Ren Renfa
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Ren Renfa (
Ren drew some outstanding paintings of horses, people, flowers and birds. His style is similar to the artists of the Tang dynasty (608–907) and he is considered a direct successor to Li Gonglin (1049–1106) of the Northern Song dynasty. His paintings of horses are comparable to those by Zhao Mengfu.[2]
Despite his position under alien Mongol emperors, Ren did not shy from producing works with a political subtext. His inscription on Fat and Lean Horses explains that the "fat horse represents the self-satisfied, wealthy official and the lean one the humble, poor, self-deprecating official."[3]
Ren's hydrological works include dredging the area in what is now Beijing to improve the water supply and leading a team to build embankments after the Yellow River burst its banks.[1]
Coming out of the Stable
A prominent work of his is Chu Yu Tu (出圉图 – Coming out of the Stable); on silk, with color, height 32.4 cm, width 201.9 cm, currently in the collection of
In this painting three officials of the royal stables are leading four horses out of the stable. The painting has a very explicit Tang style. The people in the painting are dressed in Tang style costumes. All these reflect that the artist admired the culture of the Tang dynasty. The people and horses are spread out in the painting, which is a main characteristic of paintings by Ren.
At the end of the painting (left side), there are some words about the artist and the year of painting. "On the third day of the second month of spring, 1280, [I] made Coming out of the Stable at the Keshi Hall. Recorded by Yueshan Ren Ziming." There is a poem written by the Qianlong Emperor (Qing dynasty, r. 1736–1795), who also added some notes in the middle of the painting. It is one of the earliest works of Ren (and the earliest one of his that exists), and was drawn in 1280 when he was 27.
Five Drunken Princes Returning on Horseback
This 2-metre (6.6ft) scroll depicts five princes on horseback with four attendants. Among the princes is
In 1922, after the fall of Qing dynasty, the scroll was taken from the
In October 2020 it was sold at
Notes
- ^ a b c Cihai: Page 220.
- ISBN 978-9004218598.
- ^ Little, Stephen L. Grove Art Online Oxford University Press https://doi.org/10.1093/gao/9781884446054.article.T071506
- ^ a b Associated Press in Hong Kong (8 October 2020). "700-year-old drunken princes scroll fetches £32m in Hong Kong". The Guardian.
- ^ a b "Ren Renfa's 'Five Drunken Princes Returning on Horseback' Soars to HK$307 Million / US$40 Million". Sotheby's. 8 October 2020.
- ^ The10 Most Expensive Works of Art Sold at Auction in 2020, Artnet News, December 14, 2020
References
- Ci hai bian ji wei yuan hui (辞海编辑委员会). Ci hai (辞海). Shanghai: Shanghai ci shu chu ban she (上海辞书出版社), 1979.
External links
- Cleveland Museum of Art, "Three Horses and Four Grooms, c. 1320s, Ren Renfa," accessed 27 Sept. 2021 [1]
- China-on-site
- China Page on him