In the oil paintings from the early 1960s, Chu borrowed inspiration from Asian calligraphy and the sideway format. Poet Chu Ko said, "Chu Teh-chun's paintings after 1960s can be seen as the landscape in Asian culture (not Chinese landscape)."Painters from Song Dynasty, Fan Kuan and Kuo Hsi who produced majestic landscapes had definite influence on Chu. The ancient concept that "the heart is the ultimate teacher"reflects the soul of abstract expressionism. In the mind of the artist, traditional Chinese painting and abstract painting found common grounds.

"Composition n°94 Rouge" filled with fiery reds and mysterious blacks, brushed the bold strokes of a 40-year-old artist in his prime. The artist once reminisced that around 1961, he began to miss calligraphy. As he couldn't find rice paper, he used absorbent paper to paint with ink. During that tumultuous era, the artist was forced from his home for over a decade, which was reflected in the homesick tone of his paintings. It was then that Chu melded oil painting into the fluid lines of Chinese calligraphy and Asian philosophy. This was one of Chu's rare and finer early works.