In the context of spreading western learning to the east in the early 20th century, the“modification theory”and“fusion theory”in art were two mainstream trends, while the“coexistence theory”has not been sufficiently recognizedWang Yachen, an artist and theorist of the time, was uniqueAfter successively advocating modification theory and fusion theory, he embraced the coexistence theory, a third path of his own makingThis third path has not attracted full scholarly attention in the study on the development of Chinese art in the early 20th centuryMost scholars regard Wang as a member promoting the fusion theory, while his advocacy of the coexistence of China and the west has not been sufficiently understoodThis article explores the original meaning of the coexistence theory through an analysis of the transformation of Wangs artistic experience and theory.