Why did Zhang Daqian destroy Dunhuang murals crazily?

Zhang Daqian's destruction of Dunhuang murals has always been controversial, because Dunhuang murals have gone through more than a thousand years, and later painters often sealed the previous paintings with mud and repainted them, thus forming a spectacle of paintings in paintings. Zhang Daqian once peeled off all the paintings on the surface in order to see the murals with longer inner layers. It is said that he has caused more than 30 damages to Dunhuang murals, and it is said that he once wrote his name on the murals.

Zhang Daqian is a master of painting. He is unique in painting art, and enjoys the same reputation as Qi Baishi. People call it "Southern Zhang and Northern Qi". 194 1 March, Zhang Daqian led his family and several students to copy murals in Dunhuang. At that time, China was in a period of war, and Dunhuang in the north was very deserted. In order to copy for a long time, Qi Baishi prepared more than 70 donkeys and carts as daily necessities.

The light inside Dunhuang is dark. Zhang Daqian and his students copy murals by kerosene lamps every day. Dunhuang murals lasted 1000 years from the Northern Wei Dynasty to the Yuan Dynasty. As a sacred place of Buddhist art, there are treasures everywhere and paintings in many places. Due to the age, some surface murals are damaged and fall off, revealing the line color of the inner layer. It is said that Zhang Daqian once peeled off the paintings on the surface in order to copy the longer murals on the inner layer. It has caused irreparable losses to Dunhuang art, but some people think that the surface murals have been seriously damaged. Zhang Daqian's copying not only did not damage Dunhuang art, but also protected and inherited Dunhuang art.

This trip to Dunhuang has had a great influence on Zhang Daqian's painting style, and his painting skills have also been significantly improved. Now, Zhang Daqian's Dunhuang copy works have also become a treasure of the art world, and his topic of destroying Dunhuang murals will continue to cause controversy.