Painting in National Palace Museum, Song dynasty part2

Welcome to the National Palace Museum's collection of paintings from the Song dynasty! Here, you can explore some of the most beautiful artwork from this period. We have a variety of different paintings on display here, including Autumn Colors among Streams and Mountains, Pair of Wild Geese on an Autumn Islet, Bamboo in Monochrome Ink, Travelers Among Mountains and Streams, Early Spring, Blue Magpie and Thorny Shrubs, Magpies and Hare, Wind in Pines Among a Myriad Valleys, Children at Play in an Autumnal Garden and Lohan. These are all stunning works of art that give us a glimpse into the culture and society of the Song dynasty. Come take a look at these incredible artifacts today!

1. Autumn Colors among Streams and Mountains

This painting has layers of mountains with shoals and slopes in the lower half. The mountains are rounded and have light ink to look like misty waters. This painting is from the time when people were transitioning from the Northern Song style to the Southern Song style. The brushwork is quite refined.

2. Pair of Wild Geese on an Autumn Islet

The painting depicts a pond on an autumn day with geese resting on a shoal in the center. The surrounding area is filled with dry reeds, red polygonum, and withered lotuses. The artist has arranged the elements in a circular pattern.

3. Bamboo in Monochrome Ink

Wen Tong was talented at poetry and writing, as well as calligraphy. He is also credited with inventing the genre of ink bamboo painting. This painting shows bamboo growing from the upper left, likely from a cliff that is not seen.

4. Travelers Among Mountains and Streams

Fan K'uan was a native of Hua-yuan in Shensi province. He was known for his kind and generous character, straightforward personality, and fondness of drink and the Tao. He is famous now for his beautiful landscape paintings.

5. Early Spring

Kuo Hsi was a court painter who served under Emperor Shen-tsung in the Han-lin Academy of Painting. He was known for his large, landscape paintings, often featuring pine trees and misty, cloud-covered scenery.

6. Blue Magpie and Thorny Shrubs

Huang Chu-ts'ai was the son of the famous bird-and-flower painter Huang Ch'uan. He followed in his father's style of painting. The paintings by the two Huangs set the standard for artistic excellence in the painting academy of the early Sung dynasty.

7. Magpies and Hare

This painting is of two magpies and a hare. The magpies are crying out at the hare, but the hare doesn't seem very scared. It almost looks like it's calmly thinking "I can't even pass through?" The painting has good balance and flow.

8. Wind in Pines Among a Myriad Valleys

Li T'ang was a painter who served in the Han-lin Academy of Painting under Emperor Hui-tsung of the Northern Sung. After the fall of the Northern Sung in 1126, Li escaped to the south, where the government had re-established as the Southern Sung.

9. Children at Play in an Autumnal Garden

Su Han-ch'en was a painter who specialized in painting Buddhist and Taoist figures. He was born in K'ai-feng, Honan. During the Hsuan-ho era (1119-1125), he worked as a Painter-in-Attendance at the imperial academy.

10. Lohan