Shen Zhou and Tang Yin of the Ming Dynasty
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Shen Zhou and Tang Yin of the Ming Dynasty
Sometimes images can speak louder than words. In traditional societies, people used art as a way of communicating their main ideas. One of the main themes they used to express is culture. Their dense culture was encrypted in a particular painting. For the Chinese people, natural places such as mountains formed the best sanctuaries for their gods, such as Buddha and other gods. These sanctuaries were valued among the Chinese people. Like the contemporary artists and poets, the previous poets such as Tang Yin and Shen Zhou used the paintings to appreciate and value their cultures. Therefore, this essay demonstrates how Tang Yin’s art Whispering Pines on a Mountain Path and Shen Zhou’s Lofty Mount Lu resonate with the exceptional painting skills of the literati painters of the Ming Dynasty.
First of all, the two paintings are almost similar because the images include slopes, trees, and streaming rivers. However, the texture is different for both. For instance, Lofty Mount Lu’s painting looks different, rougher than the Tang’s picture. Even though they portray distinct textures, they are both products of Wu School. Besides, the two are considered to be among the “Four Masters of Ming Dynasty” (Shanghai Daily, 2016).
Both of the pieces were created in honor of the influential people of their time. This portrays that paintings were used as a means of appreciation and valued among the Chinese communities. For instance, Lofty Mount Lu was created in honor of Chen Kuan, Zhou’s teacher (Wen, 1984). On the other hand, Yin’s piece was presented as a gift to Li Jing before he departed to the capital. The historic landscape structure is dense and follows the style of the Southern Song artist Li Tang. Thus, the piece represents
Besides, Tang’s landscapes encompass the traditions of literati and academic painting, his systematic studies incorporating the forms of Song dynasty masters such as Xia Gui, Li Tang, Yuan, and Ma Yuan. In his artistic work, he emulated his contemporaries Zhou Chen and Shen Zhou. The signatures on Tang’s painting, composed of his name, town, or territory, were undated (Wen, 1984). In his paintings, he portrayed issues such as listening to the stream, enjoying the autumn, traveling, farming in the countryside, and fishing in reclusion, sketching general life situations as depicted by literati painters of Wu School.
Concerning the transitioning styles, Tang Yin’s paintings can broadly be divided into three significant phases. The first depicts the period of emulating the ancients, the new landscapes of the period that incorporated brushwork inspired by the style of Shen Zhou (Wen, 1984). As a result, Tang Yin has emulated the brushwork style of Shen Zhou, as demonstrated in the painting. Tang has also encompassed the brushwork of Yuan masters to echo the literati art. For instance, the flying cascade, two pines, and facing bamboo are the emulated brushwork from Yuan masters. The next phase is his transformational period, depicting the time he became Zhou Chen’s student and mastered his skills. Tang Yin also studied the Song academic elegances of masters such as Liu Songnian, Xia Gui, Li Tang, and Ma Yuan, adopting their qualities to create smooth and beautiful brushwork with unrestrained freedom and created elegant and classical coloring (Wen, 1984). The 3rd phase portrays a period of maturity encompassing magnificent and skillful compositions with spirited and dashing “hemp-fiber” and “ax-cut” lashes (Shanghai Daily, 2016).
Finally, for Wu School, Lofty Mount Lu is one most typical landscape paintings developed by Shen Zhou (1427-1509). It is also one of the Four Masters of the Ming Dynasty” and the patriarch of the school (Shanghai Daily, 2016). The other three masters include Tang Yin (1470-1559), Wen Zhengming (1470-1559), and Qiu Ying (1494-1552). As a result, both of the Tang Yin and Shen Zhou’s paintings represent the exceptional works of the literati painters and the mastery skills of the Wu School. Besides, Shen had also adopted the brushwork skills from the Southern Song Dynasty Painters.
References
Shanghai Daily. (2016). Lofty Mount Lu. Shanghai Daily. Retrieved from https://archive.shine.cn/sunday/now-and-then/Lofty-Mount-Lu/shdaily.shtml
Wen C.F. (1984). Images of the mind. The Art Museum, Princeton University. https://artmuseum.princeton.edu/asian-art/objects/23342/