Returned to lender The Met accepts temporary loans of art both for short-term exhibitions and for long-term display in its galleries.
Instructions on Painting Plum Blossoms
Calligrapher He Shaoji Chinese
Not on view
清 何紹基 隷書畫梅訣 卷 紙本
Handscrolls were rarely used by Epigraphic School calligraphers, whose oversized characters and high-impact graphic forms generally called for larger formats. He Shaoji breaks with that trend here, inscribing a text on the proper technique for painting plum blossoms in clerical script, with two large characters per line. Handscrolls are intended to be viewed on a table at arm’s length, and He Shaoji’s powerful, archaic forms and bold brushwork would have been particularly impressive at such a close range. His wavering line, extreme variations of thick and thin in the brushwork, and willingness to saturate the paper after reloading his brush are all typical of his style, a kind of old-fashioned and casual rusticity.
This image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.
This artwork is meant to be viewed from right to left. Scroll left to view more.
