Zhang Ruocheng Jingyi Garden 28 Scenery Scroll

[Zhang Ruocheng’s 28 Scenery of Jingyi Garden]

The 28 Scenery of Jingyi Garden volume, Qing Dynasty, Zhang Ruocheng’s painting, silk edition, color setting, 28.7 cm in length and 427.3 cm in width
On the back page, Zhang Ruocheng recorded the poem of Emperor Qianlong’s Twenty-eight Scenes of Jingyi Garden, which was signed with the following words: “The minister Zhang Ruocheng salutes the book.” The seal is “the minister Zhang Ruocheng” and “the pen is written in Xiqing”
This picture depicts 28 scenic spots located in Jingyi Garden in Xiangshan. Jingyi Garden was built during the Qianlong period. It stretches along the mountain and is divided into several areas. It is easy to move around and the man-made buildings and natural scenery are integrated. Each of the twenty-eight scenic spots has a small list of titles: Qin Zheng Dian, Li Jing Lou, Lv Yun Fang, Xu Lang Zhai, Ying Luo Yan, Cui Wei Ting, Qing Wei, Reindeer Hill, Toad Peak, Qi Yun Lou, Zhi Le Hao, Xiang Shan Temple, Ting Fa Song, Lai Qing Xuan, Yi Shuang Gao, Xiang Yan Room, Xia Biao Deng, Yu Ru Quan, gorgeous autumn forest, Yu Xiang Guan, Xi Yang A, Furong Ping, Xiang Wu Cave, Qiyue Cliff, Chong Cui Yan, Yu Hua Xiu, Sen Yu Wa, Geyun Zhong. The painter skillfully combines the boundary architecture with the literati freehand landscape, which not only conforms to the implicit aesthetic taste of the literati painting, but also gives a detailed account of the location and layout of each scenic spot. In the tenth year of Xianfeng (1860), Jingyi Garden was burned down by the British and French Allied Forces. This picture scroll reproduces the scenic spot before Jingyi Garden was burned down, and becomes an important material for people to study Jingyi Garden. The buildings and landscapes in the picture are mostly painted with traditional freehand brushwork, which is the manifestation of another literati painting method in the palace architectural paintings of the Qing Dynasty – “freehand brushwork pavilion”.