Dragon

Although Zhang Shanzi was celebrated for his paintings of tigers, dragons also formed part of his repertoire. The present work, painted in the winter of 1931 and inscribed Linyu ji cangsheng (‘May timely rain bring relief to the people’), dates from the aftermath of the Mukden Incident, when Zhang participated in exhibitions organised by He Xiangning to raise funds for national relief. Drawing on the long tradition of ink paintings of dragons emerging from clouds, Zhang renders the head and claws in strong ink against paler washes of mist, allowing the dragon to appear and disappear from view. In this historical context, the powerful image of the dragon takes on a resonance beyond its conventional auspicious meaning.
The present painting and its title slip bear several collectors’ seals, including Baoyi jushi jiancang, Jiaochuan Hanlu and Zhenhai Ma Leshantang zhencang. Jiaochuan is an old name for Zhenhai, Zhejiang, the native place of the banker and collector Ma Dehong (style name Hanlu), who was acquainted with prominent Shanghai collectors including Zhang Zhongying, Wu Zishen and Wang Nanping. Leshantang was also associated with the Ma family of Zhenhai, suggesting that the seals refer to the same collector.