Image: Museum Yamato Bunkakan, Nara
Museum Yamato Bunkakan has highlighted an image from ‘Album of Flower Paintings’ by Gao Fenghan, an 18th-century Chinese literati painter. The museum’s post draws attention to a large peony rendered through changes in ink density and the balance between dry and wet brushwork, describing the image as possessing a composed and refined elegance.
The work is identified in the original post by its Chinese title, ‘花卉図冊’ (Huahui tu ce), which can be translated as ‘Album of Flower Paintings’ or ‘Flower Album.’ The post focuses specifically on the peony image and its restrained tonal effects rather than providing details about the album’s date, materials, dimensions, or current display.
Gao Fenghan’s biography is central to the museum’s presentation of the work. According to the post, he became unable to use his right hand because of rheumatism at the age of 55. He subsequently continued making art with his left hand.
The peony image was produced after Gao began working left-handed, the Museum Yamato Bunkakan states. Its description links the work’s technical qualities—the modulation of dark and light ink and the contrast between dry and moist applications—to this later phase of the artist’s practice, without making a claim about how those circumstances determined the painting’s appearance.
The information was published by the Nara museum in a social-media post dated August 23, 2026. The supplied announcement does not identify an exhibition, presentation period, gallery location, or related programme, and it gives no further collection or provenance details for the album.
