Studying a painting
Zhang Lu was an aristocrat born into a wealthy family and educated with princes of the imperial family. He attained great success as a professional painter but lived very simply, almost as a hermit. He began his study of painting by emulating the leading court painter, Wang E (act. ca. 1490–after 1541), but quickly turned from the academy to other models and masters, most notably Wu Wei (1459–1508). This painting parodies the theme of the literary gathering. A group of rustics congregates around a hanging scroll as a man seated on a stone table holds forth on its virtues. A woman seated at her loom cranes her neck for a better view, a fisherman skeptically strokes his whiskers, a child darts underneath the scroll for a closer look, and the barefoot man unrolling the scroll squints critically at the image—a hawk pursuing a rabbit—which is a well-known composition by Zhang Lu himself.
Artwork Details
- 明 張路 觀畫圖 軸
- Title: Studying a painting
- Artist: Zhang Lu (Chinese, ca. 1490–ca. 1563)
- Period: Ming dynasty (1368–1644)
- Date: 16th century
- Culture: China
- Medium: Hanging scroll; ink and color on silk
- Dimensions: Image: 58 5/8 x 38 7/8 in. (148.9 x 98.7 cm)
Overall with mounting: 103 x 42 1/8 in. (261.6 x 107 cm)
Overall with knobs: 103 x 46 1/4 in. (261.6 x 117.5 cm) - Classification: Paintings
- Credit Line: Ex coll.: C. C. Wang Family, Purchase, Bequest of Dorothy Graham Bennett, 1990
- Object Number: 1990.6
- Curatorial Department: Asian Art
Audio
7629. Studying a Painting
0:00
0:00
We're sorry, the transcript for this audio track is not available at this time. Please email info@metmuseum.org to request a transcript for this track.
More Artwork
A slider containing 5 items.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
Returned to lender
Zhang Lu
ca. 1701
Zhang Lu
16th century
Tibet
late 15th century
Unidentified artist
16th century
Unidentified artist
late 15th–early 16th century
Research Resources
The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.