The brushwork in this painting is solid and steady, the lines powerfully drawn with a centered brush, the colors bright and beautiful, and the composition unusual and unique. The body of the figure is large and stalwart with exaggerated facial features and a strange and eccentric appearance. The pine and rock forms are regulated, reflecting a strong interest in patterned decorativeness. This figure wearing a violet robe and red shoes in the painting is the person who signed himself "Lianzi" in the inscription: Chen Hongshou himself. Though there are many surviving works by Chen Hongshou, this is his only known self-portrait, making it naturally all the more precious.
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