Autumn Colors among Rivers and Mountains

Zhao Boju’s masterpiece Autumn Colors among Rivers and Mountains is a significant artistic achievement from the Song Dynasty’s classical Qinglv style of landscape painting. Painted on a large silk hand scroll, the painting presents a beautiful landscape scene showing dramatic mountains, peaceful inland lakes, flowing waterfalls, and ornate structures. In contrast to the more ethereal and monochrome ink paintings that became popular among the literati of the Northern Song period, Zhao Boju brought back a vivid colour palette using bright minerals such as azurite (blue), malachite (green) along with bold reds and gold outlines. This palette has been chosen to represent the clean, crisp air and changing autumn leaves. There is a balance between the ornate design and the natural majesty. In amongst the grand landscape, there are intricate scenes of people interacting with the landscape. Small detailed figures can be seen walking along the winding mountain pathways, walking across curved stone bridges, interacting with each other in secluded garden pavilions, and sailing in small fishing boats. The painting shows off Zhao Boju’s incredible skill in Jiehua (architectural art). A mixture of hard lines and soft expressive textures has been used on the rocky terrain. This impressive painting is now housed in the Palace Museum in Beijing. It combines elements of luxury and elegance to create a masterpiece that shows Zhao Boju as a key figure in Chinese art history.