Zheng Xie, Qing Dynasty
Ink on paper
91*170cm

Zheng Xie excelled in painting orchids, bamboo and stone; these subjects in his brush are thin, clear, forceful and steep. His calligraphy is of the same style and stands on its own. In this picture, orchids and young bamboos grow side by side in stones and bushes. Thick and light lines occupy more than half of the space. The bottom left corner is also filled with tens of words shaped in a square. What are left are just three triangular spaces of different sizes; Zheng Xie seldom resorted to tight structure in his paintings. It was an attempt by the painter to break away from the norm. The inscriptions say, "This painting has no precedent; there is no equivalent in existing paintings."