Caravan Through the Tianshan Mountains

This painting captures the grandeur of the rugged Tianshan Mountains in far northwestern China, evoking the arduous journeys of the caravans of camels that had long been the principal means of travel through this difficult terrain on the Silk Road. The camels seem frail and small in comparison to the towering cliffs rendered in swift and bold brushstrokes. The contrast between the dark ink and empty areas increases the sense of vastness.

After graduating from the department of Chinese painting at the Zhejiang Academy of Fine Arts in 1958, Li Shan spent several years in Urumqi, capital of the remote Xinjiang province in northwestern China. There, he traveled extensively through the Tianshan and Qunlun Mountains, drawing from life to record their beautiful scenes. He later became well known for his painting series of China’s western frontiers that featured caravans and travelers in snowy and windy landscapes.