This is the caption of image number 1Li Liufang (1575-1629), Ming dynasty (1368-1644)
Dated 1627, hanging scroll, ink on silk damask, 129 × 57.5 cm

 

Li Liufang was a native of She County of Anhui Province, but he migrated to and lived most of his life in Jiading (today's Shanghai). He passed the imperial examinations at the provincial level in 1606 and received the juren degree. As one of the "Nine Friends of Painting" (huazhong jiuyou), and appropriating the technique and style of Wu Zhen (1280-1354), he was a master of landscapes paintings. His paintings from life are also interesting for they incorporate the styles of masterworks of the Song (960-1279) and the Yuan (1272-1368) dynasties, and have a dynamic inner spirit. Li Liufang was well versed in poetry, calligraphy, and seal cutting. He wrote Collection of Tanyuan (Tanyuan ji) and Inscriptions and Colophons of the Painting of Recumbent Wandering of the West Lake (Xihu woyoutu tiba).
  This painting depicts an empty pavilion, tall trees, river bank, and rocks in the foreground, and mountain ranges covered with luxuriant trees in the background. The lines are flexible and the movements of the brush smooth, creating a serene and spacious feeling. The layout of the foreground view and the technique of painting trees show the artist's debt to Ni Zan (1301-1374), except for the more saturated ink application. The trunks were freely outlined and the leaves were dotted forthrightly. The style of the painting is metaphorical. As for the mountain rocks, they were painted either with parallel or cross "hemp fibre" texturing strokes, and the style is vigorous and swift, washed with light ink suffused with water. It catches the gist of Wu Zhen's painting style.(Editor:admin)