Ashmolean − Eastern Art Online, Yousef Jameel Centre for Islamic and Asian Art

Description

Born in Fujian, Hua Yan (1682-1756) spent most of his life in Yangzhou, eastern China. He has been regarded as an important member of the group of eccentric artists associated with the Yangzhou School. Like other eccentric artists, Hua Yan is known for rejecting orthodox ideas about painting in favour of an expressive and individualist style. In this painting, Hua Yan abadoned the conventional method of depicting birds' static profile and instead focused on capturing the birds' different positions, as well as branches moving in a gentle breeze. The inscription reads 'In the wind above the field, groups of birds are twittering in the rain.'
Details

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Associated place

Asia › China (place of creation)

Date

1682 - 1756

Artist/maker

Hua Yan (1682 - 1756) (artist)

Material and technique

ink and colour on silk

Dimensions

mount 55.7 x 40.7 cm (height x width)
page 37.3 x 25.7 cm (height x width)
painting 28.5 x 20.5 cm (height x width)

Material index

organic › animal › animal product › silk,

processed material › textile › silk

Technique index

woven,

assembled › woven,

covered › coated › painted,

marked › painted,

decorated › painted,

painted,

drawn (image) › line drawing › brush drawing

more

Object type index

visual representation › album,

visual representation › painting

No. of items

1

Credit line

Purchased, 1960.

Accession no.

EA1960.227
Further reading

Vainker, Shelagh, Chinese Paintings in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford (Oxford: Ashmolean Museum, 2000), no. 30 on p. 54, p. 42, illus. p. 54 fig. 30

Location

- Second floor | Room 38 | China from 800

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