"Early Spring" 8K Video
Early Spring (Song Dynasty (11th Century)) by Guo XiNational Palace Museum
“Early Spring” , Guo Xi.
“Early Spring” is painted by Guo Xi. He presents unique concepts on space in the landscape. When painting the landscape, the artist had to grasp the idea that mountains have three distances. The three distances are: high distance, deep distance and level distance.
High distance represents the view of “Looking up at the mountain peak from the bottom”.
By raking the perspective of gazing at the peak. It increases compositional tension and illustrates the mountain’s almighty loftiness.
Deep distance represents the view of looking behind a peak form the front of the mountain. Overlapping elements in the scenery from front to back, creates a sense of distance.
Once the scenery has a feeling of front and back, the viewer can imagine spatial distance from the piled landscape forms.
Level distance represents the view of “looking at a distant peak from close to the mountain". The flat and level scenery creates horizontal space, like looking at a view of ocean or a vast plain.
When the painter fuses the scenery with skies, it creates the illusion of endless space.
Guo Xi's "Early Spring" employs the compositional method of "three distances," serving as the prime example of Guo Xi's own painting theory.
The artist in "Early Spring" employed fluctuating ink outlines for rocks, layered ink and texturing for surfaces.
Leaving blank areas for the clouds and contrasting light ink to create a sense of space, the result is a marvelous landscape enshrouded in the mists of spring.
The figures in the painting are also quite animated and lively. Travelers carrying goods, and making their way along a plank pathway in the mountains.
On the left, a group of travelers is disembarking from a small skiff, greeted by a woman holding a baby. Two youths are carrying shoulder poles, and a small dog is running behind.
On the right, a fisherman is gathering his net.
The composition of the painting is more or less symmetrical.
However, curved shapes are used on the rocks and tress.
With so-called “crab-claw” branches.
Which adds a touch of rhythm and life to the painting.
Guo Xi creates an ideal landscape, in which the viewer can both live and travel vicariously.
