As an important component in the development of contemporary Chinese art, the New Ink bridges “tradition” and “modernity” while continually generating new forms in response to each era’s conditions. Its rich connotations and scholarly value can be observed through the evolution of its associated and often overlapping terminologies. The New Ink has intersected and been related to “modern ink painting”, “abstract ink painting”, “experimental ink painting”, “new literati painting”, “urban ink painting”, and so on. This article provides a historical overview of the emergence and development of New Ink. From the late 1970s to the early 21st century, New Ink remained closely connected to the broader discourse on modernity in Chinese art and may be regarded as one of the concrete practices through which artistic modernity in China was “translated. ” With the changes in the economic and cultural environment, the discussion of the New Ink in terms of media, painting style, and Bimo has gradually faded, and it has developed towards diversity and openness, reaching its peak in the 2010s. Theoretical concepts stimulated by New Ink—such as “Chinese abstraction” and the “xieyi spirit”—have since continued to develop, becoming supplements to theories of abstract art as well as important contributions to the construction of China’s independent arttheoretical system. The creators of New Ink have also undergone generational renewal, with artists born in the 1980s and 1990s introducing new stylistic directions. Moreover, the advancement of digital technology and artificial intelligence has made “generative ink” become part of AI-oriented generative art research. Supported by technology and shaped by ongoing humanistic concerns, New Ink continues to hold vast potential for future development.
