Listening to the Spring

Li Shizhuo is a painter in Qing dynasty, courtesy name Tianzhang, Hanzhang and Tiantao, pseudonym Guzhai, Xingya, etc. He was born in Fengtian (aka Shenyang), Manchu Yellow Banner. He is good at landscape, bird-and-flower, fruit painting and portrait. His early works are outstanding in detail, modeled on orthodox styles with elegant brushstrokes. His style becomes more wild when he gets old.
This work is painted with ink and color on silk, similar to Chou Ying’s style of blue-and-green painting. Standing beside mountain streams, enjoying the tranquil view of pine trees, listening to the spring and making tea, you can soak up the atmosphere between the landscapes. It perhaps represents the characteristic of literati in Wei and Jin dynasties, showing a sense of detachment from the mortal life. This work is carefully painted, and hence it is a rare piece from his early age. It is very different in styles from his later works, especially those finger paintings with ink.