清 戴本孝 山水圖 冊|Landscapes

Dai Benxiao

late 17th century · Album of twelve leaves; ink on paper · Asian Art

All his life Dai pursued a dry, softly textured style, creating evocative images of Daoist reclusion and high-minded self-cultivation. This album, one of the finest examples of Dai’s art, is stylistically datable to his late maturity, circa 1690. In traditional fashion, the album concludes with a snowscape. Dai’s final words on that leaf makes it clear that the intent of his painting is self-expression as well as representation. I clean my inkstone not just to paint, But to reveal the images in my mind.

Artist

Dai Benxiao

Date

late 17th century

Medium

Album of twelve leaves; ink on paper

Culture

China

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

Purchase, The Dillon Fund Gift, 1989