Chongqing in the Rain, a watercolor piece created in 1942. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Some are mountain-and-water genre paintings, created during his travels from northern to southern China. Others are the paintings of peaches and grapes for which Song is best known, in which he blended the techniques of Chinese and Western art to render the fruits with a fine texture.

Song once said, "When I paint, I feel like I'm free from any set rules."

Yu Yang the exhibition curator says that, in his later years, Song left two verses in many paintings, which read:"Surviving the summer storms, and defying the bitter cold, a tree yields fruits with an exceptionally sweet taste."

"The verses imply the vicissitudes Song experienced, and the pine trees, rivers and lakes in his works indicate a pursuit of high morality he lived up to," Yu explains.

Fan says Song's art shows the attitude of an honest, open-minded scholar-artist that will inspire not just the audience of today, but those of the future as well.