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Sites of Su Shi's Travels

(Chinese, 1733 – 1799)
1780
Object PlaceChina
Medium/Techniqueink and color on paper
DimensionsOverall: 49.2 × 28.9 × 2 cm (19 3/8 × 11 3/8 × 13/16 in.)
Image (s): 29.4 × 16.7 cm (11 9/16 × 6 9/16 in.)
Credit LineGift of the Wan-go H. C. Weng Collection and the Weng family, in honor of Weng Tonghe
Accession number2018.2833
On View
Not on view
ClassificationsPaintings
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Description

Luo Pin was one of the youngest of the painters called Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou and a passionate traveler who visited many regions across China. His good friend, the famous epigraphy scholar Weng Fanggang (1733-1818), suggested this painting project depicting four sites related to Weng's lifelong idolSu Shi, an 11th-century poet and scholar official, and one of the most influential personages in the Chinese cultural history.

 

The four sites are either residences or constructions initiated by Su Shi. Weng Fanggang had personally visited three of the places in 1770, 1771, and 1779. He asked Luo Pin to create these paintings for him in 1780 and then added his own copies of Su Shi's texts relating to each site. He also inscribed his personal comments in the album’s margin, in remarkably small standard-script calligraphy. This synthesized design beautifully elaborating Su Shi's life journey played an important role in Weng Fanggang's social life. Weng Fanggang, as well as later collectors, enjoyed sharing it with friends at banquets and elegant gatherings commemorating the anniversaries of Su Shi's birthday.  

Depicted sites:

Huang Lou黃樓, Yellow Tower, Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province

While serving as an official in the city of Xuzhou, Su Shi built the Yellow Tower for flood prevention in 1077.  

Xue Tang 雪堂, Snow Hall, Huangzhou, Hubei Province 

Exiled to the southern town of Huangzhou in 1081, Su Shi designed a residence for himself with four interior walls painted with snowscapes. 

Baihe Feng白鶴峰, White Crane Peak, Huizhou, Guangdong Province

Su Shi was exiled to Huizhou in 1094. In 1096, he built a home with twenty rooms on the top of White Crane Peak.

Zaijiu Tang載酒堂, Hall of Carrying Wine, Danzhou, Hainan Province

In late 1090s, Su Shi resided in the tropical town Danzhou on the Hainan island, where he constructed a hall for reading and banqueting.

Provenance19th century, Weng Tonghe (b. 1830 - d. 1904), Beijing and Changshu, China; 1904, by inheritance from Weng Tonghe to his great-grandson, Weng Zhilian (d. 1919), Changshu and Tianjin; 1919, by inheritance from Weng Zhilian to his son, Wan-go H.C. Weng, Tianjin, New York, and New Hampshire; 2002, transferred to the Hsing Ching Weng Trust, New Hampshire; 2018, gift of the Hsing Ching Weng Trust to the MFA. (Accession Date: December 12, 2018)
Restricted: For reference only
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