Silent Poetry: Masterworks of Chinese Painting

Drawn from the Cleveland Museum of Art’s renowned collection of Chinese paintings and in celebration of the museum’s 100th anniversary in 2016, this small but potent exhibition features ten masterworks of Chinese art. A fine assemblage in various subjects and styles, spanning from the Song to the Qing dynasties, provides a visual feast: all are rare treasures and iconic works.

From the grand conception of the cosmic order in a monumental Song dynasty landscape to the intimate visions in literati paintings, from the representations of the natural and human world to the free imaginings of the mythical and religious realms, and from the pursuit of antiquity to the selective borrowing of foreign styles, these works offer fascinating insights into a venerable Chinese art tradition marked by diversity and transformation. Given that the fragile, light-sensitive artworks can only be displayed in limited rotation, this exhibition provides an exceptional opportunity for enjoying these masterworks all at once.

The exhibition also celebrates the release of a new book, Silent Poetry: Chinese Paintings from the Collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art by Ju Hsi Chou and Anita Chung, which presents the most up-to-date research on the museum’s significant holdings.