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Idly Watching the Children Catch Willow Catkins, from the album Figures in Settings

Artist/Maker (Chinese, 1577–1668)
Date1649
MediumAlbum leaf, ink and color on silk
DimensionsImage: 11 1/4 × 8 in. (28.6 × 20.3 cm)
Mount: 14 5/8 × 9 9/16 in. (37.1 × 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 number1997.29.14H
Status
Not on view
More Information
Title inscription: 閑看兒童捉柳花
The title and imagery connect this scene to a poem by Yáng Wànlǐ 楊萬里 (1127–1206) of the southern Song Dynasty (1127–1279). The title is the second line of the poem, which reads: “The day lengthens; I rise from a nap with no sense of purpose and idly watch boys catching willow catkins.” *
*日長睡起無情思, 閑看兒童捉柳花。
Exhibition History
The Cultured Landscape in China and Japan
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (February 6, 2007 - August 13, 2007 )
A Century of Asian Art at Oberlin: Chinese Paintings
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (June 6, 2017 - December 10, 2017 )
Collections
  • Asian