Mountains of the Immortals
1335
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
1335
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
Mountains of the Immortals is a 1335 unspecified by Chen Ruyan, a Ming Painting work, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.
You see a misty green mountain valley dotted with pine trees, deer, and cranes. Tiny figures wander paths, and a red-robed immortal flies on a crane toward a hidden paradise. This painting was made during a war that ended the Yuan dynasty. The artist, Chen Ruyan, backed rebels fighting for control of China. The peaceful scene might be a wish for calm after chaos. To see more quiet mountain retreats like this, look up *china, yuan dynasty (1271-1368)*.
The landscape in deep green tones offers a view into a secluded mountain valley, populated by ancient figures surrounded by deer and cranes, all under high pine trees. A red-robed immortal in the air steers his crane toward the paradise land. This idyllic scene was presumably created amid the tumultuous transition from the Yuan to the Ming dynasty. Chen from Suzhou supported major rebel leaders, first Zhang Shicheng (1321–1367) with his base in Suzhou and then his rival Zhu Yuanzhang in Nanjing, after the latter had established the Ming dynasty. Chen was executed in 1371.
Such blue and green landscapes often evoke nostalgia for the idealized ancient times.
Read the full account in the museum source.
Chen Ruyan (1350–1371) was a Chinese artist, born in Suzhou.
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