Figure Painting of the Middle Ming Dynasty:
A Special Exhibition of Works by Chou Ch'en
Gallerise 202, 212
2000/7/10 - 2000/9/25

Chou Ch'en (ca. 1460 - after 1535), who hailed from the Soochow area, is traditionally regarded as a purely professional painter. He excelled at figure painting - capturing the richness of old visages and strange looks by combining as attention to detail with a freedom of expression. While Leisurely Watching Children Catch Willow Flowers shares the traditional Southern Sung Ma-Hsia style one-corner composition of Che school paintings, it lacks their typically vigorous burshwork. The painting is filled with the lyrical quality of Southern Sung academy painting. The figure painting of Chou Ch'en's student Ch'iu Ying shares most of these stylistic features.