심주(沈周)의 <여산고도(廬山高圖)>: 15세기 소주(蘇州)의 서원(書院)과 문인 감상자층을 위한 회화 = Shen Zhou’s Lofty Mount Lu: A Painting for Confucian Academies and Literati Audiences in 15th- Century Ming Suzhou

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

Lofty Mount Lu, housed in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, is a monumental landscape painting by the eminent Ming dynasty literati painter Shen Zhou (1427–1509). It was painted in 1467 to commemorate the seventieth birthday of his teacher, Chen Kuan (?-?) and has previously been considered a birthday painting expressing Shen’s wishes for Chen’s longevity. However, it is difficult to find any meaning of longevity in the painting’s main theme, Mount Lu, done in the landscape style of the famous late Yuan (1271- 1368) literati painter Wang Meng (1308-1385), as well as in the inscription on the painting.
From this observation, this study interprets Lofty Mount Lu as a large scale commemorative work that could have been displayed in public spaces of Suzhou, such as the community school or Confucian academy where Chen Kuan taught. By analyzing the relationship between Shen Zhou and Chen Kuan, the painting’s format and composition, and Chen Kuan’s social role, this paper argues that the painting was intended for public display to honor Chen’s academic achievements by associating him with Zhu Xi (1130–1200) through Mount Lu. In addition, this study also revisits the meaning and function of Wang Meng’s style and the inscription of Lofty Mount Lu. The poetic allusions to political purges of Suzhou by the emperor Hongwu (r. 1368-1398) [Zhu Yuanzhang, 1328-1398] and the use of the landscape style of Wang Meng, who met a tragic death at the beginning of the Ming dynasty (1368–1644), can be interpreted as an artistic strategy to evoke collective memory among Suzhou literati while honoring Chen Kuan’s achievements. Considering these factors, Lofty Mount Lu, one of Shen Zhou’s masterpieces, can be understood as a synthesis of his artistic brilliance and the sociocultural conditions of public spaces and literati audiences during the time.