Pear Blossom (1656)

This page presents "Pear Blossom" (1656), created by Xiang Shengmo. About the period around 1656: In Japan the Edo period began in 1603, and in China the Qing dynasty took power in 1644, both bringing new patrons and styles. The seventeenth century is the age of the Baroque, which favoured dramatic light, movement, and strong emotion in the work of painters in Italy, Spain, and Flanders. The catalogue places it in Plants & Animals. The format is portrait. Background on Plants & Animals: Images of plants and animals run from medieval herbals and bestiaries to the scientific illustration of the seventeenth to nineteenth centuries. Naturalists and artists often worked together, especially on voyages and in published surveys of flora and fauna.

Buying "Pear Blossom" means getting a digital file, not a physical print: Digital JPEG + PDF files, 300 DPI, delivered by email once payment is confirmed. A 300 DPI file is intended for printing at home or at a local print shop, where you can choose a matte, satin, or fine-art paper to suit the room. A portrait format suits narrow wall spaces, hallways, and the area beside a door or window. A simple frame with a mat often helps an image settle comfortably into a room. Matte and fine-art papers reduce glare in bright rooms, while glossy papers give stronger contrast and deeper blacks. Hang the print away from direct sunlight, which over the years can fade any printed colour. Choosing a standard frame size and printing to fit it often saves the cost of custom framing.

Chinese, 1597–1658

If you like the visual language of Xiang Shengmo, explore more works by the same artist in our collection.