This fan is a figure painting, the Chinese picture made to be unrolled or unpinned a section at a time rather than seen all at once. the Imperial painter’s hand that made it assumed a viewer in motion.
The figures subject is the excuse. What the Imperial dynasty painter sold was a way of looking, disciplined and unhurried.
Chinese painting treated the picture as a record of seeing, not a window onto the world.
A fan like this was made to be handed on, not framed forever. The figure painting still asks you to slow down, which is the whole point.
Object details
| Name | Figure painting fan (吴彬人物扇) |
|---|---|
| Artefact no. | 新00069223 |
| Technique | Figure painting (人物) |
| Period | Imperial dynasty |
| Collection | The Palace Museum, Beijing |
| Source | Palace Museum Digital Collection (数字文物库) |
Image © The Palace Museum. View the original in the Palace Museum Digital Collection.