Landscape

Born the ruling house of Qing and blessed with natural talent, Pu Ru (Aisin Gioro) received a strict traditional education; moreover, the imperial household had an extensive collection of calligraphy and paintings, enabling him to learn by copying masterworks. An archetypal master of three arts—poetry, calligraphy, and painting—his painting and literary cultivation were mutually complementary. In the mid-1930s, he and Chang Ta-chien (1899-1983) were equally renowned, jointly known as "Chang of the South and Pu of the North." In postwar Taiwan art circles, Pu Ru, Chang Ta-chien, and Huang Jiun-pi were the greatest masters of traditional Chinese painting, popularly dubbed "Three Who Crossed the Sea" because all had come over from China. Pu Ru's landscapes were in the tradition of the great painters of the Song and Yuan dynasties, plain and elegant, with an emphasis on contour drawing, imparting a feeling of quiet harmony. Landscape is a 1945 work. Landscapes have always been a favorite subject of literati painters. Immersed in Confucianism and classical literature from an early age, Pu Ru was a master of brush technique, creating paintings that express a yearning for the lofty realms of the intellectual elite. Inscription: "A letter fills my eyes with tears, the bitter green waters of Xushui River divide and flow away in two streams. Here, endless, unbounded rains, as if the clouds have dropped from the sky. From the riverside come the sounds of a zither; in front of the cliffs, I recall a scholarly recluse. The monkeys' cries are heard only intermittently, perhaps because they come from the far side of the stream." Pu's smoothly fluid running-script, leisurely, elegant, and natural, resonates with the towering mountain and limpid waters of the lake below, the work a combination of poetry, calligraphy, and painting. Colors are fresh, simple, and refined, never dull or monotonous. The pine tree in the foreground, one of Pu Ru's favorite subjects, symbolizes the refinement and integrity of the literati. Lush vegetation covers the rocky mountainside; darker and lighter ink shading creates a rich, layered effect. The little house, half-hidden in a mountain forest, is truly lovely, an outward manifestation of the scholar hermit's inner world. The artist created different hues and tones by applying multiple layers of thin ink, the meticulous brushwork rendering the scenery vividly and naturally, creating a gentle, spacious ambiance. The broad, empty surface of the lake occupying the left half of the painting contrasts with the abundant scenery on the right, the two small boats on the lake adding vitality to the scene. As a whole, the painting is a profound artistic conception, imparting an aura of transcendent innocence.