Show highlights artist's eye for nature

The artist Shi Enzhao. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Artist Shi Enzhao, known for large Chinese ink painting landscape scrolls, is hosting a retrospective show at the National Art Museum of China.

About 80 of Shi's scrolls, drawn in the past two decades, are on display.

The largest, Days of Northern China, measures 13 meters by 2.5 meters, and depicts, through delicate brush strokes, the four seasons.

The exhibition focuses on three categories: spring mountains, the beauty of northern China and famous mountains around the world. The last contains paintings of Kilimanjaro, coated by snow, and the Alps.

Shi has dedicated much of his life to exploring the beauty of mountains and rivers. Most of his big scrolls are displayed in the halls of government buildings and famous public landmarks, such as the Bird's Nest.

The 67-year-old artist was born into a science-oriented family.

He lived with his chemist father at Peking University, where he spent his childhood playing near Weiming Lake. It was this early experience that sparked an interest in the beauty of nature.

The artist has an emotional bond with the mountains and rivers of northern China.

"The mountains and rivers are magnificent. My characters are just like that, open-minded and generous," says Shi.

The show will run until Jan 9.

Days of Northern China, 1300x250, 2010, by Shi Enzhao. [Photo provided to China Daily]