Dong Yuan Xiaoxiang Scroll

[Dong Yuan’s Xiaoxiang Painting Volume]

Xiaoxiang Painting Volume, Five Dynasties, Southern Tang Dynasty, Dong Yuan’s painting, silk version, color setting, vertical 50 cm, horizontal 141.4 cm
This painting has no signature of the author. Dong Qichang of the Ming Dynasty regarded it as a treasure after obtaining it. According to the records in the “Xuanhe Painting Manual”, it was named Dong Yuan’s “The Painting of Xiaoxiang”, and then it was collected in the imperial palace of the Qing Dynasty
“Xiaoxiang” refers to the Xiaohe River and Xiangjiang River in Hunan Province. The two rivers flow into Dongting Lake. “Xiaoxiang” also refers to the area where rivers and lakes are densely distributed in the south of the Yangtze River. The picture shows a landscape of lakes and mountains. The mountains are gentle and continuous, and there are endless sand bars and reeds in the vast water surface. The picture is mixed with light colors in ink, and the mountains are mostly textured with dots, with almost no lines. The ink dots represent the vegetation of the distant mountains, creating a fuzzy and textured mountain outline. The density of the ink dots shows the ups and downs of the rocks. The painter leaves a little blank when making ink rendering to create a sense of misty clouds, deep mountains and forests, and misty water. The landscape is also dotted with figures and fishing boats, which are brightly colored and meticulously carved, adding infinite vitality to the quiet and deep mountains and forests. From the Five Dynasties to the early years of the Northern Song Dynasty, Chinese landscape painting was in its mature stage, and formed different styles. Later generations summarized it as “North School” and “South School”. Dong Yuan’s painting is regarded by the history of painting as the first work of the “Southern School” landscape.