The Hall of Scenic Beauty

Depicts, in the “blue and green style,” a dwelling with an open pavilion overlooking a bay. The mountainous landscape is dotted with various trees, some flowering; roofs of a group of buildings can be seen at the right. Groups of commercial and fishing boats are moored and sailing in the bay. In the open pavilion, two attendants stand beside three gentlemen who are seated at a table set with food and drink. Two figures occupy a room below. Outside the building, a groom attends a horse, an attendant carries a rolled banner, and another carries a bundle of scrolls. Six seals, siganture and inscription, label on back. One of two with F1909.157.

Maker(s)
Artist: Copy after Qiu Ying 仇英 (ca. 1494-1552)
Historical period(s)
Ming or Qing dynasty, 17th century
Medium
Ink and color on silk
Dimensions
H x W (image): 196.2 x 98.2 cm (77 1/4 x 38 11/16 in)
Geography
China
Credit Line
Gift of Charles Lang Freer
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art
Accession Number
F1909.156
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Painting
Type

Hanging scroll (mounted on panel)

Keywords
blue-and-green style, boat, China, commerce, fishing, horse, landscape, Ming dynasty (1368 - 1644), Qing dynasty (1644 - 1911), river, spring
Provenance

To 1909
Loon Gu Sai, Beijing, to 1909 [1]

From 1909 to 1919
Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Loon Gu Sai, Beijing, in 1909 [2]

From 1920
Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]

Notes:

[1] See Original Kakemono and Makimono List, L. 614, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives. According to Ingrid Larsen, "'Don’t Send Ming or Later Pictures': Charles Lang Freer and the First Major Collection of Chinese Painting in an American Museum," Ars Orientalis vol. 40 (2011), Loon Gu Sai was possibly Lunguzhai, a store in the antiques district of Liulichang.

This object exhibits seals, colophons, or inscriptions that could provide additional information regarding the object’s history; see Curatorial Remarks in the object record for further details.

[2] See note 1.

[3] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.

Previous Owner(s) and Custodian(s)

Loon Gu Sai (C.L. Freer source)
Charles Lang Freer 1854-1919

Description

Depicts, in the "blue and green style," a dwelling with an open pavilion overlooking a bay. The mountainous landscape is dotted with various trees, some flowering; roofs of a group of buildings can be seen at the right. Groups of commercial and fishing boats are moored and sailing in the bay. In the open pavilion, two attendants stand beside three gentlemen who are seated at a table set with food and drink. Two figures occupy a room below. Outside the building, a groom attends a horse, an attendant carries a rolled banner, and another carries a bundle of scrolls. Six seals, siganture and inscription, label on back. One of two with F1909.157.

Inscription(s)

Inscription on back

Marking(s)

Six seals, label on back.

Label

The Hall of Scenic Beauty was built in 1057 by the imperial favorite Mei Zhi (act. 1020s-60s), while he was stationed in the city of Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province. Two years later, he requested the renowned prose master Ouyang Xiu (1007-1072) to memorialize the hall. An excerpt from this text is inscribed on the painting at upper right. Built between a river and a lake and bounded by mountains, the city of Hangzhou was widely considered one of the most beautifully situated urban centers in the empire. Providing both a panorama of the city below and a commanding view of the natural surroundings, the Hall of Scenic Beauty became a popular destination for day trips and appears in many contemporary poems.


This painting is a seventeenth-century copy of a composition attributed to the Ming dynasty painter Qiu Ying, whose spurious signature appears at lower left. The excerpt from Ouyang Xiu's essay at upper right was ostensibly written by the famous calligrapher Zhu Yunming (1461-1527), however the style of writing does not resemble his known works. This scroll is one of a pair with F1909.157.

Published References
  • Chiu Shih-Hua, Lin Li-Chiang. "偽好物─16至18世紀蘇州片及其影響." Fineries of Forgery: "Suzhou Fakes" and Their Influence in the 16th to 18th Century. Exh. cat. Taiwan, Republic of China. p. 376, fig. 11.
Collection Area(s)
Chinese Art
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
CC0 - Creative Commons (CC0 1.0)

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