Detail: Showcasing around 40 selected works from the collections of the Hong Kong Heritage Museum and Hong Kong Museum of Art, this new thematic exhibition illustrates the naturalistic tradition of the Lingnan School using works of Chao Shao-an as a major reference. Chao had a special affection for the cicada as a symbol of lofty virtue, publishing 20 works on the insect in the volume "The Radiant Cicada" (Chanyan ji) in 1936 and re-visiting this theme throughout his career, while his accomplishments in the naturalist style are highlighted in his anthology "A Study of Chinese Paintings", which features pictures of butterflies, bees, cicadas, dragonflies, praying mantis and beetles amid over 60 types of flowers.

Presenting works by early masters from the school that show the lineage of the tradition, the exhibition offers visitors an insight into why Chao and his predecessors placed such an emphasis on observing and depicting nature.