To reveal the secrets of the natural world and examine the relationship between people and nature has been a long-standing task for landscape painters since the ancient times.

Well-established ink artist Miao Chong'an, 82, has forged a career spanning more than six decades, during which he is dedicated to interpreting the grandeur of nature and reviving the humanistic spirit of classic Chinese mountain-and-water landscapes.

A Pleasant View of Hills upon Hills, an exhibition now on at the National Museum of China throughout August, shows dozens of Miao's colored ink paintings which trace back to the beginning of his exploration of the new styles of Chinese landscape paintings in the 1950s until today, especially his endeavors to bring a modern context to the traditional blue-green genre of landscapes — of which the mineral blue and green pigments are mainly used.

A student of late landscape master He Tianjian, Miao sits apart from the ancient painters who made landscapes, which often expressed a mood of solitude and aloofness. He blends the aspects of the real life and emotions of modern people with his refined brushwork to create attachments and bring the tradition of ink art much closer to his audience.