[Collection Name]: Gao Jian Kong Mountain Waterfall View

[Historical Era]: Qing Dynasty

  Dimensions: 109 vertical and 46 horizontal centimeters

Explanation: Label: Gaojian Kongshan Waterfall Observation Picture, Divine Product Jingdong Jushi Collection

Inscription: With a staff, I search for a secluded scenery. I hear the sound of a waterfall in an empty mountain, and I do not know that beyond heaven and earth, there are still this remnant. Chu Yuan Ren's brushwork is highly simplified

Seal: Gao Jian's Seal Danyou Zhao's Treasure

The postscript on this axis highlights the meaning of the painting, which is a stroke of genius and brings great pleasure. The term "remnant" expresses the author's nostalgia for the old dynasty. Inscriptions and postscripts in calligraphy are accompanied by writing, expressing one's own thoughts without losing the sense of propriety. The lines are smooth, dynamic and energetic, with rounded and coherent transitions, and the overall appearance is delicate and strong.

In terms of brushwork, the work follows the style of Yuan people, imitating Huang Gongwang and Wang Meng. The entire painting depicts mountains and stones with delicate brushstrokes, using a large amount of hemp wrapping and texturing techniques. In close range, the pine tree trunks intersect, with dense and fluffy leaves, like entering a green screen, fully showcasing its beauty. The mountain waterfall is rendered in light ink, flowing into the viewer's heart, reflecting the fluidity of water. The distant mountains are also depicted in light ink, with rich levels of imagery. The work is a typical two-part composition, with a lower view up the mountain, separated by clouds in the middle, and a waterfall depicted between the clouds, highlighting the main body of the picture. "The heart follows the pen, and the image is taken without confusion.".

The title "Jingdong Jushi Collection" and the stamp "Zhao's Treasure" in the bottom left corner of the screen indicate that the work has been collected by many people. The evaluation of painting works has appeared since the beginning of Sheikh's Six Methods, and various critics have different views on the painting. In the Tang Dynasty, Zhu Jingxuan's "Catalogue of Famous Paintings of the Tang Dynasty" designated the "Divine and Energy" as the top, middle, and bottom grades, and added the "Yipin" as a separate category, without participating in the evaluation of the third grade. The divine grade is the first. In Deng Chun's "Continuation of Painting" of the Northern Song Dynasty, it was stated that during the reign of Emperor Huizong, he specialized in Dharma and placed divine and elegant abilities in the second place. Yipin was included in the list of divine abilities and ranked second, while the position of divine products remained unchanged. Huang Xiufu's "Yizhou Famous Paintings Record" puts forward different opinions: "The book is divided into four categories: elegant, divine, and capable.". Raise Yi, lower the position of God, and change the product to grid. The label title of this work is "Divine Product", indicating the collector's full affirmation of the painting. The author's calligraphy and calligraphy, with profound cultivation, is a typical literati painting.

Gao Jian (1634-1707), with the courtesy name Danyou and the courtesy name Lvyun, was a native of Yiyunshan and Suzhou, Jiangsu. Being able to write poetry, crafting landscapes, and imitating the style of Yuan people, it is very simple and simple, with a deep and stable layout, and a delicate and lovely flavor. I have the most sketches in my life, and I am good at drawing pictures of Plum Blossom Bookstore. I am cool and precious. He passed away at 74 years old. There are several works that have been passed down, including "Spring Mountains and Green Trees", "Early Summer in Jiangxiang", and "Poetry and Thoughts in the Cold Forest".

Dai Xi (1801-1860) was a Qing Dynasty official and painter. He was born in Qiantang (now Hangzhou, Zhejiang), with the courtesy name Chunshi (formerly known as Chunxi) and the names Yu'an and Songping. He was also known as Lu Chuang Jushi (formerly known as Ju Chuang) and Jing Dong Jushi. In the eleventh year of the Daoguang reign (1831), he passed the imperial examination and in the twelfth year of the Hanlin reign (1832), he was promoted to the position of Minister of War. Later, he returned due to illness and served as a lecturer at the Chongwen Academy. In the tenth year of the Xianfeng reign (1860), when the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom conquered Hangzhou, he died in a war and was posthumously named Wenjie.