Peonies and Garden Rock
Artist/Maker
Yùn Bīng 恽冰 / 惲冰
(Chinese, active 1670–1710)
Datelate 17th–early 18th century
MediumHanging scroll, ink and color on silk
DimensionsImage: 39 × 19 in. (99.1 × 48.3 cm)
Mount: 83 1/2 × 26 in. (212.1 × 66 cm)
Overall (with handles): 83 1/2 × 29 in. (212.1 × 73.7 cm)
Mount: 83 1/2 × 26 in. (212.1 × 66 cm)
Overall (with handles): 83 1/2 × 29 in. (212.1 × 73.7 cm)
Credit LineBequest of Mary McClure (OC 1918)
Object number1945.69
Status
Not on viewIn this large and impressive scroll, colorful peony blossoms emerge from behind a craggy garden rock. The jagged rock surface, painted with angular, calligraphic brush strokes, contrasts with the more naturalistic leaves and soft peony petals. The peony is a popular and symbolic flower in Chinese culture, often standing for nobility, wealth, and distinction, while rocks are usually symbols of longevity and stability. Placed together, they suggest the phrase, “May you live long and achieve wealth and honor” (chángmìng fùguì 长命富贵). Paintings such as this one were often presented as gifts to honor government officials or nobles.
Yùn Bīng was a female artist active during the Qing Dynasty (1644–1912). She was a relative of Yùn Shòupíng恽寿平 / 惲壽平 (1633–1690), a painter known for his “boneless” (mògǔ 没骨) technique that rendered flowers without ink outlines, as seen here. Yùn Bīng continued in this descriptive tradition, vividly capturing the subtleties of the natural world.
INSCRIPTION: PEONIES AND GARDEN ROCKS
春花艷品
南蘭女氏惲冰寫
印：「惲冰」「清於」
The Loveliness of Spring Flowers
[By] the Lady of the Southern Orchids, Yùn Bīng
Seals: Yùn Bīng, Qīngyū
Exhibition History
Yùn Bīng was a female artist active during the Qing Dynasty (1644–1912). She was a relative of Yùn Shòupíng恽寿平 / 惲壽平 (1633–1690), a painter known for his “boneless” (mògǔ 没骨) technique that rendered flowers without ink outlines, as seen here. Yùn Bīng continued in this descriptive tradition, vividly capturing the subtleties of the natural world.
INSCRIPTION: PEONIES AND GARDEN ROCKS
春花艷品
南蘭女氏惲冰寫
印：「惲冰」「清於」
The Loveliness of Spring Flowers
[By] the Lady of the Southern Orchids, Yùn Bīng
Seals: Yùn Bīng, Qīngyū
The Arts of Asia
- Berea College, Berea, KY (October 1, 1962 - December 31, 1962 )
A Century of Asian Art at Oberlin: Chinese Paintings
- Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (June 6, 2017 - December 10, 2017 )
Collections
- Asian
This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator. Noticed a mistake? Have some extra information about this object?
Please contact us.
first half 20th century
first half 20th century
early 19th century
18th–19th century
first half 20th century
first half 20th century
19th century