清 王槩 畫圖、李漁出版 《芥子園畫傳》 版本|Page from the Mustard Seed Garden Manual of Painting
first edition, printed 1679
Medium
Woodblock print; ink and color on paper
Dimensions
9 5/8 x 11 13/16 in. (24.4 x 30 cm)
Classification
Prints
Culture & Period
China · Qing dynasty (1644–1911)
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Rogers Fund, 1924
Accession Number
CP13
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the timeless world of Chinese landscape painting this exquisite page from the *Mustard Seed Garden Manual of* (*Jieziyuan Huazhuan*), compiled by Wang Gai and published by Li Yu in 1679 during the Qing dynasty. This first-edition woodblock print, featuring misty mountains and serene landscapes, the essence of literati art, where scholars-painters emphasized poetic harmony between nature and the human spirit. Printed in and color on paper, the manual revolutionized art education by breaking down complex compositions into step-by-step models for copying— from rugged peaks to flowing r...
About the Artist
Wang Gai · 1645–1710
Wang Gai (王概, 1645–1710), a prominent Qing dynasty painter from Xiushui in Zhejiang province, established himself in the vibrant cultural hub of Nanjing, where he flourished from around 1677 to 1705. Born into a scholarly family—his father-in-law was the renowned writer Li Yu (1611–1680)—Gai trained under the master Gong Xian (1619–1689), one of the Eight Masters of Jinling, adopting his robust la...