Artwork
Returning Sails off a Distant Shores, from Eight Views of Xiao-Xiang
Returning Sails off a Distant Shores, from Eight Views of Xiao-Xiang is an unspecified painting by the Nihonga artist Tani Bunchō. It dates from 1788 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art.
About this work
Overview
Returning Sails off a Distant Shores is a painting from a set of album leaves depicting the Eight Views of Xiao-Xiang, a theme rooted in Chinese poetry and painting.
Subject & Meaning
The work shows a serene landscape with distant sails set against a misty backdrop, evoking the ever-changing landscape of the Xiao-Xiang region in southern China, where the Xiang River's mist-shrouded banks inspired generations of artists.
Context
The Eight Views of Xiao-Xiang theme was influential across East Asia, spreading to Korea and Japan, where it was taken up by artists, possibly at the behest of prominent Japanese Confucian scholars.
Artist & collection
