元 倪瓚 江渚風林圖 軸|Wind among the Trees on the Riverbank

Created in 1363, Wind among the Trees on the Riverbank is executed as a hanging scroll using ink on paper. This support and medium combination is characteristic of the Yuan dynasty literati tradition, allowing for the sparse, expressive brushwork typical of Ni Zan's style. The work is classified as a landscape painting that formally depicts mountains and trees.

While the specific handling of the ink washes is not detailed in the provided records, the classification as a landscape genre piece by a master of the period implies the use of dry brush techniques and minimal composition to evoke a sense of desolation and tranquility. The artwork is currently held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it is cataloged as a Chinese hanging scroll.

Created in 1363, the hanging scroll Wind among the Trees on the Riverbank is an ink-on-paper landscape painting by the Yuan dynasty artist Ni Zan. The work originates from China and depicts a scene featuring mountains and trees. It is currently held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, where it was accessioned in 1989 under the catalog number 1989.363.39.

While the specific commission details and the full chain of ownership prior to its museum acquisition are not detailed in the provided records, the painting's inception is firmly dated to the year 1363. The artwork remains a significant example of Ni Zan's landscape genre from the mid-fourteenth century.

Wind among the Trees on the Riverbank (1363) is a hanging scroll executed in ink on paper by the Yuan dynasty master Ni Zan. The composition adheres to the artist's signature 'one-river, two-banks' structure, featuring a low, sloping foreground bank populated by a sparse cluster of bare trees. A vast expanse of blank paper dominates the middle ground, representing a wide, misty river, while a faint, distant shoreline anchors the upper section.

Painted in 1363, during a period of political instability and personal retreat, the work exemplifies Ni Zan's mature style, characterized by extreme economy of brushwork and a deliberate rejection of decorative density. The artist utilizes dry, angular strokes to define the tree trunks and foliage, creating a sense of structural rigidity against the void. This extensive use of negative space is not merely an absence of imagery but an active compositional element that evokes the quiet atmosphere and isolation central to the literati aesthetic.

The painting stands as a definitive example of the scholar-official tradition, prioritizing spiritual resonance and personal expression over realistic representation or narrative content.