Text Page of a six-leaf album

Accession Number
1956/2.12

Title
Text Page of a six-leaf album

Artist(s)
Wang Jian

Artist Nationality
Chinese (culture or style)

Object Creation Date
1661

Medium & Support
album leaf, ink on gold-flecked paper

Dimensions
6 13/16 x 4 13/16 in. (17.3 x 12.22 cm);10 5/16 in. (26.04 cm);7 3/8 in. (18.73 cm)

Credit Line
Gift of Mr. Chung Mo-nan

Label copy

Wang Jian
China, 1598–1677
Six-leaf album
Qing dynasty (1644–1912)
1661
Album leaves, ink and light color on gold-flecked paper
Gift of Mr. Chung Mo-nan, 1956/2.12–18

Wang Jian was raised in a literary and artistic family in Taicang in Jiangsu province, north of present-day Shanghai. As a painter, he became closely associated with other significant artists of the early Qing dynasty, specifically Wang Shimin (1592–1680), Wang Hui (1632–1717), and Wang Yuanqi (1642–1715), collectively known as the “Four Wangs.”

These selections from a set of album leaves demonstrate Wang Jian’s ability to paint in the style of various artists from the Tang (618–907) through Ming (1368–1644) dynasties. Learning to paint like earlier artists was considered essential to a painter’s training, as it conveyed a knowledge of historical and theoretical precedents for depicting the landscape. Wang most likely learned to paint by copying significant works in his grandfather’s extensive art collection. Wang Jian’s collection of paintings became, in turn, a valuable resource for his student, Wang Hui, whose work is on display nearby.



Primary Object Classification
Unbound Work

Primary Object Type
leaf

Additional Object Classification(s)
Painting

Collection Area
Asian

Rights
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Keywords
Text-based Art
calligraphy

& Author Notes

Web Use Permitted