清 任熊 牡丹 扇面|Peony

Ren Xiong

19th century · Folding fan mounted as an album leaf; ink and color on gold-flecked paper · Asian Art

Uprooted during the turbulent years of the Taiping Rebellion, Ren Xiong, eldest of the Four Rens settled in Shanghai in his later years and became an influential painter of popular subjects: flowers and birds, sages and heroes. Ren's richly decorative fan is an interpretation of the 18th century "boneless" (ink without outline) style. Ren renders presence through the lush fullness of ink without painting an organically coherent plant; you will look in vain for a stem to support the heavy bud; it has a less cerebral appeal and evokes a real world of rooted plants, rough stone pots and contrasting textures.

Artist

Ren Xiong

Date

19th century

Medium

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

Culture

China

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

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