Landscapes, Flowers and Birds

Landscapes, Flowers and Birds

Xiang Shengmo

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Xiang Shengmo enjoyed two significant advantages in his early years as a painter. First, his grandfather Xiang Yuanbian possessed the greatest collection of old masterworks in the realm. Second, Dong Qichang, whose theories were so influential in seventeenth-century art circles, served for a period of time as a tutor in his home, and Xiang maintained a friendship with the elder painter. With this unusual background, Xiang achieved an exceptional range, as is evident from this diverse album of landscape and flower subjects.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Landscapes, Flowers and BirdsLandscapes, Flowers and BirdsLandscapes, Flowers and BirdsLandscapes, Flowers and BirdsLandscapes, Flowers and Birds

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.