The youngest of the "Four Wangs," Wang Yuanqi was tutored in painting by his grandfather Wang Shimin (1592–1680). Wang's knowledge of art gained official recognition in 1705, when he and four others were commanded by the Kangxi emperor (r. 1662–1722) to compile a comprehensive study of painting and calligraphy, which was published in 1708 under the title Peiwenzhai shuhua pu.According to Wang Yuanqi's inscription, this painting was inspired by a "blue-and-green" landscape by Zhao Mengfu (1254–1322) that belonged to Wang's family collection. Wang's abstract mountain shapes interconnect and coalesce to form surging "dragon veins," through which the "breath force" of the mountains is said to flow.
