The Art Institute of Chicago

Yandang MountainsAuthor(s): Jay XuSource: Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies, Vol. 32, No. 1, Notable Acquisitions at TheArt Institute of Chicago (2006), pp. 34-35Published by: The Art Institute of ChicagoStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/4104495 .

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Yandang Mountains

Late i8th/early 19th century Qing dynasty (1644-1911)

Cai Jiating (Chinese; act. 1796-1820)

Ink and colors on paper; 34 x 56o cm (13 3/8 x 221 5/ in.)

RESTRICTED GIFT OF MARILYNN ALSDORF, 2005.53

olling along China's east coast in southeastern

Zhejiang Province, the Yandang Mountains are cele- brated for their magnificent peaks, cliffs, and waterfalls. Literati and other like-minded travelers have long enjoyed roaming the mountain paths in solitary contem-

plation or gathering together in secluded caves for

enlightened conversation. In this long scroll, the artist Cai

Jiating presented a topographical panorama of the famed

mountains, depicting in detail specific scenic spots and

legendary landmarks, all of which are identified by lofty names such as the Three Worthies and the Solitary Old Man Peak, which Cai inscribed throughout the work.

Cai, however, clearly did not conceive the painting as a realistic representation of the mountains but used artistic

34

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license freely, presenting an imagined tour of an idealized

landscape, conjuring cultural memory. Today, as we view the scroll by gradually moving from right to left, we

might feel as if traveling through the time and space of an enchanted dream.

Cai Jiating is known for the beauty of his untram- meled landscapes, but his surviving works are extremely rare. In this painting, his expressive power is much in evi- dence. The dramatic composition of mountain motifs pro- duces striking views, and the dexterously applied ink wash and light colors evoke the region's misty environment,

creating a poetic ambience well suited to the tastes of his literati audience. Cai's brushstrokes, while describing the

landscape, appear to possess and express an independent

formal beauty much like that of calligraphy. As arbiters of

taste, literati especially cherished calligraphic brushwork, for their first calling was writing and calligraphy.

The genre of topographical landscape had a long his-

tory in China and became an important category of literati

painting in the Ming dynasty (1368-1644), with masters such as Shen Zhou (1427-1509) creating unforgettable

images. In his inscription at the beginning of this work, Cai speaks of his debt to Shen Zhou, and, indeed, his loose but robust brushwork and some segments of the compo- sition recall those of his influential predecessor. In

acknowledging this connection, the artist asserted his own

membership in the grand tradition of literati painting.

JAY XU

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