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Photo: Beth Mann
White Hawk
Photo: Beth Mann

White Hawk

Label TextThe Xuande emperor was an accomplished painter of animals whose refined brushwork and colors reflect the polished manner of the Painting Academy. This inscription notes that he emulated the style of Song-dynasty artist-emperor, Huizong (1082–1135) and that he bequeathed the work to his Grand Secretary Yang Shiqi. Although these attributions are unlikely, the image engages us with its mysterious subject: a white hawk has spotted a moth that remains alighted on a flower even though it is falling and losing petals. Straining against the bronze perch and chain—artfully disguised within a flower bough—this beloved pet is thwarted in its instinct to give chase.
Object number56.53
ProvenanceHoward C. Hollis
Photo CreditPhoto: Beth Mann
Exhibition HistorySeattle, Washington, Seattle Asian Art Museum, Chinese Art: A Seattle Perspective, Dec. 22, 2007 - July 26, 2009. Seattle, Washington, Seattle Asian Art Museum, Boundless: Stories of Asian Art, Feb. 8, 2020 - ongoing [on view Dec. 10, 2021 - July 24, 2022].
Credit LineMargaret E. Fuller Purchase Fund
DimensionsOverall: 32 x 13 1/2 in. (81.28 x 34.29 cm)
MediumInk and color on silk
Photo: Elizabeth Mann
Xiao Haishan
ca. 1450
Object number: 33.1676
Photo: Elizabeth Mann
Li Anzhong
1129-1130
Object number: 51.38
Photo: Seiji Shirono, National Institute for Cultural Properties, Tokyo
Japanese
13th century
Object number: 56.182
White Heron Castle
Tsuji Kako
ca. 1919
Object number: 2010.41.27
Photo: Eduardo Calderon
early 1920's
Object number: 2010.41.74
Photo: Elizabeth Mann
ca. 1919
Object number: 2010.41.84
Photo: Beth Mann
late 17th-early 18th century
Object number: 34.111
Photo: Elizabeth Mann
17th century
Object number: 2013.4.8
Photo: Spike Mafford
Japanese
18th century
Object number: 34.110
Photo: Elizabeth Mann
1887
Object number: 2009.21