A Han Dynasty Palace

• Hanging scroll, ink and light colors on silk　
• 156.6 x 108.7 cm

Li Rongj inwent by the style name Gongyan. In Xia wenyan 's "tuhuibaojian" (Treasured Paintings Seen), it states that he excelled at ruled-line painting and studied under Wang Zhenpeng (ca. 1280-1329), a favorite of Emperor Renzong (r. 1312-1320) who specialized in fine, detailed architectural subjects. As a student of Wang, Li Rongjin also became famous in ruled-line paintings. This painting employs a bird's-eye perspective to show a palatial complex by the water and on the mountainside consisting of halls, decks, and pavilions. This grand complex probably depicts, based on literary evidence as well as imagination, a grand occasion at one of the court gardens in the capital of Changan during the Han dynasty. The palace structures built into the side of the mountain extend in levels up to the top, creating three large open areas. Winding hallways  connect the main building and courtyard along with the smaller halls. The motifs follow a diagonal axis and the complex is composed of smaller units. Since most gardens from antiquity have long since disappeared, this painting perhaps reflects more of the imagination of the painter along with contemporary buildings. The other side of the painting is composed of an expansive water scene extending back to distant mountains . The painting method of the landscape and rocks and trees  are in the Yuan dynasty tradition of the Li Cheng and Guo Xi style, but the brush manner is closer to that of Tang Di  (fl. ca. 1287-1355), creating a style that tends more towards surface decoration. The dense and opulent buildings complement the open vista of the river.

The extremely fine structure of the buildings reveals the adept use of delicate brush and ink work .The details of the architectural units employ lines of different thickness, revealing the change from strict realism to gradual simplification that involves the formation of definite forms and repetitive surface lines in Yuan ruled-line paintings. This work is basically the same in dimensions and architectural units as a painting ("Ming-huang Cooling Off in Summer") attributed to Guo Zhongshu (?-977). Only in the arrangement of the mountain rocks and forest trees are there some differences, showing that the two may very well have come from the same model.

Li Rongjin

Li Rongjin (fl. 14th C.) was a student of the famous ruled-line painter of the Yuan court, Wang Zhengpeng. Li thus also excelled at ruled-line paintings of buildings in landscapes.

Xia wenyan

Xia wenyan was born in either 1312 or 1313 and died in the period from 1367 to 1370. In his youth, he delved in Confucian studies. He later served as a Fengyang Circuit Instructor of Confucian Studies and Prefect of Yuyao. He had a large collection of books and paintings, subjects which he appreciated since youth. Becoming increasingly skilled in connoisseurship, he is the author of "Tuhuibaojian" (Mirror of Treasured Paintings).

Ruled-line painting

There are two related definitions of "ruled-line paintings." One refers to a method of painting using a brush and a ruler to make straight lines. In painting, the brush is held against a rod or in a concave tube. The rod or tube proceeds along a ruler with the brush tip exposed, creating a straight and even line. Generally reserved for rendering buildings, it was also used for boats, bridges, and furniture. The other refers to a genre of Chinese painting, which naturally also includes buildings and related themes.

Winding hallways

Expansive water scene extending back to distant mountains

Landscape and rocks and trees

Tang Di

Tang Di (1287-1355) once studied paintings from the famous scholar-artist and official Zhao Mengfu, who came from the same hometown of Wuxing. Tang's surviving works are mostly in the Northern Song tradition of Li Cheng and Guo Xi. Although his official career was checkered, he was known for his wall paintings in the Longxiang Temple in Nanjing and at the Jiaxi Hall at court. He was also talented in prose and poetry.

Delicate brush and ink work

Guo Zhongshu

Guo Zhongshu (?-977) was a painter and etymologist of the Five Dynasties and Song period known for his straightforward character. Due to his frank commentary at court, he was banished by the Latter Zhou and the Song governments. He excelled at landscape paintings, especially ruled-line architectural subjects. His ruled-line renderings were not only precise but aesthetically pleasing. Learned in etymology, he was also gifted in seal and clerical script calligraphy.