Ink Rhythms on the Breeze: The Art of Chinese Fan Paintings –– Minneapolis Institute of Art
fan mounted as an album leaf; two fishermen at sea during a storm; rocks and bending trees in foreground lower right, fishermen at lower left, bamboo behind boat with a mountain range in the distance
Zhou Chen, active 1490–1535, Ming and Qing dynasty. Stormy Landscape with Fishermen at Sea, c. 1450-1535. Ink and color on gold-flecked paper; fan. Gift of Ruth and Bruce Dayton. 98.66.3

Ink Rhythms on the Breeze: The Art of Chinese Fan Paintings

Ink Rhythms on the Breeze: The Art of Chinese Fan Paintings

November 29, 2025 - November 8, 2026
Sit Gallery (203)
Free Exhibition

This exhibition explores the intimate world of Chinese fan painting—where poetry, calligraphy, and painted images converge in the palm of the hand. Featuring circular silk fans from the Song and Yuan dynasties (10th–14th centuries) and folding fans from the Ming and Qing period (14th–early 20th centuries), these works reflect centuries of refined aesthetic practice, personal expression, seasonal contemplation, and spiritual reflection.

Whether created by court artists or literati scholars, each fan carries the rhythm of the brush and the breeze: a fleeting moment captured in ink. Drawn from Mia’s rich collection, the selected fans invite viewers to experience how art, nature, and verse were held—literally and symbolically—in one’s grasp.

Zhou Chen, active 1490–1535, Ming and Qing dynasty. Stormy Landscape with Fishermen at Sea, c. 1450-1535. Ink and color on gold-flecked paper; fan. Gift of Ruth and Bruce Dayton. 98.66.3