Artwork
南宋 佚名 猿鹿圖 冊頁|Gibbons and Deer
南宋 佚名 猿鹿圖 冊頁|Gibbons and Deer is an ink painting. It dates from 1239 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. This Southern Song album leaf, attributed to an unknown hand, presents a tranquil scene of gibbons and deer rendered on silk.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
Executed in ink and color on silk, the work focuses on these two specific animals as its primary subjects.
This Southern Song dynasty album leaf depicts a gibbon and a deer within a landscape setting. Executed in ink and color on silk, the work focuses on these two specific animals as its primary subjects. While the precise symbolic narrative intended by the anonymous artist is not explicitly detailed in available records, the pairing of gibbons and deer was a recognized motif in Chinese painting of this period.
The composition highlights the naturalistic observation characteristic of the era's painting, presenting the creatures in their environment without additional contextual figures or inscriptions to define a specific allegorical meaning beyond their presence.
Technique & Style
The painting was created on a single leaf of silk, using ink outlines filled with muted pigments, a technique typical of Southern Song album leaves. The artist employed fine brushwork to render a deer and a gibbon within a sparse landscape, employing delicate line and subtle color washes that emphasize negative space. The support functions as an independent visual unit, intended for intimate handling rather than continuous scroll movement.
The composition balances the two animals with asymmetrical foliage, creating a lyrical, almost poetic rhythm. The work's style reflects the Southern Song preference for naturalistic detail and restrained palette, while the medium combines ink drawing with light polychrome application on silk.
History & Provenance
Gibbons and Deer is an album leaf executed in ink and color on silk, dated to 1239 and produced in China by an anonymous Southern Song painter. The work depicts a deer and a gibbon. It entered the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it is catalogued among the museum's holdings. No earlier ownership or commission details are recorded in the available sources.
Overview
This Southern Song album leaf, attributed to an unknown hand, presents a tranquil scene of gibbons and deer rendered on silk. Executed with ink and subtle colour washes, the work exemplifies the refined aesthetic of courtly painting in the 13th‑14th centuries, where natural subjects were portrayed with restrained elegance.
Artist & collection
