Peaks of Mount Huang 1623 - 1697

Mei Qing created this ink and color on gold paper fan painting of the Peaks of Mount Huang during the Qing Dynasty. The symbolic use of landscape had, by this time, become a sophisticated vehicle for personal expression. Note how the artist represents Mount Huang, a place celebrated for its sublime and imposing scenery. During the Qing Dynasty, the ability to represent a recognizable place through the use of a personal style became closely tied to the literati identity of scholar-artists like Mei Qing. To paint and collect paintings was an act of cultural and political self-assertion. Art historians consult a variety of resources to better understand works like this: dynastic histories, local gazetteers, collected writings, and published painting manuals. Consideration of these texts helps to reveal the important role of art in the creation and maintenance of cultural values.