Mountain Landscape in the style of Shiqi (1612-ca.1673)

Maker(s)
Artist: Zhang Daqian 張大千 (China, 1899-1983)
Historical period(s)
Modern period, 1930s
Medium
Ink and color on paper
Dimensions
H x W (image): 121.4 x 4.5 cm (47 13/16 x 1 3/4 in)
Geography
China
Credit Line
Gift of Yonfan, Hong Kong
Collection
Arthur M. Sackler Collection
Accession Number
S1993.44
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Painting
Type

Hanging scroll

Keywords
China, landscape, Modern period (1912 - present), mountain, waterfall
Provenance

Unknown collector, Germany [1]

1993
Sale, Sotheby's, New York, sale #6479, June 2, 1993, lot no. 94 [2]

To 1993
Manshih Yonfan, Hong Kong, to 1993

From 1993
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, given by Yon Fan in 1993

Notes:

[1] This painting was sold at Sotheby's New York on June 2, 1993, lot 94 (sale #6479). Laura Whitman (formerly, Whitman Provost) of Sotheby's reported to Fu Shen in a fax dated September 21, 1993, "we have received the information that you requested from the consignor regarding the provenance of the Zhang Daqian painting. The painting was apparently in a vast European collection, assembled by the collector for the most part during the 1940s and 1950s. Although there is no specific information regarding this particular painting, it would have been in the collector's possession in Germany since well before 1973" (according to Provenance Record 1, entered by Jan Stuart, October 16, 2001, in the object record).

[2] See note 1.

Previous Owner(s) and Custodian(s)

Sotheby's (New York)
Manshih Yonfan

Label

This is an early landscape by Chang Dai-chien, who was influenced by Qing dynasty (1644--1911) masters at the beginning of his career. In contrast, Chang's late, personal style is represented by the lotus screen on view to the right. The young Chang Dai-chien enjoyed the challenge of re-creating the textured and moist brushwork associated with the seventeenth-century painter Shiqi, better known as Kuncan, whose landscapes were the model for this painting. Chang Dai-chien added a verse written by the poet Zhang  Wentao (1764--1814) to complete the painting.

Chang sometimes liked to test his artistic prowess by copying old masters, such as Kuncan, to see if he could pass his work off as an original. But for this painting, Chang wanted to reinterpret the style of Kuncan in his own idiom. Through the study and transformation of past artists, Chang gradually created an independent style of painting.

Published References
  • Sotheby's New York Catalogue. New York, June 2, 1993. lot 94.
Collection Area(s)
Chinese Art
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
SI Usage Statement

Usage Conditions Apply

There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.

The information presented on this website may be revised and updated at any time as ongoing research progresses or as otherwise warranted. Pending any such revisions and updates, information on this site may be incomplete or inaccurate or may contain typographical errors. Neither the Smithsonian nor its regents, officers, employees, or agents make any representations about the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of the information on the site. Use this site and the information provided on it subject to your own judgment. The Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery welcome information that would augment or clarify the ownership history of objects in their collections.

citation | Save this image How to download an image | Request Permission | Terms of Use