Kingfisher Bird and Withering Lotus
Wall Scroll

Kingfisher Bird and Withering Lotus

Life goes on for the kingfisher at the lotus pond, even as the pond dries up, and lotus wither.

The title is part of a poem written by Zheng Ban-Qiao (1693-1765) about the time of year when the lotus flowers wither after Autumn. The full poem talks of the honesty and modesty (with a metaphor between lotus and people) of how after showing beauty in the peak of the season, it also dries out and withers, which is not surprising, as it is part of the cycle of life. The lotus makes no effort to hide this truth, instead, presents itself for who it is.
There are many ways to understand this poem. I think it's saying to just be who you are. Accept both your strengths and weaknesses. And be like the lotus, and don't hide your weakness from others.

The inscription indicates that this artwork was painted in 2011 by Jian-Qiu at the Qing-Feng studio.

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About the Art

This is a simple painting style, but it also incorporates a lot of detail. This painting really mimics the style of Chinese artwork that has been around for thousands of years.

This artwork is completely hand-painted and is mounted to a handmade silk wall scroll in my Beijing workshop.

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About the Artist:

The artist's name is (Wang Jian-Qiu). He lives in Jinan, the capital city of Shandong Province in Northern China (about 5 hours south of Beijing). I was introduced to this artist's work at Qin Xia's studio in Jinan. This artist has been a long time friend of Qin Xia (You may recognize Qin Xia's name from artwork in our flowers and birds category). Wang Jian-Qiu also does some great detailed beautiful woman paintings, and occasionally does some landscapes for us as well.