明 沈周 行書贈漢文詩 扇頁|Poem for Hanwen

Shen Zhou

dated 1493 · Folding fan mounted as an album leaf; ink on gold-flecked paper · Asian Art

Shen Zhou modeled his writing after the running-regular script of Huang Tingjian (1045–1105); four major works by the Song master were in Shen's personal collection.Despite the small size of the writing on this fan, the characters show the tight interior organization, tall structure, and elongated diagonals and horizontals that are the hallmark of Huang Tingjian's style. In Shen's interpretation, the bony aspect of Huang's brushwork is stressed: the brushwork is simplified and, for the most part, lacks the small movements and stroke details that make the earlier master's writing so rich.

Artist

Shen Zhou

Date

dated 1493

Medium

Folding fan mounted as an album leaf; ink on gold-flecked paper

Culture

China

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

Bequest of John M. Crawford Jr., 1988