“The Radiance of the Night” (or “A Horse nicknamed The Radiance of the Night”) ( Chinese trade. 唐 韓 幹 照 夜 白 圖 卷 ) is a manuscript scroll of the Chinese artist Han Gan , created in the middle of the VIII century (about 750). Currently, the work is in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art , where the drawing was transferred in 1977.
| ||
| Han Gan | ||
| The Shining of the Night . 742–756 | ||
| 唐 韓 幹 照 夜 白 圖 卷 | ||
| Ink on paper. 30.8 × 34 cm | ||
| Metropolitan Museum of Art , New York | ||
| ( inv. ) | ||
The work is a portrait of the war horse of the emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty , tied to a pillar. At one time, Han Gan, considered the best artist in the history of China, depicting horses [2] , was famous for the fact that he could reliably display not only the appearance of the horse, but also its character and character, and also had excellent knowledge of horse habits [ 3] [4] . Burning eyes with large pupils, dilated nostrils and raised hooves in the image of the imperial horse in China were characteristic of the image of the mythological fire horse [5] . Han Gan himself in conversation with the emperor claimed that the horses in the stables were his painting teachers [3] . By order of Xuan Zong, Han Gan created a series of “portraits” of famous horses [6] .
European art critics often note the conventions of drawings by Han Gan and other representatives of Chinese painting and see in this a significant difference between China's animalistics and works with animal images created by European artists; with this simplicity and convention, “The Radiance of the Night” does not lose its expressiveness and spirituality [4] . In contrast to the naturalistic images of horses of the Central Asian breed, the horse on the Shine of the Night has less realistic proportions: in the figure the horse has short and very thin legs and a very rounded body [7] . Han Gan gave the horse human features, his exhausted gaze turned to the viewer and as if appealing to compassion and help [7] . The tie to the pillar and the emotional look of the horse reflect a different - sad side of life at the emperor’s court [7] .
Many of the original works of the artist were not preserved, but were repeatedly copied by painters of the following centuries [3] . Many seals and signatures of former owners-collectors confirm the ownership of the drawing by Han Gan [5] . The signatures and seals of the artist himself are not shown in the figure. Present are the seals of Emperor South Tang Li Yu , Emperor Qianlong , Mi Fei [5] . Seals and signatures were put on the drawing for a millennium and beyond [5] .
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/1977.78/
- ↑ Han Gan - an outstanding artist of the Tang Dynasty . Epoch Times.
- ↑ 1 2 3 Belozerova, V. G. Traditional art of China. Volume 1. Neolithic - IX century . - Russian State University for the Humanities, 2016. - P. 546.
- ↑ 1 2 Han Gan . Sinology.Ru .
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 唐 韓 幹 照 夜 白 圖 卷 Night-Shining White . Metropolitain Art Museum.
- ↑ Riftin, B. L. From myth to novel . - Ripol Classic. - P. 260.
- ↑ 1 2 3 Chinese artists - Han Gan .