Wintery Bough and Magpies
Medium
Fan mounted as an album leaf; ink and white pigment on silk
Dimensions
9 5/8 x 10 in. (24.4 x 25.4 cm)
Classification
Paintings
Culture & Period
China · Ming (1368–1644) or Qing dynasty (1644–1911)
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
From the Collection of A. W. Bahr, Purchase, Fletcher Fund, 1947
Accession Number
47.18.35
Tags
Art Historical Context
Behold *Wintery Bough andpies*, a delicate fan painting remounted as an album leaf crafted in ink and white pigment on silk China's Ming (1368–4) or Qing (1644–1911). Attributed to the legendary Southern Song master Ma Yuan—or perhaps by an unidentified artist emulating his style—this intimate work (9⅝ × 10 in.) captures the stark beauty of a gnarled winter branch adorned with perky magpies. Ma Yuan, renowned for the "Ma-Xia" school's misty, asymmetrical compositions, influenced generations of painters, and this piece echoes that sparse elegance. The medium is telling: fans were personal trea...