The Joys of Fisherfolk, from the album Figures in Settings
Artist/Maker
Zhāng Hóng 张宏 / 張宏
(Chinese, 1577–1668)
Date1649
MediumAlbum leaf, ink and color on silk
DimensionsImage: 11 1/4 × 8 in. (28.6 × 20.3 cm)
Mount: 14 5/16 × 9 9/16 in. (36.4 × 24.3 cm)
Mount: 14 5/16 × 9 9/16 in. (36.4 × 24.3 cm)
Credit LineGift of Carol S. Brooks in honor of her father, George J. Schlenker, and R. T. Miller Jr. Fund
PortfolioFigures in Settings
Object number1997.29.14J
Status
Not on viewTitle inscription: 漁家樂
A group of fishermen, their nets drying behind them, gather on a river bank to drink wine. A net for catching shellfish is half-submerged in the distance. A small boat passes by on the river. Two women are sitting in the boats below. One holds an infant and has another child at her lap, while the other, perhaps older, woman looks forlornly up at the group of men, suggesting that the fishermen have traded their catch for wine only, and there is nothing left for dinner.
To the scholarly elite of imperial China the life of a fisher-man seemed carefree and idyllic, and was a frequent theme for poetry and painting. Zhāng Hóng may be presenting another view of their lives with some combination of compassion and irony.
Exhibition History
A group of fishermen, their nets drying behind them, gather on a river bank to drink wine. A net for catching shellfish is half-submerged in the distance. A small boat passes by on the river. Two women are sitting in the boats below. One holds an infant and has another child at her lap, while the other, perhaps older, woman looks forlornly up at the group of men, suggesting that the fishermen have traded their catch for wine only, and there is nothing left for dinner.
To the scholarly elite of imperial China the life of a fisher-man seemed carefree and idyllic, and was a frequent theme for poetry and painting. Zhāng Hóng may be presenting another view of their lives with some combination of compassion and irony.
A Century of Asian Art at Oberlin: Chinese Paintings
- Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (June 6, 2017 - December 10, 2017 )
Collections
- Asian
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