Daily notes on the Palace Museum Calendar 07/03:

Spring is here

— in every sense, spring is returning. I like to imagine we’ve all been looking forward to it the same throughout history, especially after a rough winter like this. This painting is the last page of the album Ten Views of West Lake in Hangzhou by Qian Weicheng. It shows Su Causeway, constructed during the Northern Song Dynasty, connecting North and South shores of West Lake. There are six bridges, peach trees, willows — and at each year’s spring dawn, blossoms reflect in the lake waters, creating a landscape that until today, attracts travellers from across the country.

The colouring of this page is stunning. The green of the willows complements the pink dabs of peach blossoms. In the background, the misty mountains bring a thematic kind of weight into the painting. A force that roots the lightness.

Photo via WikiMedia Commons