| 内容简介（英文） | Shen Ch’uan’s birth and death dates are unknown, but a late Ch’ing record in Notes from the T’ao-yang Studio mentions a “Shen Ch’uan” from Kiangsu who went by the style name Pi-ju. He served the court and excelled at painting ladies as well as birds and flowers, but it is unclear if he is the same artist who did this work, which shows an old, coiled cassia tree in full bloom. The planter below is decorated with the characters for “Fortune, Rank, Longevity, Joy.” In addition, the character for “cassia” is a homonym for “precious,” giving this work even greater auspiciousness. The artist here used meticulous washes to express the three-dimensional quality of light, giving this auspicious work an obvious decorative manner as well. |
