Author Description

This publication is an accommodation for the exhibition, Flowers on a River: The Art of Chinese Flower-And-Bird Painting, 1368-1911, Masterworks from Tianjin Museum and Changzhou Museum. The exhibition will present 59 painters with more than a hundred works ranging over five hundred years during the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911) with an attempt to systematically review and analyze the two main systems of painting--the academic style of the imperial court and the style of the unemployed literati. The featured unique handscroll Flowers on a River, by renowned monk painter Bada Shanren (1626-1705), however, stands out for its individualistic quality beyond the regular systems. The exhibition also shows the deeper humanistic connotations of flower-and-bird paintings as well as their universal qualities and practical aspects. These works are arranged in three sections: "Precious Plums of the Palace: Academicism and Court Painters"; "Fragrant Plums in the Wild: The Literati and their Painting Schools"; and "Vitality of Nature: Flower-and-Bird Painting and SocialCustoms." This publication includes discussions of each work in the exhibition and multiple essays that deepen our understanding and appreciation of the genre as well as provide enlightened awareness of the possibilities for returning to nature and seeking the true meanings of life.