Dragon Boat Regatta on Jinming Lake 1300 - 1368

Editor: This ink and color on paper artwork, titled "Dragon Boat Regatta on Jinming Lake", was created by Wang Zhenpeng during the Yuan Dynasty. The scene seems so muted, and what strikes me is how the artist was able to create such an intricate landscape of bustling boats and buildings. What catches your eye about this work? Curator: The use of ink on paper is interesting. It wasn’t simply about representing the scene but about the material implications – where did this paper come from? How were the inks made? Were these local processes or tied to wider networks of trade and resource extraction? The Yuan Dynasty saw a complex social hierarchy, with artisans and labourers forming the base. Who was actually benefiting from this art's creation and circulation? Editor: So you are seeing beyond the image to consider who had access to the materials and the labour conditions to even produce it? Curator: Precisely. These artworks didn't appear from nowhere. Their creation involved entire systems of labour. How would considering the socio-economic background and trade routes for the ink and paper affect how we understand Wang Zhenpeng's work today? Editor: That is fascinating! Thinking about art in terms of production lines and raw materials… it brings a totally different meaning to “landscape.” The landscape becomes not just a place represented, but a set of resources mobilized. Curator: Absolutely! Considering the material origins pushes us to examine the bigger picture. I think paying attention to these physical elements of creation opens a deeper insight into its purpose and value, then and now. Editor: I'll never look at ink on paper the same way again. I am now realizing the importance of all the "things" that constitute art.