南宋 夏珪 山市晴嵐圖 冊頁|Mountain Market, Clearing Mist

Art Historical Context

In this intimate album leaf, jagged cliffs rise dramatically on the right, their textured surfaces built up with bold ink strokes and soft washes that suggest weathered rock. Wisps of mist drift through clusters of pine trees and a few small buildings tucked into the lower slopes, evoking a mountain market just becoming visible as the fog clears. The composition leaves much of the silk surface empty, allowing the warm tone of the material itself to stand in for sky and distance, while delicate brushwork defines the foliage and paths with economical precision. Painted by Xia Gui in the early thirteenth century during China’s Southern Song dynasty, this work belongs to the museum’s renowned collection of Song painting. Xia Gui was celebrated for his ability to distill vast landscapes into small formats, using mist and asymmetry to convey both the grandeur of nature and a quiet, reflective mood. Such album leaves were often enjoyed in private settings, inviting viewers to linger over the shifting play of ink and empty space.