Art lovers have a rare and limited opportunity to view a scroll considered a seminal work in the history of Chinese painting, “Illustration to the Second Prose Poem on the Red Cliff,” on view for a few weeks only at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.
After August 1, the scroll will be taken off view and not available for public viewing for at least five years to protect it from deterioration caused by exposure to even low light levels.
“This remarkable work is almost a thousand years old, and we feel a deep responsibility to preserve it for another millennium,” said Colin Mackenzie, senior curator of Chinese art at the Nelson-Atkins.
More than 18 feet long, the handscroll was painted sometime in the late Eleventh or early Twelfth Century by little known artist Qiao Zhongchang to illustrate a poem by the famous poet, calligrapher and painter Su Shi (1037‱101). The poem recounts Su’s visit to the site of a decisive battle.
This battle †the subject of a two-part epic movie, The Red Cliff, released in 2008 and 2009 †marked a turning point in the fortunes of the Han dynasty and was later immortalized by poets, such as Su Shi. The poem itself is highly personal and allusive rather than heroic and dwells on Su Shi’ s psychological reaction to the site rather than recounting the battle itself.
“The painting remarkably captures the essence of the poem,” said Mackenzie. “What is so revolutionary about this painting is that almost for the first time in the history of art, personal expression becomes more important than mere representation.”
Chinese painters of this era had already mastered the realistic representation of landscape using devices such as graduated ink washes and a variety of brushstrokes to convincingly suggest both atmospheric recession and the solidity of forms.
Zhongchang confidently dispenses with many of these devices. Washes are absent and there is no real interest in suggesting illusionistic effects. Instead, it is the emphasis on dry brushwork †so dry that it looks more as though it was executed with charcoal than with a brush and ink †as a vehicle for individual expression that is the artist’s concern.
As if to emphasize his bond with the poet, Qiao inscribes the poem on the surface. “This painting is ultimately a dialogue with the poet Su Shi, whom possibly Qiao could have known,” Mackenzie said. “Its purpose was not to capture the scene †Qiao had almost certainly never visited the Red Cliff †nor even to commune with nature, but rather to create a work which expresses visually a poetic sensibility and refinement. As such, the subject of this painting is not a scene, but style itself.”
“A painting such as this makes us question many notions sometimes mistakenly put forward as typical of Chinese culture such as collective conformity, copying and lack of innovation. This is the work of a highly original and surprisingly modern mind,” Mackenzie said.
The Nelson-Atkins is at 45th and Oak Streets. For information, www.nelson-atkins.org or 816-751-1278.
