Artwork

Untitled

Untitled is an ink painting. It dates from 1249 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

About this work

Subject & Meaning

Together these associations lend the modest subject an emblematic weight, transforming a single bird into a meditation on devotion and connection.

This album leaf is classified as a still life and centers on the depiction of a goose. Rendered in ink and color on silk, the work isolates the bird as its sole subject, a compositional approach characteristic of Chinese still-life painting traditions in which individual animals were observed with naturalistic precision and elevated as objects of aesthetic contemplation.

The goose carries layered symbolic resonance in Chinese visual culture, where it is traditionally associated with marital fidelity, conjugal harmony, and the bond between husband and wife, owing to the species' reputation for lifelong pairing. It also evokes messages and letters, since geese were long believed to carry communications over distance. Together these associations lend the modest subject an emblematic weight, transforming a single bird into a meditation on devotion and connection.

Produced in China in 1249, the leaf belongs to a moment when such intimate, symbolically charged depictions of flora and fauna flourished as collectibles for literati audiences.

Technique & Style

The work is executed in ink and color on silk, taking the format of an album leaf. Classified as a painting, it belongs to the still-life genre and depicts a goose. The silk support measures 31.4 cm in height by 28 cm in width.

Produced in China and dated to 1249, the piece is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

History & Provenance

This anonymous Chinese painting dates to 1249 and is recorded as an album leaf executed in ink and color on silk. It portrays a goose and measures 31.4 cm by 28 cm. The painting is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. No documentation of a commission or specific ownership chain prior to its museum acquisition is available.

Overview

This work, an untitled album leaf, presents a modest composition of geese alongside a piece of china rendered on silk. Executed with ink and color, the piece exemplifies the delicate balance of line and wash typical of small-format Asian paintings, offering a clear yet restrained visual narrative.