Finches and Bamboo

Title: Finches and Bamboo
Description: Huizong was the eighth emperor of the Song dynasty and the most artistically accomplished of his imperial line. Finches and Bamboo exemplifies the realistic style of flower-and-bird painting practiced at Huizong’s academy. Whether making a study from nature or illustrating a line of poetry, however, the emperor valued capturing the spirit of a subject over literal representation. Here the minutely observed finches are imbued with the vitality of their living counterparts. Drops of lacquer added to the birds’eyes impart a final lifelike touch.
Identifier: Painting, Chinese
Creator: Song Huizong, Emperor of China, 1082-1135
Date: Northern Song dynasty (960–1127), early 12th century
Medium: handscrolls; Chinese silk; Chinese ink; color (pigment)
Subject: Animals; Flowers
Type: Painting
Format: Image: 13 1/4 × 21 13/16 in. (33.7 × 55.4 cm); Overall with mounting: 13 3/4 in. × 27 ft. 6 5/16 in. (34.9 × 839 cm)
Language: Chinese (traditional) (language)
Rights Holder: Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.)
Contributor: John M. Crawford Jr. Collection, Purchase, Douglas Dillon Gift, 1981