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- 12. Gong Xian (1617/18-1689)
(a) Landscape; album leaf as hanging scroll; ink on paper; 22.9x52.1 cm; Fred and Isabel Pollard Collection; aggv
(b) Landscape; album leaf as hanging scroll; ink on paper; 23.5 x 52.7 cm; rom
(c) A Retreat on Mount Ju Qu; hanging scroll; ink on paper; 152.2x70.5 cm; Gift of Mr. R. W. Finlayson; ohf
Gong Xian was a political dissident under the Qing regime, and cherished nostalgic feelings for the fallen Ming dynasty. He kept to himself, was independent, proud and poor, and lived as a hermit in a hut outside Nanjing. He developed a singular style of painting, and said of himself, �there has been no one before me, and will be no one after me.� His desolate landscapes per�haps reflect his disdain for the Qing conquerors who ravaged his native land.
13. Cha Shibiao (1615-1698)
* Secluded Pavilion on a River Bank; hanging scroll; ink and colour on paper; 94x43.8 cm; Gift of Mr. R. W. Finlayson; ohf
Cha Shibiao, the most celebrated of the Masters of Xinan, was born into a wealthy mercantile family from Anhui province. He entertained guests and painted late into the night, and slept late into the day. He was a cultivated amateur who enjoyed the simple pastime of painting. Many of his paintings have an unkempt appear�ance and he seems to have enjoyed coarse, wet brush work.
14. Kun Can (c.1610-1693)
Painting of a Stone Cottage with Three Streams; hanging scroll; ink and colours on paper; 90.2x50.2 cm; Gift of Mr. R. W. Finlayson;
NGC
Kun Can�s parents died when he was young; so he was brought up by other members of the family. Just before the fall of the Ming dynasty, he abandoned the conventional life and became a Buddhist monk. Sometimes he spent many days in complete silence. He took up calligraphy and painting for his own pleasure to express his spiritual insights. His painted landscapes often showed the vastness and wildness of nature.
15. Zhu Da (1625-C.1705)
* (a) Quince and Poem; hanging scroll; ink on paper; 128.3x31.8 cm; Gift of Mr. R. W. Fin�layson; NGC
(b) Two Egrets; hanging scroll; ink on paper; 130.8x66.7 cm; Gift of Mr. R. W. Finlayson;
OHF
Zhu Da, also known as Ba Da Shan Ren, has often been called the �madman� of Chinese painting. After the fall of the Ming dynasty, he became a Buddhist monk, and later suffered a severe mental disturbance and never spoke again, but laughed, shouted wildly, drank and painted. He even painted the character �ya� meaning dumb on his door. Despite all this, he is con�sidered a genius at painting. His artistic origi�nality has been recognized for centuries, and his deceptively simple style always seems to capture the very essence of what he portrays.
16. Dao Ji (1641-1714)
Lotus', hanging scroll; ink and colour on paper; 119.2 x 35 cm; The Finlayson Collection
Dao Ji, also known as Shi Tao, entered a Buddhist monastery at the age of fourteen. He travelled extensively and was acquainted with many renowned painters contemporary with him. Of all the individualist painters, he is con�sidered the most gifted. He believed in the maxim of method that is no method and pro�fessed no interest in copying established painting traditions. The painting illustrated here is undoubtedly one of Dao Ji�s finest surviving paintings, and is a superb study of the detail of the lotus.
17. Mei Qing (1623-1697)
Landscape with Plum Blossoms', hanging scroll; ink and colour on paper; 149.9x52.7 cm; Gift of Mr. R. W. Finlayson; ngc
Mei Qing, born into an impoverished gentry family, won fame as a calligrapher, painter and poet throughout the lower Yangzi river valley. He travelled widely and became a close friend of the famous painter, Dao Ji, who influenced his painting. Mei Qing absorbed this influence into his own new personal style which completely broke with convention.
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