Compare and contrast the Northern and Southern schools of painting in China.

What will be an ideal response?

The Northern school of painting was more conservative and traditional (see Figure 18.28). A highly refined decorative style was produced which emphasizes the technical skill of the painter: a rich use of color, a reliance on traditional Chinese themes, such as birds and flowers, and symbolic references to the emperor.
The Southern school of painting was more understated, and artists preferred ink to color and free brushwork to detailed linear representations. Self-expression is the ultimate aim. These works (for example, Figure 18.29) more systematically synthesized poetry, calligraphy, and painting. Here, the poet is the central figure rather than the landscape.