Bamboo Grove Retreat《竹麓隐居图轴》

Shen Feng (1685–1755)
Shen Feng, courtesy name Fanmin, and pseudonyms Buluo, Fanming, Buluo Waishi, among others, was from Jiangyin, Jiangsu. He studied calligraphy under Wang Shu and excelled in iron-brush painting and landscapes. He claimed that seal carving was his foremost talent, followed by painting and calligraphy. His dry-brush paintings were often mistaken for those of Ni Zan, and his works were highly regarded by Yuan Mei, who had many of his handwritten couplets.

“Bamboo Grove Retreat” (1753)
This painting, executed with fine brushstrokes and light ink, captures a deep and serene atmosphere, reflecting Shen Feng’s late-career emulation of Huang Gongwang and Ni Zan. The distant mountains rise majestically, with a thatched pavilion atop a rocky outcrop. Nearby, a few houses are nestled among dense bamboo, with a figure reading inside. The composition is orderly, beautifully conveying the ideal of a reclusive scholar’s life. The inscription reads: “In the eighteenth year of Qianlong, the year of Guiyou, painted while staying at Mile Hall in Hanjiang. By Buluo Waishi Shen Feng.” The seals include “Seal of Shen Feng” and “Stone Longevity.”

沈凤（1685—1755），字凡民，号补萝、樊溟、补萝外史等，江苏江阴人。书法师王澍，工铁笔，善山水。自言生平篆刻第一，画次之，字又次之。画多干笔，尝临倪瓒小幅，鉴者莫辨。袁枚极重之，随园联额皆其手书。

此画全图用细笔绘成，用墨疏淡，意境深幽，为其晚年师法黄公望、倪元林的力作。远处群山耸立，一茅亭立于岩石之上，近处丛竹掩映下绘有几间屋宇，屋中一人正在读书。诸景布置有序，完美地表现出文人崇尚的隐居生活。画右上款署：“乾隆十有八年，岁在癸酉暮春，客邗江弥勒盦中，雨窗戏作。补萝外史沈凤。”款旁左钤朱文“沈凤印”、朱文“石寿”二印。