Artist: Ni Zan (Ni Tsan) (1301-1374)
Title: Grove After the Rain (painting dated 1368)
Material: ink and color on silk.
Site:
Current Location:
Period/Date: Yuan dynasty
Iconography/Iconology:
Stylistic Comments: Ni Zan's open and unpopulated landscapes provide
a major change in direction in Chinese landscape painting. In this painting,
which is somewhat atypical of his composition. A broad river valley extends
to the far right and rolling hills and peaks reminiscent of the southern
school of the Northern Song (not discussed in class) fill the space to the
right. Using a spare and simple painting style, similar to Huang Gongwang's,
Ni Zan develops complex, dry vistas that bear little resemblence to the
Northern and Sountern Song traditions. While the use of color in this painting
adds to and accents, when examining the painting in detail, the highly impressionistic,
loose quality of the brush strokes is clearly apparent.
