| The aim of the gong bi style of painting is to achieve harmony through balance and an application of the principles of yin and yang. Thick lines are balanced with fine lines; soft colours are contrasted with more vibrant colours. Some themes are painted in great detail, while others, such as paintings of swirling clouds, allow the eye to rest and the imagination to interpret freely. The artists also imagined the story they were trying to tell as a melody or 'a sound wave with peaks and troughs' occurring at different stages throughout the scroll. |
