Wu Wei Tribute

Wu Wei Tribute Misty Mountains

"Misty Mountains"

24" x 108" Ink on Paper Scroll

Available for purchase $NFS

Prints are available on Fine Art America by following the link in sidebar. This is a 24" x 108" ink painting that I did a while back.

These misty mountains gracefully float as if suspended on clouds. Drips and runs created on purpose as a tribute To Wu Wei.

Wu Wei was a professional painter who worked both in and out of the Imperial Court. In fact, he worked at the Imperial Court several times for several Emperors of the Ming Dynasty, having at times withdrawn voluntarily and at times being handed the pink slip by bureaucrats who disliked Wu because of his disdain for “important people.” This may have been due to his background, having come from a literati family that fell on hard times during his childhood. This caused his training to abruptly stop. However, he was a lucky man who attracted the patronage of a wealthy duke in Nanjing that launched his career as a professional painter. - Franklin Tom, East Asian Art Council member

The reason I made this originally was to show as an example of Wu Wei’s style. He was often drunk when he painted and allowed the ink to drip and run as if he didn't care. You could say he was an impressionist ink painter in his later years. He gestured the feelings of object like rocks and trees, rather than making perfect interpretations.

His behavior in these times was seen as highly objectionable but he was basically given a free pass since his artworks were so well loved. The aristocrats of society would have let him do almost anything as long as he kept painting.