Herding Horses in Outskirts

By Giuseppe Castiglione,

Qing Dynasty,

hand scroll

Color on silk, 20.5x166cm, Palace Museum, Beijing

The Jesuit missionary Giuseppe Castiglione (1688 - 1766) was born in Milan, Italy and in his youth he studied painting in Europe. In 1815 he arrived in China as a Jesuit monk. After arriving at Beijing, he entered the Institute of  Indulgences in 1723 and was engaged  as a court artist. Excelling in production of portraits, animals, plants and birds, he triumphs in depiction of horses. Blending the focus perspective, light and dark, and color space employed in Western painting and the traditional Chinese depiction devices such as line and ink application, he created his own personal style that won the favor of the imperial court. His extant works include A Hundred Horse and Emperor Hong Li Viewing Paintings.

The painting is also known as Eight Steeds. Employing the Western realist  painting techniques in modeling three-dimensional objects, the artist presents the horses in various postures vividly. Even the sheen of the hairs isseen, so that the animals appear to run out at  your call. It manifests the unique artistic appealing of the Western style led by Castiglione.