Cleveland Museum of Art

Zhongli Quan Crossing the Ocean

Zhao Qi

Date

1368–1644

Medium

Hanging scroll; ink and color on silk

Culture

China, Ming dynasty (1368–1644)

Department

Chinese Art

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

Here, Zhongli Quan is crossing the ocean. He is one of the Eight Immortals ( baxian ), a group of popular Daoist figures who understood the way of life and could transform into otherworldly beings. Zhongli Quan is usually depicted as a scholar with a big belly seen through his partially open robe. The artist used expressive brushwork to depict the immortal’s fluttering robe and the roaring waves, skillfully creating a sense of movement. This scroll may have been one of a set depicting the Eight Immortals. Although the painting has no signature or seal, its style supports an attribution to the Ming dynasty painter Zhao Qi. Zhongli Quan wears a girdle of leaves, a common Daoist immortal-recluse attribute.

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