. 'The painter Chen Hongshou is one of the celebrated mavericks of Chinese painting history – as admired and loved for his eccentric behaviour as for his strange and often grotesque style of painting. This work, which he signed ‘Regretful Old Monk’, was painted after the fall of the Ming dynasty, in 1644, which he grew up hoping to serve as a scholar-official. To his great regret, Chen Hongshou never achieved this aim but instead became famous as a professional painter. This work, done in 1647 for one of Chen Hongshou’s patrons, recreates the scene of a literary gathering which took place in
. 'The painter Chen Hongshou is one of the celebrated mavericks of Chinese painting history – as admired and loved for his eccentric behaviour as for his strange and often grotesque style of painting. This work, which he signed ‘Regretful Old Monk’, was painted after the fall of the Ming dynasty, in 1644, which he grew up hoping to serve as a scholar-official. To his great regret, Chen Hongshou never achieved this aim but instead became famous as a professional painter. This work, done in 1647 for one of Chen Hongshou’s patrons, recreates the scene of a literary gathering which took place in Beijing half a century previously. The patron’s grandfather is the man seated to the right end. The guests, who are all identified by name in small inscriptions, include some of the greatest literary men of the day, including the calligrapher and taste-maker Mi Wanzhong (reading in the centre) and the Yuan brothers (far left), pioneers of a modern literary prose style.' —Chester Beatty Library An Elegant Gathering. circa 1646–1647. An Elegant Gathering, by Chen Hongshou
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Photo credit: © The Picture Art Collection / Alamy / Afripics
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