Ink and color on paper. Xie began learning to paint at the age of nine. In the 1930s, Xie Zhiliu befriended the famous painter Zhang Daqian. In 1942, Xie went to Dunhuang with Zhang to study the art of the Mogao Caves. After returning, he published several books including Records of Dunhuang Art. In 1943, Xie was hired as an art professor by the National Central University, then exiled in Chongqing during the Second Sino-Japanese War. After 1949, he worked on cultural relic preservation, and served as a consultant for the Shanghai Museum and vice chairman of the Shanghai branch of the China Artists Association. 31 x 64 cm