博
Artist: Wen Zhengming (1470-1559)
Date: Ming (1368-1644), dated 1531
Dimensions: Height 115.0 cm, Width 36.2 cm
Material: Ink and colour on paper
Wen Zhengming (1470-1559), original name Bi, is also known by his zi (designated name) Zhengzhong and hao (literary names) Hengshan and Tingyunsheng. A native of Changzhou (nowadays Suzhou, Jiangsu province), he was renowned for paintings of landscape, flowers, bamboo, and orchid. A student of Shen Zhou, he developed his own style later. He was one of the "Four Masters of the Ming". This painting features mountains in outline, rocks textured with simple shading strokes, and trees rendered either with leafless branches or dots as leaves. This painting exhibits a refined and austere style. This work was completed in the tenth year (1531) of Jiajing reign, when the artist was 62 years old.
