The objective of this thesis is to consider modern Chinese painting of the Chang’an School, studying in particular an undated painting titled Scenery of Shanbei by Shi Lu. It investigates the fact that Shi Lu’s painting distorts the appearance of the depicted terrain of Shanbei, expressing what I term aesthetics of distortion. I address the question of the personal and political significance of distortion. Is Shi Lu’s use of distortion aimed at self-expression by means of landscape representation? Does it breach cultural conventions and political values preeminent in Shi Lu’s art-historical context? The primary aim of this thesis is to analyse Shi Lu’s aesthetics of distortion and deploy this analysis for arguing that distortion serves representational, expressive, and political uses. The secondary aim is to reconsider the contentious classification of Shi Lu as a propaganda artist and to investigate his association with the regional artistic practices of the Chang’an School.