Who painted 清袁江九成宮圖屏|The Palace of Nine Perfections?

清袁江九成宮圖屏|The Palace of Nine Perfections was painted by Yuan Jiang in 1691.

Where can I see 清袁江九成宮圖屏|The Palace of Nine Perfections?

清袁江九成宮圖屏|The Palace of Nine Perfections is held by Metropolitan Museum of Art.

What movement is 清袁江九成宮圖屏|The Palace of Nine Perfections?

清袁江九成宮圖屏|The Palace of Nine Perfections is associated with Baroque.

清袁江九成宮圖屏|The Palace of Nine Perfections by Yuan Jiang (1691)

About this work

Twelve tall silk scrolls line up like a folding screen, each showing part of a sprawling palace: towers, bridges, gardens, and winding paths in fine ink and soft color. Yuan Jiang never saw the real Nine Perfections Palace, long in ruins by 1691, so he built a dream version from old poems and his own invention for wealthy patrons.

Subject & Meaning

Executed as a set of twelve hanging scrolls in ink and color on silk, the piece belongs to the landscape genre and was created in China.

The painting portrays the Palace of Nine Perfections, identified as the subject of Yuan Jiang’s 1691 work. Executed as a set of twelve hanging scrolls in ink and color on silk, the piece belongs to the landscape genre and was created in China. Its depiction of an imperial palace is recorded in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s collection, where it is catalogued under the title “The Palace of Nine Perfections”.

Technique & Style

The Palace of Nine Perfections is executed as a set of twelve hanging scrolls, a format that allows the architectural subject to unfold across multiple panels. According to the catalogue record, the medium is ink and color on silk, a traditional support favored by Yuan Jiang and his circle. The work is classified as a landscape painting, with the palace complex serving as its central motif.

The twelve-scroll arrangement, combined with the silk ground and the combination of ink with polychrome coloring, reflects the formal conventions of late-Qing architectural fantasy painting, in which meticulous line work and layered washes are used to render receding structures and ornamental detail.

History & Provenance

The work titled 清袁江九成宮圖屏|The Palace of Nine Perfections is a set of twelve hanging scrolls executed in ink and color on silk by Yuan Jiang in 1691 in China. It depicts the Palace of Nine Perfections and is classified as a landscape painting. The Metropolitan Museum of Art holds the set in its collection, with the accession recorded as part of its holdings.

The dating is based on the inscription “1691” noted in the work’s metadata, and its creation is documented as a Qing-era painting produced in China.

The set of twelve hanging scrolls titled The Palace of Nine Perfections, created by Yuan Jiang in 1691, is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. While the work is classified as a landscape painting depicting a palace, the provided sources do not specify a unique accession or inventory number for this specific set. Furthermore, the available documentation regarding this artwork does not record any exhibition history or public display dates.

The work remains part of the museum's holdings as a significant example of Chinese landscape art from the Qing dynasty, though specific details regarding its cataloging within the institution's broader database are not detailed in the current records.

Overview

The Palace of Nine Perfections, created by Yuan Jiang in 1691, is a monumental landscape painting presented as a set of twelve hanging scrolls. Executed in ink and color on silk, this extensive work depicts a sprawling imperial complex. It exemplifies the artist’s characteristic style of rendering elaborate architectural scenes within idealized natural settings, offering a panoramic vision of a legendary site.

Context

Yuan Jiang was known for producing large-scale landscape paintings for affluent patrons who sought impressive depictions of imaginary or idealized palaces. His ability to synthesize historical accounts and poetic allusions with his own artistic vision made him highly sought after. This particular commission reflects the taste for elaborate, decorative works that offered a window into a romanticized past, even if the depicted structures were largely products of the artist's imagination.