Artwork
Untitled
Untitled is an ink painting by the Baroque artist Gessen. It dates from 1765 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The sources identify the depicted subjects as a bird and peonies but do not provide specific details regarding their symbolic meaning or iconographic tradition.
Gessen's 1765 hanging scroll presents a bird-and-flower composition featuring a bird and peonies (Paeonia). Executed in ink and color on silk, the work focuses on these natural elements rather than a narrative scene or human figures. The avian subject is combined with the floral motif of the peony within a vertical format measuring 105.5 by 36.2 centimeters.
The sources identify the depicted subjects as a bird and peonies but do not provide specific details regarding their symbolic meaning or iconographic tradition.
Technique & Style
The work Untitled by Gessen is executed as a hanging scroll combining ink with polychrome pigments on silk. Its silk support is typical of Japanese scroll painting, and it measures approximately 105.5 cm in height by 36.2 cm in width, as recorded in the Metropolitan Museum of Art catalogue. The piece is a bird-and-flower painting portraying a peony (Paeonia) together with a bird.
Created in Japan in 1765, it reflects the medium and handling conventions of Edo-period scroll art, though its current condition is not detailed in the available documentation.
History & Provenance
Created in 1765 in Japan by the artist Gessen, this hanging scroll is executed in ink and color on silk and depicts a bird with peonies. The piece is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. While the specific circumstances of its commission and the chain of ownership prior to its acquisition are not recorded, the work's inception is dated to the mid-eighteenth century.
The accession number is not provided in the available records, the work measures 105.5 cm in height by 36.2 cm in width, and no specific exhibition history is documented.
Overview
Gessen's Untitled, created in 1765, is a hanging scroll rendered with ink and color on silk. This painting depicts a solitary bird perched upon a branch of paeonia. The composition highlights the artist's skill in combining natural elements, presenting a scene that invites contemplation of its visual and symbolic components.
Artist & collection
