Four Landscapes, Breeze among Pines at a Deep Valley

This set consists of four paintings mounted on hanging scrolls. In the upper part of each scroll is a title starting with the word “infinite,” which is why this set was named Four Landscapes of Infinity. The scroll showing light rain falling on bamboo thickets by the shore is titled Infinite Bamboo in Misty Rain; the scroll depicting wind blowing through a thick pine forest on tall mountains is Infinite Valleys with Pines in the Wind; the scroll depicting endless ripples spreading across the lake and a small boat is titled Infinite Lake with Clear Ripples; and finally, the scroll depicting snow falling on the peaks of rugged mountains is known as Infinite Mountains Covered with Snow. Within these four grand landscapes, small figures of people looking out and enjoying them can also be seen. Each scroll is thought to represent one of the four seasons, but there are also scholars who view each scroll as a representation of a famous landscape in China.

Others view the scrolls as works based on the styles of four famous scholarly painters. This is a complex and deeply interesting set of paintings, to which many different interpretations can be applied. Wen Boren was born to a renowned family of scholars that was active from the 16th to the 17th century in the Jiangnan region of China. In his lifetime, he was already a renowned scholarly painter who was praised for the large and detailed works he produced. The pine needles in Infinite Valleys with Pines in the Wind and the mesh-like ripples in Infinite Lake with Clear Ripples in particular make this a magnificent set of paintings.

— Museum description: Tokyo National Museum (CC BY 4.0), via ColBase / Japan Search.