Scholar Contemplating a Cascade

In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, Korean painters aspired to adopt both the subjects and the styles of Chinese courtly painting. This small, elegant composition of a man in the robes of a Chinese scholar, relaxing by a mountain cascade, probably represents the eighth-century Chinese poet Li Bo, whose most famous poem is about a waterfall. Although unsigned, the painting is likely by Yi Jeong, an important Korean artist who drew his inspiration from the Zhe school, a group of painters active at the court of China’s Ming emperors. The Zhe school practiced a highly refined style that was in turn inspired by paintings of the Northern Song dynasty (960–1127). Shortly after Yi’s time, Korean artists would begin to represent more local subjects, including the region’s dramatic landscapes, eventually introducing painting styles that deviated from those practiced in China.