Which traditional Chinese painting style emphasizes monochrome ink tones and spontaneous brushwork?

The traditional Chinese painting style emphasizing monochrome ink tones and spontaneous brushwork is ink wash painting.

Ink wash painting uses black ink diluted with water to create a broad range of tones, from dense black to pale gray. Artists control the brush, ink concentration, water, and paper absorbency to suggest texture, atmosphere, distance, and movement. Unpainted paper is often an active part of the composition rather than an unfinished area.

The style is closely associated with scholar-official culture and with landscape painting, although flowers, birds, animals, and figures also appear. It differs from gongbi, a more detailed style based on precise outlines and carefully applied color. Ink wash painting does not mean that every Chinese painting is monochrome; many traditional works use mineral pigments or other colors.