博
Artist: Wu Bing (dates of birth and death unknown)
Date: Southern Song (1127-1279)
Dimensions: Height 24.9 cm, Width 25.0 cm
Material: Ink and colour on silk
Wu Bing (dates of birth and death unknown), a native of Piling in Wuyang (present-day Changzhou, Jiangsu province), served as a court painter in the Southern Song dynasty Imperial Art Academy and specialized in flower-and-bird paintings. This work is inscribed "Painted by Wu Bing" at the lower part. The painting depicts bamboo rendered with the outline technique, featuring both leafless branches and foliage in green and yellow hues. A small sparrow perches on a bamboo tip, scratching its head with one claw. The sparrow is lightly shaded. The artist rendered its feathers with thin and meticulous brushstrokes. This piece stands as an outstanding example of the Imperial Art Academy tradition of lifelike painting.
