Three Horses and Four Grooms

Also known as: Three Horses and Four Grooms 三駿圖

About the Artwork

Ren Renfa's horse images are elegant in appearance and vigorous in spirit. His work attracted not only Chinese scholars but also the Mongols at the imperial court. Inspired by the contemporary scholarly interest in restoring a sense of antiquity in art—an artistic direction led by Zhao Mengfu that exerted a great impact in the Yuan art scene—Ren Renfa, like Zhao Mengfu, modeled his depictions of horses after the Song master Li Gonglin. Another key style component that Ren introduced to this genre was a revival of the Tang classical tradition. The refined color treatment of the horses as seen here was derived from the Tang master Han Gan.

Inscriptions

月山道人. [印] 任氏子明; 1 colophon and 16 additional seals: 1 poem, 1 colophon dated 1552 or 1612, and 3 seals of Wang Yiying 王一瀛 (1500s); 2 seals of Liang Qingbiao 梁清標 (1620–1691); 6 seals of the Qianlong 乾隆 Emperor (r. 1736–95); 3 seals of the Jiaqing 嘉慶 Emperor (r. 1796-1821); 1 seal of the Xuantong 宣統 Emperor (r. 1908–11); 1 seal of Yu Xiezhong 余協中 (1900s).; Poem and colophon by Wang Yiying 王一瀛 (1500s): As for painters of horses in the previous dynasty, Surely the name of Yueshan [Ren Renfa] must come first. Under his brush and on his silk, They seem to have just galloped out from the imperial stud. Now as the world overflows with inferiority, Who, from the stable, can recognize a dragon-horse amidst mediocrity. Ren Yueshan [Ren Renfa] of the Yuan Dynasty was best in horse paintings. The three fine steeds he painted in this scroll are so dashing, so vigorous in spirit that they have indeed grasped some of the "brush-idea" of Han Gan. Not long ago this painting came into the possession of Mr. Gui Shanquan, who asked for my inscription. And I, while reading the old manuscripts of Hengshan [Wen Zhengming, 1470–1559], by accident, came cross the poem quoted above. As the ancients said "in painting horses, Master Han was [inspired by and produced] real horses; in composing poems, Master Su [Su Dongpo, the leading Song poet] wrote as if a painting were before him." These are truly what should be considered the two excellences; indeed, they are to be treasured. In the sixth month of the renzi year [either 1552 or 1612]. Jian feng shan ren [The Mountain Dweller of the Sword Peak], Wang Yiying, written in the Qu si ting Pavilion at Chiyang.

Provenance

1500s: Gui Shanquan 桂山泉 [1500s] second half of the 1600s: Liang Qingbiao 梁清標 [1620–1691] after 1736–1911: Qing imperial collection (seals of Emperors Qianlong, r. 1736–1795, Jiaqing, r. 1796–1820, and Xuantong, r. 1909–1911), Beijing, China after 1911–before 1960: Yu Xiezhong 余協中 [1900s] ?–1960: (Frank Caro [1904–1980], New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art) 1960–: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Exhibition history

Year in Review - Nineteen Hundred Sixty. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 30, 1960-January 1, 1961). Chinese Art. Smith College Museum of Art, Northampton, MA (organizer) (January 8-26, 1962). History of the Appaloosa Horse. Amon Carter Museum, Fort Worth, TX (organizer) (January 1-April 1, 1963). Eight Dynasties of Chinese Painting. The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art (November 7, 1980-January 4, 1981); The Cleveland Museum of Art (February 11-March 29, 1981); Tokyo National Museum (October 4-November 17, 1982). Power and Virtue: Images of Horses in Chinese Art. China Institute in America (organizer) (September 13-December 13, 1997). Silent Poetry: Masterworks of Chinese Painting. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 14, 2015-April 24, 2016). Galloping through Dynasties: Decoding Chinese Horse Painting. The Cincinnati Art Museum, Cincinnati, OH (organizer) (October 7, 2022-January 1, 2023) https://www.cincinnatiartmuseum.org/art/exhibitions/upcoming-exhibitions/galloping-through-dynasties/.

Quick Overview

Artist: Ren Renfa (Chinese, 1254–1328)
Date: c. 1320s
Medium: handscroll; ink and color on silk
Dimensions: Painting: 28.5 x 137.5 cm (11 1/4 x 54 1/8 in.); Overall: 29.2 x 556.4 cm (11 1/2 x 219 1/16 in.)
Type: Painting
Classification: Painting
Department: Chinese Art
Credit line: Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund
Accession no.: 1960.181

Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 8, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.