Wang Wei’s Original “Wang Chuan tu” and Its Re-creation
Authors: Jeong Eun-joo 
Published: July 2019

Wang Chuan Villa was the private estate of Wang wei (701~761), as the greatest poet and painter of Tang Dynasty. It was in Lantian county of the southeast of Chang’an, the capital city. Wang retired to the countryside villa, where he described in a painting and in a poem of 20 quatrains. Wang’s poetry are rhyming couplets with the poems of fellow poet Pei Di along the natural landscapes of the Wang Chuan (輞川, “Wheel River”). Wang Chuan tu of Wang Wei is related to Caotang Shizhi tu, which depicted the poem of a sequestered life in Song Shan Mountain, by Lu Hong of Tang Dynasty. These works had a decisive effect on Longmian Shan Zhuang tu by the eminent artist Li Gonglin (1049~1106).After the deaths of his wife and his mother, Wang went deep into the study of Buddhism at his country villa. According to some records, Wang Wei painted the original pictorial composition of Wang Chuan Villa on the wall of Qingyuansi temple. Imperial counsellor (御史 大夫) Li Xijun (李栖筠, 719~776) had a Wang Chuan tu that was presented from chief monk of Qingyuansi temple, depicted the temple and the grave tower of Wang’s mother. Huang Tingjian, who was a poet in the Song Dynasty, analyzed two types of Wang Chuan tu, i.e. horizontal scroll and hanging scroll. Huang concluded that the type of horizontal scroll is suitable to paint the landscapes of Wang Chuan Villa. After Song Dynasty, hanging scroll type of Wang Chuan Villa began to appear.Even if Wang stands foremost among the artists to develop the Chinse landscape painting, Wang Wei’s original works can only be inferred from some records and remakes of his paintings. Wang Wei’s combination of masterful painting and poetic skills placed him in the mythic ranks in later generations. In the 17th century Dong Qichang (1555~1636) established Wang Wei as the founder of the Southern School of painter-poets, who concerned with personal expression. Although Wang’s original pictorial composition is not preserved, there are over 30 copies by later artists including Guo Zhongshu depicted the scenic spots in Wang’s poetry. The compositions provide a journey through a spectacular garden filled with sites designed to encourage quiet contemplation.The stone rubbing of Wang Chun composition in 1617 by Guo Shiyuan is the oldest style among the copies of Wang Chuan tu. Names of the special scenic features of the garden are written above each scene, such as Hollow at Meng's Wall, Apricot-Grain Cottage, Bamboo-Midst Cottage, Magnolia Park, Bamboo Hills, Deer Park, North Lodge, South Lodge, Vagary Lake, White Stone Shallows and so on.Even though Wang Chuan composition of the Art Institute of Chicago is considered by Li Gonglin, thickly contoured rocks, tight spatial recession, and other aspects stylistic features are associated with Chinese artists acted in the 15th century.Most existing Wang Chuan tu were reflected the painting style of Wu School in Ming Dynasty rather than Wang’s original style. Wen Zhengming had left a painting expressed with poetic ideas of Wang Wei and fellow poet Pei Di.Wang Chuan tu by Jin Xuejian described scenes of Qingyuansi temple and the grave tower of Wang Wei’s mother. Wang Yunqi referred to Wang Wei’s painting and poetry to guide his inspiration as well as the stone rubbing of Wang Chuan composition in 1617. While Wang Chuan tu was continuously recreated by painters for centuries, it was established itself as the origin of the literary artist's style in Chinese art history.