Su Shi Riding a Donkey
This sparse painting of a man and a donkey in a windswept landscape illustrates an episode in the life of the Song-dynasty poet Su Shi (1037–1101). The aged Su, in exile, had been visiting a friend. As it began to rain when he took his leave, Su borrowed a wide-brimmed hat and clogs from a local farmer. The sight of a scholar-official from the city plodding through the rain dressed in the humble garb of a farmer is said to have startled the local women and children.
The artist, Bokudō Sōjun, was a Zen monk from Tenryūji Temple in Kyoto. His use of gold outlines on Su Shi’s hat, headcloth, and the bridle bit, touches of brightness in an otherwise austere composition, may have been influenced by professional painters of the era who used gold highlighting in Buddhist paintings.
The artist, Bokudō Sōjun, was a Zen monk from Tenryūji Temple in Kyoto. His use of gold outlines on Su Shi’s hat, headcloth, and the bridle bit, touches of brightness in an otherwise austere composition, may have been influenced by professional painters of the era who used gold highlighting in Buddhist paintings.
Artwork Details
- 朴堂祖淳筆 蘇軾騎驢図
- Title: Su Shi Riding a Donkey
- Artist: Bokudō Sojun (Japanese, 1373–1459)
- Period: Muromachi period (1392–1573)
- Date: early 15th century
- Culture: Japan
- Medium: Hanging scroll; ink and gold on paper
- Dimensions: Image: 22 1/2 × 10 1/4 in. (57.2 × 26 cm)
Overall with mounting: 57 11/16 × 14 7/8 in. (146.5 × 37.8 cm)
Overall with knobs: 57 11/16 × 16 11/16 in. (146.5 × 42.4 cm) - Classification: Paintings
- Credit Line: Mary Griggs Burke Collection, Gift of the Mary and Jackson Burke Foundation, 2015
- Object Number: 2015.300.49
- Curatorial Department: Asian Art
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