Landscape in Rain

"Landscape in Rain" portrays nature in transformation, constantly changing with wind and water. The weather conditions are suggested by the band of fog and the umbrella carried by a figure in the lower right. This work explores academic painting of the Northern Song Dynasty (960–1127) that fascinated Wen Zhengming during the 1540s and 1550s. He created a repertoire of images that convey the bleakness and desolation of winter. Wen was a celebrated member of the influential Wu school of literati painting and calligraphy in Suzhou. He did not inscribe or date the painting at the time it was made. However, at the upper right are two inscriptions by the artist written in 1547 and 1557, when he later viewed the work. At the lower right of the mounting brocade is a colophon inscription, added by the collector Xie Xiceng (active late 18th–early 19th century).