Four Seasons of Flowers and Birds: Summer
Lü Ji, the unrivaled court bird-and-flower painter of the Hongzhi reign (1488–1505) in the Ming dynasty, presented Four Seasons of Flowers and Birds: Summer (176 cm × 100.8 cm, color on silk, Tokyo National Museum) as the vivid second panel of his monumental four-scroll series. Painted in his artistic prime during the early 1490s, this work embodies the grandeur of imperial court art while capturing the lush tranquility of summer, synthesizing the opulent gongbi legacy of the Five Dynasties master Huang Quan, the technical precision of Bian Jingzhao, and the bold brush energy of his contemporary Lin Liang.
The composition of Four Seasons of Flowers and Birds: Summer balances density with openness to perfection. A rugged boulder anchors the left foreground, its sharp edges framing clusters of gardenias, hollyhocks, and daylilies in full bloom. Bright yellow orioles and tiny tits nestle in the dense green foliage, their postures lively as if mid-song. In the calm water of the middle ground, a pair of waterfowl glides gracefully—their feathers rendered with meticulous detail—while the distant background dissolves into soft ink washes and negative space, ensuring the colorful flowers and birds remain the unwavering focal point.
In brushwork and color, Lü Ji demonstrates his peerless versatility as a court painter. The birds and blossoms are executed with exquisitely fine double outlines and layered mineral pigment washes, each petal, stamen, and feather defined with such tactile realism that it evokes the scent of summer blooms and the rustle of feathers. In stark contrast, the boulders and tree trunks are painted with bold, dry brushstrokes and axe-cut texturing (fupi cun), creating a rugged monumentality that grounds the delicate beauty of the floral and avian subjects without overshadowing them.
The thematic core of Four Seasons of Flowers and Birds: Summer lies in its dual celebration of seasonal abundance and courtly auspiciousness. Beyond a simple depiction of summer, the orioles (auspicious omens), daylilies (forgetting sorrows), and waterfowl (harmony in marriage) combine to convey blessings cherished by the Ming imperial court. Unlike Lü’s more overtly moralizing imperial commissions, this panel blends regal splendor with gentle observation of nature, inviting viewers to savor both the aesthetic richness and the cultural meanings woven into the scene.
Art-historically, Four Seasons of Flowers and Birds: Summer is pivotal to understanding the global reach of Ming court bird-and-flower painting. It solidifies Lü Ji’s reputation as the master who seamlessly merged the refined gongbi tradition of Huang Quan and Bian Jingzhao with the dynamic xieyi brushwork of Lin Liang. Its long-term collection in Japan makes it a key artifact for studying the cross-cultural influence of Chinese court art on pre-modern Japanese painting, especially the Kano school. As part of a complete, signed four-panel series, it remains an essential reference for researching the technical and thematic evolution of mid-Ming bird-and-flower art.