Huang Yongyu Art Studio

Huang Yongyu's connection to Fenghuang is one of the two great literary-artistic associations of the town (the other being Shen Congwen, his elder cousin). Huang grew up here before leaving to become an artist, and his return to the town is visible in his work: Miao motifs, the Tuo River landscape, and the earthy humour of western Hunan appear repeatedly throughout his output.

A studio and small gallery in the old town displays prints and reproductions of Huang's work, with context about his life and artistic development. Original works are held in major collections; the studio sells high-quality reproductions. The exhibition provides a good introduction to an artist whose international reputation does not match his domestic importance. Combined with the Shen Congwen residence, it gives Fenghuang a literary and artistic depth that the tourist infrastructure does not always emphasise.

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A story
Huang Yongyu was born in Fenghuang in 1924 and became one of the most celebrated Chinese artists of the twentieth century — a painter, sculptor, and printmaker whose owls became iconic images of Chinese art. During the Cultural Revolution he was imprisoned and his work was banned; his ink owl with one closed eye was interpreted as a deliberate political insult to the Party's single-eye surveillance. After his rehabilitation he lived to be among China's most valuable living artists, selling works at auction for tens of millions of yuan while continuing to produce at a remarkable pace into his nineties.