Landscape after Wang Wei's "Wangchuan Picture"

The subject of this handscroll is understood, from well-documented historical records, to be a work by Wang Wei (701–761), the legendary scholar–artist who served the Tang court in the mid-eighth century. One of Wang’s magnificent paintings was said to depict the mountain Wangchuan, in Shaanxi province, a place famous for its statue of Ashoka, an Indian king (reigned 274–237 bce) who united India and traveled around Asia to preach Buddhism.

Here in this scroll, Song hides Ashoka’s statue deep in a cave, which appears after a long, horizontal scene of craggy mountains, thatched villas, and water. The consistent brushwork lends a pulsating, dynamic energy to the furrowed, mysterious hills in the painting.

The artist’s inscription at the end of this handscroll records that his friend was enchanted by a fourteenth-century copy of View of Wangchuan by Wang Wei, and playfully challenged him to paint a work that would be reminiscent of Wang Wei’s original painting. As agreed, when enjoying a summer retreat in the friend’s studio in 1574, Song Xu completed this work. Song humbly states that he did not even dream of “reaching the master Wang Wei”; he just wanted to “indulge the amusement” of his friend.