Minneapolis Institute of Art

Immortal Rock

Wang Yin

Date

1878

Medium

Ink on satin

Department

Asian Art

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

Wang Yin was born in NanJing, Jiangsu province but worked primarily in Shanghai. Although a professional artist he espoused literati values and published manuals on plum, orchid, bamboo and rock painting. This classic taihu garden rock represents the Daoist embodiment of changefulness; its rhythmic form is pierced through with holes large and small suggesting the rigors and erosion of time. The inscription by Wang reads: When the phoenix flew away, heaven turned cold and the green Wutong tree died as did the grass. The rock perch alone remained; it stood in the clouds and awaited the ordinary birds. The phoenix call at sunrise lasted three thousand years. It was the end of the world. I often stop playing the Qin under the moonlight. It seems an immortal has emerged from the moon. Done by Wang Yemei in winter; twelfth month, 1878 at Kyoto. China, Asia

The authoritative record is held by Minneapolis Institute of Art. LinkedCulture surfaces this object and its connections; it does not alter institutional metadata.