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Publisher/Distributor

Exemplar of Heritage: Fan Kuan and His Influence in Chinese Painting

  • Taipei National Palace Museum
  • Chief Editor: Liu, Fang-Ju
  • Languages: Chinese and English
  • ISBN 978-957-562-728-7
  • Softcover
  • HK$450.00

This special exhibition on Fan Kuan as "Exemplar of Heritage" includes 45 paintings. Based on their features, the display is divided into three sections: "The Heritage of Travelers Among Mountains and Streams", "Paintings in Fan Kuan's Name," and "The Influence of Fan Kuan's Style." Together, they systematically present Fan Kuan's art over the ages via works bearing his name and featuring his techniques, such as "raindrop texture strokes" and "dense alum-head forests," thereby presenting a comprehensive arrangement of his heritage in Chinese painting. "Travelers Among Mountains and Streams" and "Sitting Alone by a Stream" are designated as "restricted" works for display, so they are being rotated in the first and second half of the exhibit, respectively, offering a feast for viewers' eyes. Fan Kuan's "Travelers Among Mountains and Streams" is now considered one of the most classic surviving works in the history of Chinese painting. Almost universal consensus in the art world has been reached about the importance of this painting, propelling it into the ranks of world art masterpieces, a process closely related to the National Palace Museum's research, exhibitions, and publications on Chinese painting over the years. This year (2015) marks the ninetieth anniversary of the National Palace Museum's beginnings and on the foundation of previous research to present not only "Travelers Among Mountains and Streams" but also other related paintings for a special exhibition. It will hopefully allow audiences to learn more not only about Fan Kuan and his painting, but also his influence on later Chinese painting, being a special gift in celebration of the Museum's ninetieth anniversary.