GU WANG (Ming Dynasty) Hanshan and Shide Writing Poetry

GU WANG (Ming Dynasty)
Hanshan and Shide Writing Poetry
Hanging scroll, ink and color on silk, inscribed by the artist and dated yichou signed Caishan, Gu Wang, with two artist's seals.
31 x 17 3/4in (79 x 45cm)
Footnotes:
顧望 寒山拾得題詩圖 設色絹本 立軸 明代

款識：乙丑仲秋采山顧望

There is no information available about Gu Wang, courtesy name Caishan. However, the format, composition, subject matter, and brush style of the painting bear a resemblance to works by Yuan and Ming dynasty figural artists such as Yan Hui, a folk artist from the late-Song to early-Yuan period, and Liu Jun, a court artist from the Ming dynasty. These artists often depicted eccentric religious figures against a simplified landscape background, and the scale and proportions of the figures in Gu Wang's painting are similar to those found in their works.

Hanshan and Shide were two Buddhist poets from the Tang dynasty who lived in seclusion at Guoqing Monastery at Tiantai Mountain. The rendition of Hanshan and Shide date back to the late-Tang period, as recorded in poems. Pictorial portraits of the two in the Song and Yuan dynasties were greatly influenced by Chan Buddhism, while in the Ming dynasty, the subject became secularized and infused with elements of Daoism.

The present lot contains some elements that reflect the Yuan-style rendition of the subject, such as the use of a root-wood table, a landscape setting, and fluctuating brushstrokes. However, the presence of gourds tied around the waist of Hanshan, which are props associated with Daoism, the scholar's objects on the table, and the sweet tone of the painting, all suggest a Ming dynasty style.