Reading near a Stream with Bamboos-Capital Museum

Yu Zhiding

Hanging Scroll

Qing Dynasty (1636-1911)

Width×Length: 56cm×30.2cm

Yu Zhiding (1647-1716), who styled himself as "Shangji" and "Shenzhai", originated in Jiangdu (now Yangzhou, Jiangsu). As a court painter of the Qing Dynasty known for his sophistication in landscape and figure painting, Yu did most of the celebrity portraits of his time. He was inspired by a slew of artists of the Song and Yuan dynasties such as Ma Hezhi, whose most appreciated technique was the orchid leaf stroke – one that uses the middle of the paintbrush to provide a round, full and rich presentation that is soft on the edges and strong in the center. Yu's painting style was known to be elaborate, elegant and graceful.

In the scroll, a man was reading in the shade of a brookside grove while leaning against a tea table. His young attendant walked towards him, holding orchid and lingzhi in a vase. Across the pristine clear brook a blanket of misty fog obscured the top of a faraway pavilion. Yu did not only deliver the composure of both men, but also captured the wrinkled details of their robes. The jagged rocks perfectly resonated with the thin outline of bamboo, which rendered the painting neat and exquisite. In his inscription, Yu titled the painting Reading in the Shade of a Brookside Bamboo Grove. Bearing both an intaglio seal and a seal in relief, the handscroll is considered a masterpiece of Yu's.