Garden for Solitary Enjoyment, the spiritual home of scholars

  • Artwork name
    Garden for Solitary Enjoyment
  • Author and dynasty
    Qiu Ying (仇英) / Ming Dynasty (1368–1644)
  • Dimensions
    Color on silk, 28 x 518.5 cm
  • Collection source
    Cleveland Museum of Art
  • License
    Public Domain Content: Free for Personal & Commercial Use
  • Museum-Quality HD JPG, 65500 × 1547 pixel, size: 21.5 MB
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Artwork Author

Qiu Ying (仇英)

Qiu Ying (仇英), Ming Dynasty (1368–1644), one of the “Four Masters of the Ming Dynasty,” was a painter renowned for his meticulous brushwork and vibrant blue-green landscapes. Born into a humble family in Taicang, he trained initially as a lacquer artisan before studying under Zhou Chen. His style synthesized Tang-Song traditions with Ming courtly precision, blending sumptuous mineral pigments (zhongcai) and poetic lyricism.Masterpieces like Spring Morning in the Han Palace (Han Gong Chun Xiao Tu) exemplify his virtuosity in narrative detail, depicting over 100 figures and architectural intricacies within a handscroll format. A Celestial Realm in the Peach Blossom Spring (Taoyuan Xianjing Tu) merges layered mountain vistas with ethereal atmospheres, redefining blue-green landscape conventions. Though few authenticated works survive—such as Red Cliff Scroll (Chibi Tu) and Sword Gate Pass (Jian Ge Tu)—his technical brilliance in imitating ancient masters and pioneering genre scenes left an indelible mark on Suzhou School painters and later professional artists.

Artwork Story

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    The garden of solitary joy

This Scroll of the Garden for Solitary Enjoyment(Dule Yuan Tu), painted by Qiu Ying of the Ming dynasty, illustrates scenes inspired by Sima Guang’s Account of the Garden for Solitary Enjoyment. The scroll sequentially depicts architectural and natural elements including the Water-Playing Pavilion, Study Hall, Fishing Hut, Bamboo-Cultivation Studio, Herb Garden, Flower-Watering Pavilion, and Mountain-Viewing Hall. The tail section of the scroll is appended with calligraphic works: Wen Zhengming’s transcriptions of Account of the Garden for Solitary Enjoyment and Seven Odes to the Garden, Su Dongpo’s Poem on the Garden for Solitary Enjoyment and colophons by Xiang Yukui and others. The scroll is now housed in the Cleveland Museum of Art.

Duleyuan
Aren’t you tempted by this bamboo house?

Garden for Solitary Enjoyment, named by Song scholar Sima Guang (also known as Sima Wen, Duke of Wen), is depicted here per records of Luoyang’s famed gardens. In the scene, Sima Guang—dressed in white—reclines on a couch within a pavilion. Three towering pines, entwined with vines, canopy the structure. Four or five flower beds, each in full bloom, surround the pavilion, with servants carrying water to tend the plants. A cluster of three slender bamboos and a few mixed trees flank the front rockery. The composition uses bamboo groves to partition spaces: Sima Guang sits on a tiger-skin mat accompanied by a crane, while dense bamboos form a natural curtain overhead, evoking serene leisure. A single plant is rendered in each garden bed to emphasize horticultural uniqueness. At the far right, beyond the bamboo grove, a thatched cottage symbolizes Sima’s reclusive life, where he could freely roam and meditate among the woods.

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