Where can I see 清佚名清明上河圖卷|Spring Festival on the River?

清佚名清明上河圖卷|Spring Festival on the River is held by Metropolitan Museum of Art.

What movement is 清佚名清明上河圖卷|Spring Festival on the River?

清佚名清明上河圖卷|Spring Festival on the River is associated with Baroque.

Artwork

清佚名清明上河圖卷|Spring Festival on the River

清佚名清明上河圖卷|Spring Festival on the River is an ink painting. It dates from 1749 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. This handscroll, titled Spring Festival on the River, is an 18th-century rendition executed in ink and color on silk.

About this work

Subject & Meaning

The handscroll depicts a landscape scene centered on a river populated with boats, executed in ink and color on silk.

The handscroll depicts a landscape scene centered on a river populated with boats, executed in ink and color on silk. Created in 1749 by an anonymous artist in China, the work belongs to the landscape painting genre. While the title "Spring Festival on the River" suggests a specific seasonal celebration, the provided documentation strictly identifies the visual content as a riverine landscape featuring boats and natural scenery.

The composition captures a moment of activity along the waterway, consistent with traditional Chinese landscape conventions that prioritize the depiction of nature and human interaction with the environment. The specific iconography is limited to these natural and nautical elements as recorded in the available records.

Technique & Style

The work is a Qing-era handscroll painted in ink and color on silk in 1749 in China, attributed to an anonymous hand. Executed as a landscape painting, it follows the continuous narrative format of traditional scrolls, guiding the viewer's eye along a river scene populated by boats and distant hills. The composition employs delicate ink washes and muted pigments, creating a balanced spatial depth through layered perspective.

Its formal style reflects Qing court aesthetics, with careful attention to line, gradation, and atmospheric effect, while the silk support contributes a smooth, luminous surface that enhances color saturation.

History & Provenance

The work titled 清佚名清明上河图卷, also known as Spring Festival on the River, is a handscroll painted in ink and color on silk. It was produced in 1749 in China by an anonymous Qing‑era artist, as indicated by its dated creation and the record that it was made in the country. The piece belongs to the landscape genre and portrays a bustling river scene with boats and surrounding terrain.

Following its execution, the scroll entered the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it remains on public display. Its attribution to an unknown master and the lack of documented earlier owners reflect an incomplete provenance, but the available documentation confirms its date, place of origin, and current custodial status.

The handscroll Spring Festival on the River, dated 1749, is held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. It is listed as part of the museum's collection, but no accession or inventory number is provided in the cited sources. Exhibition histories referenced do not mention any prior displays of the work, suggesting that it has not been included in publicly recorded exhibitions up to the present documentation.

The piece is categorized as a landscape painting depicting a river scene with a boat, rendered in ink and color on silk.

Context

The painting is attributed to an anonymous Qing dynasty painter, created in 1749, handscroll, ink and color on silk, part of landscape genre, depicts river scenes. It is housed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Scholarship identifies it as part of the tradition of Chinese river and festival paintings, reflecting Qing elite leisure and commercial culture.

Critical reception notes its detailed narrative and vibrant color, influencing later depictions of urban festivity. Its placement in art history underscores anonymous authorship yet significant role in documenting 18th‑century Chinese visual culture.

Overview

This handscroll, titled Spring Festival on the River, is an 18th-century rendition executed in ink and color on silk. It depicts a lively, expansive panorama along a winding river, populated by numerous boats, bridges, and miniature human figures. The artwork is notable for its intricate detail, inviting viewers to explore its many vignettes of daily life.

清佚名清明上河圖|Going Upriver on the Qingming Festival, After Qiu Ying

Artist & collection

Museum

Metropolitan Museum of Art

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