由臺灣畫家主導的一場色彩革命，曾經重塑了東亞的藝術景觀；然而，這世界級的成就迄未得到充分的評價。二十世紀早期，由於即景寫生的技法和油畫的引進，在中、日兩國行之已數個世紀之久的水墨畫傳統受到強烈挑戰。日本殖民期間，透過石川欽一郎（1871-1945）等教育家系統性地引介歐洲的繪畫技巧，臺灣產生了一批訓練有素，具有國際視野，且寄情於水彩和油畫的藝術家。陳澄波（1895-1947）、李澤藩（1907-1989）李梅樹（1902-1983）、陳慧坤（1907-2011）、顏水龍（1903-1997）和廖繼春（1902-1976）等人均屬此陣容。呼應著當時的國際藝術潮流如印象派、野獸派等，這群畫家以其獨特的用色反映了臺灣島的風貌；他們的藝術技巧同時受到水墨傳統、本土地理、寺廟建築、陶瓷器、原住民風俗等諸多因素之影響。另一批於一九四九年後遷臺的畫家如張大千（1899-1983）和梁丹丰（1935-）等，雖仍忠於水墨，卻溢出了傳統界限。棲身臺灣，他們感激島嶼所提供的庇護，但也自詡為歷久不衰的毛筆藝術的代言人。他們行腳多方，然並未借用西洋技法；相反地，廣泛的遊歷堅定了他們保存中國繪畫特色的決心。儘管近幾個世紀來的中國畫家鮮少使用，甚且不太重視色彩，張和梁卻發現了中國繪畫的用色傳統。梁丹丰在其旅行寫生當中，極富詩意地運用色彩；至於張大千，這位無與倫比的色彩大師，則在臺灣完成其最後的巨作《廬山圖》。

Taiwan's painters were leading contributors to a revolution in color that dramatically reshaped East Asian art. Their world-class achievements have been underappreciated. During the early twentieth century, new techniques of on-site sketching and the introduction of oil paint shook the foundations of Chinese and Japanese ink painting as it had been practiced for centuries. The Japanese colonization of Taiwan, a period when educators such as Ishikawa Kinichiro 石川欽一郎(1871-1945) systematically introduced European painting methods, produced a cohort of painters professionally trained, cosmopolitan in outlook, and committed to watercolor and oil painting. These included Chen Cheng-po 陳澄波(1895-1947), Lee Tze-fan 李澤藩(1907-1989), Li Mei-shu 李梅樹(1902-1983), Chen Hui-kun 陳慧坤(1907-2011), Yen Shui-lung 顏水龍(1903-1997) and Liao Chi-chun 廖繼春(1902-1976). Building on international art trends like Impressionism and Fauvism, they developed a distinctive palette reflective of the island. Influences from ink painting, local geography, temple architecture, porcelain, and aborigine customs informed their approaches. Painters who moved from China to Taiwan after 1949, like Chang Dai-chien 張大千(1899-1983) and Liang Dan-fong 梁丹丰(1935-), remained committed to ink painting but expanded its boundaries. Appreciative of the sanctuary Taiwan offered them, they saw themselves as ambassadors of a resilient art form centered on brushwork practice. Their travel abroad did not persuade them to borrow from Western models. It confirmed their determination to preserve Chinese painting's distinctiveness. Though most Chinese painters of recent centuries used color sparingly and regarded it as secondary to ink, these two saw ample precedent in China's tradition for a more serious engagement with color. Liang Dan-fong employed color poetically in her travel-sketching. Chang Dai-chien, an unmatched master colorist, created his final masterpiece in Taiwan, entitled Panorama of Mount Lu 廬山圖.