Landscape

Artists

Description

A splash of ink holds the center of the painting, and details are filled in around it to create an abstracted yet representational landscape. The most detailed portion of the painting is the small group of buildings that appear as if by magic atop the splash. The surroundings—highly abstracted trees below and loosely defined peaks and a waterfall in the distance—heighten the suggestion of a small paradise, impossibly remote and elusive. The artist inscribed the painting, “Asking my brother Chu-tsing, the expert, for his comment. Painted in Forest Hills, New York, North America, in the 74th year of the Republic, during the early spring of the jiazi year [1984]. A traveling native of Taojiang, Hu Nianzu.” In 1948 Hu left mainland China—Taojiang in Hunan province was his family home—for Taiwan. There he studied with Huang Junbi (1898–1991) at National Taiwan Normal University. He spent many years in New York State before returning to Taiwan, where he resides today. This painting reflects the strong influence of Huang Junbi.

Dimensions

painting proper: 78.2 x 39.4 cm (30 13/16 x 15 1/2 in.) full mounting: 181 x 60 cm (71 1/4 x 23 5/8 in.)

Provenance

Hu Nianzu, New York, 1984, gift; to Chu-tsing Li, Lawrence, Kansas (1984-2012), gift; to his son B U.K. Li, Milwaukee, Wisconsin (2012-2017), gift; to Harvard Art Museums, 2017. Footnotes: 1. Dr. Chu-tsing Li (1920-2014)