LI CHENG: “A solitary Temple amid clearing Peaks”, 960-1127 – ink on paper - Nelson-Atkins Museum, Kansas City

The Song dynasty (960-1279) supposes a Renaissance in the Chinese art after the period of the Five Dynasties and the Ten States (907-960) characterized by the instability caused by the Barbarian invasions. The new emperors are interested in the artistic expression and begin a new patronage. On the other hand, the popularization of the vertical roll allows new advances in the representation of the landscape and the natural elements, and also to the investigation of the space and the volumetric effects

This work by Li Cheng is a good example of all this. The Buddhist temple has been represented from a considerable distance that allows us to appreciate the grandiloquence of the surrounding mountainous landscape. The evident verticality is emphasized by the three powerful waterfalls that surround the temple and feed the mighty river that two men are crossing by the small bridge, represented with an exceptional naturalism. The composition is a true masterpiece, and its small format does not reduce neither its force nor its effectiveness.