Celestial Steed: Heavenly Horse Gongbi Class with Victoria Li
Date: Tuesday, January 13, 2026
Time: 9:00 AM – 12:30 PM Pacific Time
Format: Live on Zoom (with lifetime recording access)
In Chinese painting, the horse is a legendary benchmark of skill and spirit. Its structure is complex, its movement subtle, and yet it must feel powerful, graceful, and vividly alive—mastering it naturally elevates every aspect of an artist’s drawing and brushwork. Because of this, many painters consider the horse a lifelong subject worthy of deep study.
Gongbi (工筆) provides a supportive path into this demanding theme. With clear drafts, clean outlines, and careful layering, students can focus on accuracy and control without being overwhelmed, making it ideal for both newer and experienced painters who want to refine their hand. These skills transfer beautifully into watercolor, chinoiserie, and other detailed styles.
The Heavenly Horse (天馬) adds a layer of meaning beyond anatomy. Traditionally associated with speed, noble purpose, and auspicious, almost otherworldly energy, it invites artists to express inner spirit—courage, uplift, and forward momentum—through pose, rhythm, and light. Paired with the blessing 「天馬來儀」 (“The Celestial Steed arrives with grace”), your finished work becomes both art and a wish for protection and flourishing in the year ahead.
Rather than treating the horse as mere anatomy, this class emphasizes liveliness, movement, and character—so your steed feels powerful yet weightless, as if leaping between heaven and earth. Victoria will also share practical methods for tracing and transferring designs on pre‑mounted scrolls and art cards, including how to work on thicker, less transparent surfaces without losing precision, making this famously challenging subject more approachable.
Bonus Calligraphy: To complete your composition, Victoria will teach the four‑character blessing 「天馬來儀」—“The Celestial Steed arrives with grace”—and demonstrate it in four scripts: 楷、行、草、隸 (standard, walking, running, and clerical). You may choose one script to accompany your horse painting or practice all four for future works.
Who this class is for
Beginner to advanced gongbi students who want clear structure and support while tackling the horse, one of the most demanding subjects in Chinese painting
Watercolorists, chinoiserie painters, and mixed‑media artists seeking stronger drawing accuracy, brush control, and layered rendering on paper or cards
Artists who are inspired by expressive Xieyi horse paintings and wish to internalize the Heavenly Horse’s loyal, heroic, and free‑spirited qualities through a more structured gongbi approach before moving into freer styles.
Materials
- Non-absorbent Sized Xuan Paper , Cicada Wing Sized Xuan paper, optionaL: blank 2026 calendar scroll, hot-press watercolor paper, Masa paper.
- Brushes: Seven-wolf-three-sheep brush, and BHA liner Brush
- Basic brushes
- Marie’s 12 color tubes
- Ink
