Streams and Mountains1372 · Study 1997.96

Context from the museum

Like many literati of the late Yuan and early Ming dynasties, Xu Ben was entangled with the perils of dynastic change as well as the ups and downs of his official career. It was mainly through the art of painting and poetry, as well as the ideal of reclusion, that he sought feelings of exhilaration and shared them with his friends. Xu created this monumental landscape during one of his periods of reclusion. His innumerable “hemp-fiber” texture strokes create a unifying rhythm among the towering mountains with tightly knit masses of rocks. Nestled among shady trees at the base of the mountain is a rustic retreat, which a scholar approaches on foot to visit with the hermit. Among the five inscriptions at the top of the painting is one by the artist himself. He dedicated the painting to someone named Jifu 吉夫 and recorded a poem in praise of mountains. Green trees, yellow orioles, everywhere are mountains; Aimlessly I return from the stream, where I watched the clouds. Man's life does not allow unbroken ease, But to be able to be high up in the mountain, this is leisure.

Museum description reproduced from its CC0 open-access record. Read the original catalog entry.

A detail to notice

An attendant opens a reed gate to welcome the scholar with a walking stick approaching the rustic retreat.

Observation supplied by the Cleveland Museum of Art.

Read the dimensions before the image

The selected image measurement for Streams and Mountains is 37.6 cm wide and 92.2 cm high, equivalent to approximately 14.8 × 36.3 inches. Dividing width by height gives a format ratio of 0.41:1. The rectangular bounding area is 0.35 square meters; it describes the measured footprint, not the amount of paint or the monetary value.

On an illustrative 300 cm wall, the recorded width occupies 12.5% of the span before adding a frame. A centered placement leaves approximately 131.2 cm on each side before adding a frame. These are calculations by Physical Art For Crypto using museum measurements. They are not the museum’s display recommendations.

Questions to bring to your own collection

With Streams and Mountains in view, identify one feature you can point to, then distinguish what the museum records from your personal response. Keep its medium, hanging scroll, ink on paper, in your notes when comparing contemporary works.

• Which part of this vertical composition catches your eye first?
• Would a 37.6 cm width still suit the space after allowing for furniture and a frame?
• What surface detail would you need to see in person or in a close photograph?