A Panorama of Rivers and Mountains

A Panorama of Rivers and Mountains

A Panorama of Rivers and Mountains is a landscape scroll by Wang Ximeng, a renowned painter during the Northern Song Dynasty. It is regarded as a masterpiece of Song-dynasty blue-green landscape paintings. Wang completed the painting at the age of 18, and it is his only work to be preserved to present day.

The painting mainly uses pigments made of minerals such as azurite and malachite, and the colors are exaggerated, gorgeous, and long-lasting. Nearly 12 meters long, it is roughly divided into six parts, each with mountains as the mainstay, connected by bridges and flowing rivers. The mountains in the painting are either towering into the clouds or rolling and undulating.

One can appreciate the vastness of forested mountains and meandering rivers. Looking closely, one will see waterfalls hanging high on the cliffs, lush forests and bamboos on the mountains, and blooming flowers on the riverside as well as villages, temples, pavilions, and tiled or thatched houses scattered around. Fishermen and farmers are busy working, and scholars and hermits are either socializing in groups or enjoying the scenery alone. Each figure, though tiny, is vividly portrayed.

With refined techniques, bright colors, and meticulous depictions, A Panorama of Rivers and Mountains presents a scene of people enjoying their lives with contentment in lush mountains and lucid waters. It not only reflects the painter's superb skills, but also presents an ideal world of beauty and harmony in his mind.

《千里江山图》局部

Part of A Panorama of Rivers and Mountains.

《千里江山图》

《千里江山图》是北宋画家王希孟绘制的山水长卷，堪称宋代青绿山水画中的鸿篇巨制。王希孟作画时年仅18岁，这也是他唯一传世的作品。

《千里江山图》以石青、石绿等矿物质为主要颜料绘成，用色夸张艳丽，色泽持久。画卷仅画心即近12米，大致分为六个部分，每部分以山为主体，用桥和流水衔接过渡。图中所绘山峦，或高耸入云，或绵延起伏，层峦叠翠间，亦可领略江河之烟波浩渺。细看山水之中，有瀑布高挂山崖，有山间茂林修竹，有水边岸芷汀兰，村落、寺庙、亭台水榭、瓦屋茅舍等，隐于其中。渔人农夫忙于生计，书生隐士或群聚社交，或独自赏景，形象虽细小如豆，行态却生动鲜明。

《千里江山图》以精炼的手法、绚丽的色彩和细致的描绘，呈现出人们在青山绿水中安居乐业、各得其所的景象，不仅是画家高超技法的反映，更是时代英才胸中的锦绣山河。