RenShen New Year 9 Dragon Roll

“This long handscroll of the “Nine Dragons” is one of Boston Museum of Fine Arts’ great treasures. It is also one of the greatest treasures of best-preserved and most reliably attributed example of Chen Rong's dragon painting and carries two inscriptions by his own hand. According to the first inscription, the scroll can be dated to 1244, a period of the Southern Song Dynasty.

This long handscroll depicts, as indicated by the title, nine dragons, which appear among clouds, waves, wind, gorges and cliffs, executed in monochrome ink on paper with some subtle touches of red color.

The handscroll displays a great variety and creativity in painting technique, a combination of seemingly random and spontaneous application of ink with highly controlled and articulated brush technique. For example, some areas of the painting display the use a piece of cloth to apply ink or ink splashes, whereas rock surfaces or dragons' scales are executed with a more controlled brush. These observable features match with descriptions of Chen Rong's painting practice, which report that he painted spontaneously when drunk and used his cap to smear ink on the painting surface. Chen Rong himself refers to this practice in his inscription as well. The overall effect of the painting is one of continuous movement and energy throughout the scroll, from which the dragons emerge and into which they disappear.”