Tianfeng Tower

Tianfeng Tower

Tianfeng Tower is located in Ershatou, Guangzhou, and currently serves as Building 20 of the Provincial Sports Training Base. It was the former residence of the renowned traditional Chinese painter Gao Qifeng. The tower was built on the bank of the Pearl River, slightly jutting out over the water, and is a small, exquisite two-story building. A 4-meter-long small bridge connects the north entrance to a tree-lined earthen embankment, and a stone plaque inscribed with “Tianfeng Tower” is embedded beside the door. The small building is of mixed construction, nearly square in floor plan, with sides of about 10 meters on the lower level. The upper level tapers inward slightly, with sides of about 6 meters, and features a double-eaved hip-and-gable roof with four corners meeting at a point, covered in green glazed tiles. The wooden floors are laid with floral-patterned bricks, and the walls have wooden wainscoting. The lower level is divided by brick walls and stained glass screen doors, with the southeast side serving as the bedroom, the southwest side as the living room and inner balcony, and a small curved bridge in the corner leading out to the dock. The upper level is entirely dedicated to a painting studio. A refreshing breeze flows through, making even the peak of summer feel cool all over — a sensation that inspired Gao to name the building “Tianfeng” (Heavenly Wind). The tower remains well-preserved today.

Gao Qifeng (1883–1933) studied painting from a young age under his elder brother Gao Jianfu and later went to Japan for further studies. He blended Japanese painting techniques with his own style, dedicated himself to innovating traditional Chinese painting, and co-founded the Lingnan School of Painting with Gao Jianfu and Chen Shuren. After returning to China, he fell ill due to overwork and recuperated at Tianfeng Tower while continuing to paint. He sought treatment nearby from Dr. Ke Dao of the Convalescent Hospital and was appointed an honorary professor at Lingnan University. Later, he planned to go to Germany to oversee an exhibition of Chinese paintings but fell ill during a stop in Shanghai and was hospitalized. Before his death, he made a will stating that “the house and pond of Tianfeng Tower be donated” to “establish the Qifeng Painting Academy to promote education,” and that his life’s works be “donated to art museums and libraries around the world and across provinces.”

Gao Qifeng (1889–1933), a modern Chinese painter. His courtesy name was Qifeng, which he later used as his given name. He was from Yuangang Township, Panyu County, Guangdong Province. Orphaned at a young age, he studied painting under the guidance of his fourth elder brother, Gao Jianfu. In his early years, he painted designs on glassware in Guangzhou. In 1907, he went to Japan with Gao Jianfu and studied under Japanese painter Tanaka Raishō. In the same year, he joined the Tongmenghui and participated in the bourgeois democratic revolution movement. The following year, he returned to China and continued his underground work for the Tongmenghui. In 1910, he taught at a middle school and held a painting exhibition in Guangzhou. The next year, he co-founded the "-Pictorial" and... More detailed information about Gao Qifeng ++