Gong Xian 1619-1689

signed Gong Xian, dated wushen, the ninth of the ninth lunar month (October 14, 1668), with a dedication and two seals of the artist, ban shan ye ren, xian

Heritage of the Brush (exhibition detail see lot 523)

Heritage of the Brush: The Roy and Marilyn Papp Collection of Chinese Painting, Phoenix Art Museum, 1989, cat. 15, pp. 62-64

- Silk bears tanned tone due to age. - Restoration of silk loss and ink loss can be found here there.
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Artist's inscription: 
The three artists Dong Yuan (active 10th century), the monk Juran (active circa 960-980), and Fan Kuan (circa 960-1030) were all active during the same period. I have seen many authentic works of Juran. This work half resembles Juran's and half of Dong Yuan's. This is because I like Dong's use of ink and Ju's brushwork.
Dong Yuan and Juran are the painter's standard script. Fan Kuan, Mi Fu (1051-1107), Wu Zhongkui (Wu Zhen, 1280-1354), and Gao Fangshan (Gao Kegong, 12448-1310), are more like the running or grass scripts. Of those who came before, I consider Dong Yuan the founding father of painting. Later on, Shen Zhou (1427-1509) painted toward a great synthesis. Shitian (Shen Zhou)'s paintings after Huang (Huang Gongwang, 1269-1354) were better and when he followed the style of Ni (Ni Zan, 1301-1374) he over-reached. But in the end he lamented that Dong and Ju are like heaven and cannot be reached. My paintings after Dong and Ju are like Shitian's after Dong and Ju, roughly similar in form and that is all.
- Translation courtesy of Wai-fong Anita Siu

'This landscape hanging scroll fills a major gap in the documentation on Gong Xian. Datable to 1668, it sheds new light on Gong’s style during the later 1660s, a period which is pivotal for the emergence of his characteristic, somber style but for which there are few dated works. This painting, together with recently published works in Chinese collections (see for example Illustrated Catalogue of Selected Works of Ancient Chinese Painting and Calligraphy, vol. 1, fig. Jing 10-023, p. 152), confirm that the transition from Gong’s early, spare and linear style to his mature, ink-laden manner took place during these years.'
- Heritage of the Brush, p. 62