Abstract: The art of blank-leaving is important to traditional Chinese painting. At a first glance, it is similar to Western novelists' iceberg theory and theory of vacancy, but they differ in cultural origins, subject matter and the use of skills. Writers with a decent knowledge of traditional painting and calligraphy, such as Wang Zengqi, Jia Pingwa, Wang Xiangfu, Xu Zechen, etc., have been insightful in connecting blank in painting with literature. They have demonstrated different ways of blank-leaving in fiction, and have activated a new space for the application of classical Chinese painting to modern fiction. Wang Zengqi, Jia Pingwa, Xu Zechen, Fei Ming, Shen Congwen, Xiao Hong, etc., fiction writers from all generations and with different narrative materials, have practiced this theory in their writings, in terms of narrative structure, plot, characterization and endings. Different forms of blank in fiction convey the spirit of traditional culture, such as the artistic conception, mutualism of blankness and fullness, etc. They have also achieved the modern transformation of literature with traditional Chinese artistic spirit. Therefore, the value of cultural subjectivity it has is a supplement and enrichment to world literature.

Key words: fiction, narrative, the art of blank-leaving, aesthetic judgments, artistic conception, subjectivity