Hsia Kuei 夏 珪 

(active 1200-1230). 

Sailboat in the Rain.

Fan mounted as round album leaf, with accompanying poem written by Emperor Hsiao-tsung (reigned 1163-1189). Southern Sung. Probably an early work of Hsia Kuei, this "one corner" fan continues in the Academy style of fan-painting established by Ma Yüan. The river scene shows a sailboat approaching a water-side cottage during a rain storm. Such paintings, viewed hurriedly and as a whole, are often understood by Westerners to depict "nature" to the exclusion of human beings. But contemporary viewers examined such paintings closely. The poetic couplet shows that the focus is meant to be on the hardship suffered by the person in the boat: "All life long, fence of his house fronts the river rain; at end of day, his boat comes in, pushing against the wind by the cliff." This couplet helps the viewer to understand the precise moment captured on the fan: at nightfall, a fisherman (?) returns through a storm to his house.

Hsia Kuei 夏 珪 

(active 1200-1230). 

Sailboat in the Rain Part 2

Hsia Kuei.

Pure and Remote Views of Hills and Streams.

Detail of handscroll. Ink on paper. Southern Sung. The values of the Academy painters apparent in their smaller works on fans -- brevity, suggestion, virtuosity in execution --  also pervade larger scale compositions such as this handscroll. This work -- one of the most important in the history of Chinese painting -- shows a mingling of Academy and literati art. Like literati works, this scroll is done solely in ink on paper (no color, not on silk). Paper on ink is a much more difficult medium than pigment on silk because the paper absorbs the ink quickly, and the artist must work rapidly, almost instinctively and without belabored forethought. There is a definite connection between this artistic process and the religious process of spiritual enlightenment practiced by Ch'an (Zen) Buddhist masters (see No. 30 below). Both emphasize intuition, suggestion, and quick insight. Particularly valued in this handscroll are the counterpoint between Hsia Kuei's use of the wet and dry brush. His amazing control of ink values is apparent in his ability to convey any tactile impression (from hard rock to tree leaves to clouds) using only brush, ink, and paper. Although Hsia Kuei was an Academy artist, such technical virtuousity was prized by later literati painters as well. 

Liang K'ai 梁 楷 

(mid-13th cent.).

Li Po Chanting a Poem.

Hanging scroll; ink on paper. Southern Sung. Liang K'ai began his career in the Academy but soon found the confining artistic and professional atmosphere there unsuited to his burgeoning talents. He left the academy and moved to a Ch'an Buddhist temple. His career manifests the link between the Academy style and Ch'an that we have seen in No. 28 above. His idealized portrait of Li Po, the famous T'ang dynasty poet, is a masterpiece of the Ch'an style. In only about a dozen major brush strokes, Liang K'ai has captured the essence of the Li Po persona in a work that exudes spontaneity, freshness of inspiration, brevity of statement, and a simplicity yet dynamic energy of execution.

Liang K'ai.

The Sixth Patriarch Chopping Bamboo

Hanging scroll; ink on paper. Southern Sung. In this carefully constructed scroll Liang K'ai treats a Ch'an-Buddhist theme; the life of the T'ang dynasty monk Hui-neng, the so-called Sixth Patriarch and author of the famous Platform Sutra. In this painting, Ch'an theme and Ch'an technique come together. The vigorous brushwork suggests the sharp, quick strokes of the knife:  the energy of Liang's brushwork manifests the energy of Hui-neng chopping bamboo. For the Chinese observer, a particular pleasure of such painting is to recognize brush stroke common to both painting and calligraphy. For example, the tree trunk to the left and above Hui-neng is rendered in a calligraphy technique know as "flying white": a dry brush is moved rapidly across the surface of the paper so that white spaces are left between the light ink streaks.

Cheng Ssu-hsiao 鄭 思 肖

(1239-1316).

Ink Orchids.

Short handscroll; ink on paper. Signed, dated 1306. Early Yüan. This short scroll, painted in the abbreviated Ch'an style of late Southern Sung, shows how this style could be adapted even to the expression of political protest. The painter's inscribed poem at right alludes to the Mongol conquest of the Sung dynasty. The lack of a ground plane in the painting supposedly refers to the fact that the Mongol invaders have taken the legitimate Sung dynasty "land." The fragrant orchids (ie. scholars loyal to the Sung) now have no support. Such highly allusive, "coded" readings of paintings were common in the late Sung-Yüan transition period. Cheng Ssu-hsiao was a literatus and not a major painter, but this composition shows the easy adaptability of the Ch'an brush style to all manner of expression. The poem and the date to the left of the orchid are block printed, and there are several contemporary copies of this work. These facts have led scholars to suggest that they may have been "mass produced." A number of "forms" with date and poem were printed up, then Cheng executed the orchids personally at the marketplace for customers who purchased them. Many Sung literati were forced to sell artwork to survive under the Mongol occupation.    

Cheng Ssu-hsiao 鄭 思 肖 (1239-1316). Ink Orchids. 1306 

Cheng Ssu-hsiao 鄭 思 肖 (1239-1316). Ink Orchids. 1306 

Ch'ien Hsüan 錢 選 

(ca.1235-1301+)

Pear Blossoms

Handscroll; ink and color on paper. Yüan dynasty. Ch'ien Hsüan, like Cheng Ssu-hsiao, was a "leftover" literatus, a Sung official left unemployed by the Mongol invasions, who turned to a life of seclusion. He was, unlike Cheng, a major painter. He inherited, yet at the same time reacted against, the now defunct Academy style and struggled to bring new forms and meanings to painting. At first sight, this short handscroll looks like many examples of Southern Sung Academy "birds and flowers" works. Yet the author's poem at the left reveals that Ch'ien Hsüan has used references to early literature to co-opt the image for the expression of his political ideals. The poem reads:

            The lonely tear-stained face, teardrops washing the branches.

            Though now without makeup, her old charms remain.

            Behind the closed gate, on a rainy night, how she is filled with sadness,

            How differently she looked bathed in golden waves of moonlight, before darkness fell.

The first two lines allude to Emperor T'ang Ming-huang's famous courtesan, Yang Kuei-fei, whom the emperor was forced to execute during a rebellion in 756 (see No. 16 above). A subsequent poet compared her tears to raindrops on a pear blossom. The executed courtesan thus stands for the loss of country to invading non-Chinese forces. In Ch'ien's composition, poem and image are linked together. The pear blossoms stands for Yang Kuei-fei, who in turn stands for those Sung officials who now "behind closed gates" and "filled with sadness" have lost the security of the Sung dynasty and the happiness of their situation "before darkness fell."

Ch'ien Hsüan 錢 選 

(ca.1235-1301+)

Pear Blossoms