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DiaporamaWhiling Away the Summer at the Ink-Well Thatched Hut
1679
36.0 x 269.0 cm
In his inscription, Wu Li records that he painted this handscroll one clear morning after a rainfall, sitting alone in his studio thinking of an absent friend. There is a dreamlike quality about the painting: birds, trees, bamboo, mist, and even rocks dance joyously around the hermit-scholar, who sits quietly reading in his idyllic domain. Although he was an ardent admirer of Huang Gongwang (1269–1354), Wu transformed the Yuan painter"s "hemp-fiber" texture strokes into a distinctly personal style: cool pale ink textures in intricate contrasting patterns, silhouetted and suspended in space, have been applied with both an athlete"s vigor and a poet"s gentle cadence.In 1681, two years after he painted this work, Wu Li was baptized as a Christian, a most uncommon thing to do for a man of his background. Ordained in Macao as a priest in 1688, he was sent in 1689 to do missionary work in Shanghai, where he died in 1718.
wu lì (1632 – 1718)
Explore the unique art of Wu Li (1632-1718), a Chinese Jesuit priest & painter. Known for landscapes, poetry & Christian themes, he’s a Six Masters figure.
About this artwork
- Title: Whiling Away the Summer at the Ink-Well Thatched Hut
- Artist: wu lì
- Year: 1679
- Original dimensions: 36.0 x 269.0 cm
- Format: Panoramic
- Copyright status: Public domain
- Color hue: Green Spectrum
- Color intensity: Balanced
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