Layered Peaks and Splashing Waterfall: Portrait of Hua Yan as a Young Man

層崗飛瀑圖

1705

and Wei Shijie 魏士傑

(Chinese, 1667–after 1747)

Culture

China, Qing dynasty (1644-1911)

Medium

Hanging scroll; ink and color on silk

Measurements

Painting: 130 x 47.2 cm (51 3/16 x 18 9/16 in.); Overall: 281 x 95 cm (110 5/8 x 37 3/8 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of various donors by exchange 2001.120

You can copy, modify, and distribute this work, all without asking permission. Learn more about CMA's Open Access Initiative.

Location

Not on view

Did You Know?

Hua Yan's autobiographical inscription, full of remorse and insecurity, is squeezed into the contour of a hill in the upper left.

Description

This portrait was jointly executed by Wei Shijie and Hua Yan himself who painted the landscape in the background. Hua Yan is shown here at the age of about 23. The sword at his back is a reference to his early desire for a military career, while the scholar’s robe suggests an opposing aspiration. Together these are signs of a complex personality.

The painting also reveals Hua Yan’s early talent in painting. While Wei Shijie is little known, Hua Yan would later become a well-known painter. In addition to Wei Shijie and Hua Yan, nine of Hua Yan’s contemporary friends left inscriptions on the painting.