Chinese Painting: Playing with Ink: Plants Favored by the Literati
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Old Pine Tree (detail), By Jin Shi (dates unknown), Ming dynasty, dated 1458
Asian Gallery (Toyokan) Room 8
July 25, 2017 (Tue) - September 3, 2017 (Sun)Pines and bamboo retain their green in winter, plums bloom before any other flowers in spring, and orchids emit their fragrance deep in the mountains where no one sees them. These plants symbolized the virtues of the Chinese gentleman-scholar, and were favored by the literati since ancient times. The literati poured their refined spirits into their brushes and ink to portray these plants, and called the paintings “ink play” to distinguish them from paintings that were created for profit. This exhibition features the ink play of literati painters.
Current exhibit includes:
Bamboos and Rocks, By Gu An, Yuan dynasty, 14th century (Important Cultural Property, Lent by Kichijoji, Tokyo)
Plum Blossoms in Snow, By Wu Taisu (dates unknown), Yuan dynasty, 14th century (Important Cultural Property, Lent by Teikan-en Hozonkai, Niigata)
Old Pine Tree, By Jin Shi (dates unknown), Ming dynasty, dated 1458
Bamboo (From the Hikkoen album of Chinese painting), Rongyang, Yuan-Ming dynasty, 14th–15th century (Important Cultural Property)