Four Plum Blossom Scroll

[The Painting of Four Plum Blossoms by Yang Wuqing]

The Painting of Four Plum Blossoms by Yang Wuqing, Song Dynasty, paper edition, ink, 37.2 cm in length and 358.8 cm in width
The blameless Mo Mei is the ancestor of the Huaguang Monk (Shi Zhongren) of the Northern Song Dynasty. According to Wu Yuan’s “Songzhai Plum Tree”, “Plum Blossom Blossom has been living in Huaguang Temple in Hengzhou, Hunan Province, for a long time.” Plum Blossom has been planted several times, and when it is planted, it is often under its tree for the whole day. No one can know its meaning. When it is seen at the night of the moon, it is thin and lovely, so it is imitated with pen and play. It is regarded as the thought of the night of the moon. Therefore, it has its samadhi and is famous in the world, “Turning black into white” can better express the characteristics of plum blossom, such as light color, sparse fragrance, and fresh air. This volume was painted by the painter at the age of 69 at the request of his friend Fan Duanbo. It consists of four sections, which are: unopened, about to open, in full bloom, and about to wither. It depicts the whole process of plum blossom from bud to initial bloom, blooming, and finally withering. The branches are chapped with flying white method, the flowers are combined with double hooks and no bones, and the pen is rounded. The whole volume is made of water and ink, without any color, but the changes of density, lightness, dryness, wetness and focus are noticed. The picture gives people a colorful feeling. It is said that when he was young, he lived in a place where “plum trees are as big as several rooms, moss and flowers are like clusters”. He often imitated the paintings. Because of his interest, he can best express the shape and spirit of plum trees, so his paintings are both exquisite and realistic and full of literary and unrestrained freehand interest. After the volume, there are four poems about plum in the book “Liu Shaoqing”. The calligraphy style is powerful, and Ouyang inquires into the essence. The style of the poem is graceful and beautiful. It compares the process of plum blossom from blooming to withering to the life of a beauty from a young girl to dusk, implying a hidden feeling and arousing the viewer’s infinite feelings and feelings
This volume has been recorded in “Tiewang Coral”, “Qinghe Calligraphy and Painting Boat”, “Coral Calligraphy and Painting Postscript”, “Calligraphy and Painting Record of Guoyun Building”, “Collection of Calligraphy and Painting in Shigu Hall”, “Grand View Record”, etc. In the early years of Jiaqing, Lu Jingting acquired it and built the “Four Plum Blossoms Pavilion” to collect it. Later, he wandered into foreign countries and was bought back by Cheng Zhenyi with “300 pieces of money”, which was said to be a grand event in the art industry at that time. There are also Yuanwu Town, Ming Shen Zhou, Wen Zhengming, Xiang Yuanbian and other people who collect the stamps, which are more than 300 square meters in front and back. It is a famous and influential place to be blamed.