Gibbons in a Landscape

Description

In this folding screen, gibbons playfully interact with each other. In Korean paintings, gibbons were less frequently depicted than in their Chinese and Japanese counterparts. However, they became popular toward the end of the 1800s, possibly due to an influx of Chinese and Japanese decorative arts. Gibbons symbolize good fortune, but as paired with the red autumn foliage, specifically refer to professional success, such as passing the government examination and getting promoted to a higher position. The large ripe peach held by one gibbon bears another symbolic meaning: prosperity and longevity.

Provenance

(Leighton R. Longhi Inc., New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art) (?-1996); The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (1996-)

Gibbons in a Landscape

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early 1900s

Accession Number

1996.256

Medium

Six-panel folding screen; ink and color on hemp

Dimensions

Painting only: 104.8 x 393.7 cm (41 1/4 x 155 in.)

Classification

Painting

Museum

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Cleveland, United States

Credit Line

Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund