Admonitions Scroll - Main Painting 3
Think of this as the ancient Chinese equivalent of a 'Girls' Rulebook' for the imperial palace, painted by a superstar artist. This scroll, the *Admonitions of the Instructress to the Court Ladies*, depicts elegant women in flowing robes receiving moral lessons via the calligraphy blocks interspersed between them. The artist, Gu Kaizhi, was so obsessed with capturing the 'spirit' of his subjects that he famously refused to paint their eyes until the very end, believing the gaze was the soul of the portrait. You can see his signature 'silkworm thread' lines—fine, uniform strokes that define the drapery—making this Tang Dynasty copy a priceless survivor of early Chinese art.
- Technique
- Ink and color on silk
- Material
- Silk
Location: British Museum
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