that somehow it automatically just came in out of no where. Sometimes let says you went oversea, somehow when you do a project, automatically you will add in some of your local background, that is where you can be different.

In Malaysia, it is actually quite hard because chinese painting has many different factions so it is kind of very hard to conclude in one voice. Last time it used to be many artists came to gather but right now it is quite hard to see that. Maybe there is, but there are just too many factions, no one willing to be followers. No doubt there are artists quite ego but there are also no.

Chinese paintings in Malaysia are not that attractive probably because most of the art collectors they are Malays and most of them are english-educated so they will usually buy western painting instead of chinese painting. Chinese painting in Malaysia, it will get minimised but it will not disappear.