清　舒浩　賞蓮圖　 團扇|Zhou Dunyi admiring lotus flowers

Shu Hao

late 19th century · Fan-shaped album leaf; ink and color on silk · Asian Art

Xu Hao regularly painted subjects from popular literature, using a figure style based on Chen Hongshou. In this round fan, he brings down to earth the Song Neo-Confucian philosopher Zhou Dunyi (1017–73), author of the famous essay Admiring Lotus (1063). In this painting, Zhou Dunyi holds a fan like the one the shape of the pictures imitates. There is no mark along the centerline of the painting to indicate that the picture ever served as an actual fan, but the consonance of round forms in lotus leaves, fan and format is pleasing.

Artist

Shu Hao

Date

late 19th century

Medium

Fan-shaped album leaf; ink and color on silk

Culture

China

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

Gift of Robert Hatfield Ellsworth, in memory of La Ferne Hatfield Ellsworth, 1986