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The Thatched Hut of Dreaming of an Immortal

National Museum of Asian Art

Object Details

Artist
Tang Yin 唐寅 (1470-1524)
Label
A brilliant youth, Tang Yin achieved first place in the provincial examinations that he hoped would open a career for him as an official, but scandal ruined his chances. He instead became a professional painter who received commissions from his scholar friends. This handscroll was requested by Tang's contemporary Wang Dongyuan, who followed Daoist practices meant to encourage longevity. After a prophetic dream in which Wang Dongyuan saw an immortal approaching him, Wang named his garden "Dreaming of an Immortal." It was common in the Ming dynasty (1368-1644) for a garden proprietor to take the name of his garden, or a site within it, as a sobriquet, or secondary name. Thus, the painting is a "double image" that refers to Wang Dongyuan as a sleeping figure and, by extension, through the garden property itself. Tang Yin creatively captured the meaning of the garden's name by portraying Wang asleep with the dreamy emanation of an immortal floating in the sky.
Provenance
To 1939
Tonying and Company
From 1939
Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from Tonying and Company in 1939
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art Collection
Exhibition History
Painting with Words: Gentlemen Artists of the Ming Dynasty (April 16 to July 24, 2016)
Chinese Gardens in the Painter's Imagination (January 13, 1997 to January 5, 1998)
Chinese Art (May 9 to November 29, 1993)
On Becoming Immortal (May 9, 1993 to August 15, 1994)
Masterpieces of Chinese Painting (I) (August 3, 1984 to February 7, 1985)
Chinese Painting: Che and Wu Schools (Mainstreams of Landscape Painting in the Ming Dynasty) (October 15, 1982 to March 17, 1983)
Chinese Calligraphy (May 9, 1980 to November 14, 1980)
Chinese Calligraphy (April 18, 1977 to September 13, 1977)
Chinese Figure Painting (September 17, 1973 to January 3, 1975)
Chinese Art (January 1, 1963 to March 6, 1981)
Chinese Paintings (June 5, 1957 to January 1, 1963)
Untitled Exhibition, Chinese Painting and Calligraphy, 1947 (January 7, 1947 to April 11, 1955)
Chinese Panels and Han Pottery (February 25, 1925 to July 19, 1943)
Previous custodian or owner
Tonying and Company 通運公司 (established 1902)
Credit Line
Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment
early 16th century
Period
Ming dynasty
Accession Number
F1939.60
Restrictions & Rights
Usage conditions apply
Type
Painting
Medium
Ink and color on paper
Dimensions
H x W (image): 28.3 × 103 cm (11 1/8 × 40 9/16 in)
Origin
China
Related Online Resources
Google Arts & Culture
See more items in
Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection
Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery
Topic
landscape
Daoism
Ming dynasty (1368 - 1644)
sleeping
Daoist Immortals
dreaming
China
Chinese Art
Record ID
fsg_F1939.60
Metadata Usage (text)
Not determined
GUID (Link to Original Record)
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ye356768f1a-1b41-4d9a-8fbd-b725ec34ffe8
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
International media Interoperability Framework
IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.
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