The subject of Chinese painting is the creation of a microcosm that is "truer than nature itself" (Zong Bing). This can only be achieved through the imitation of the life force that permeates the universe. At the same time, the painter strives to trace the inherent lines of the objects and capture their relationships with one another; hence the particular emphasis on the stroke. However, these lines of force only take shape against the backdrop of emptiness. It is this emptiness that must become reality on the canvas between the individual elements and the stroke itself. Around this emptiness, all other concepts of Chinese painting have been formed. The reference system that arises from them is subjected to a theoretical analysis of signs by François Cheng for the first time here. Numerous quotes and illustrations enrich his commentary. François Cheng, born in 1929.