Early Autumn
Signed Qian Xuan (1235–ca. 1305)
Chinese, Yuan dynasty, 1279–1368
Handscroll, ink and color on paper
26.7 x 120.7 cm (10 x 47 in.)
Founders Society Purchase, General Membership and Donation Fund
29.1
The depiction of the most delicate forms of
plant and animal life developed into a specialized form of painting
in the 900s known as "bird and flower," which also includes
paintings of "insects and grass.” Early Autumn
is among the most well-known paintings of this tradition. While
this painting bears the name of the great Chinese master of "bird
and flower" painting, Qian Xuan (1235–c. 1305), scholars
debate whether it was actually painted by Qian Xuan because the
method of painting differs from his other known works.
It is believed that this scene was painted
in the early 1300's. At that time, so called "fur and feather" paintings
were especially popular among the Mongol aristocracy. The scene
of the
waning days of summer with the decaying lotus leaf and dragonflies
hovering over stagnant water was probably a veiled criticism
of foreign rule. Following the painting is a melancholy poem
by retired
scholar Ke Jiusi dated 1342:
… A pool of lotus leaves sheds its
robes;
The notes from a pair of frogs play their music;
Already you have wished to leave the worries of life
And joined with the deep places of water and cloud make them
your home. |
It seems to reflect his yearning to rejoin
the company of the previous emperor who had died mysteriously
after Ke left court, a victim of a political struggle.
DETAIL OF IMAGE
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