近代 潘天壽 雜畫圖 手卷 |Various Subjects

Pan Tianshou

dated 1959 · Handscroll; ink on paper · Asian Art

Pan Tianshou taught himself to paint using the Mustard Seed Garden Manual before receiving instruction in college from Li Shutong (Hongyi, 1880–1942), the pioneering teacher of Western-style painting. In 1925 Pan went to Shanghai, where he met Wu Changshi (1844–1927), who instructed him in seal- and clerical-script calligraphy. In 1928 Lin Fengmian (1900–1991) appointed Pan to the faculty of the newly founded Hangzhou Art Academy as professor of traditional painting. Pan remained at the academy for the rest of his life, serving as director from 1959 to 1971, when he was persecuted and died during the Cultural Revolution. This handscroll exemplifies Pan's ability to create a formal language to express his emotions. Although his subject matter illustrates the traditional theme of the four seasons and his depictions recall the brush idioms of Ming and Qing scholar-artists, his exaggerated forms and angular calligraphy embody his fiercely independent spirit.

Artist

Pan Tianshou

Date

dated 1959

Medium

Handscroll; ink on paper

Culture

China

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

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