Xu Jingyang Moving His Family

Also known as: Hsü Cheng-yang Moving His Family; Xu Zhengyang Moving His Family

About the Artwork

Xu Jingyang was a dedicated fourth-century Confucian official who allegedly turned into a Daoist immortal. This scroll depicts the legend that when he attained immortality, he took his entire household, including chickens and dogs, to paradise. Cui Zizhong’s painting style intentionally referenced ancient masters. Typical of the pre-Song dynasty landscape tradition, there is the use of blue and green colors and an emphasis on outline rather than texture. While the trembling outlines are reminiscent of earlier painters, the flickering light on rocks and trees is a stylistic feature of Cui’s own time.

Inscriptions

Artist's 2 seals: Pei-hai, Cui Zizhong yin.; 9 additional seals: 2 of Xiang Yuan (18th-19th c.); 1 of Tang Zuomei (late 18th-19th c.); 1 of Zhang Heng 張珩 (1915-1963); 1 of C. C. Wang 王季遷 (1907–2003); 4 unidentified.

Provenance

Tang Yuzhao Xiang Yuan [18th-19th century] Tang Zuomei [late 18th-19th century] Zhang Heng 張珩 [1915-1963] ?-1961: (C. C. Wang 王季遷 [1907–2003], New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art) 1961-: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Exhibition history

Year in Review (1961). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 1-26, 1961). The Restless Landscape: Chinese Painting of the Late Ming Period. University of California, Berkeley. University Art Museum, Berkeley, CA (organizer) (November 9, 1971-January 2, 1972); Fogg Art Museum/Harvard University, Cambridge, MA (February 11-April 2, 1972). Realm of the Immortals: Daoism in the Arts of China. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 10-April 10, 1988). Escaping to a Better World: Eccentrics and Immortals in Chinese Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (May 13-November 6, 2022).

Quick Overview

Artist: Cui Zizhong (Chinese, 1574–1644)
Date: 1644
Medium: Hanging scroll; ink and color on silk
Dimensions: Overall: 268.2 x 66 cm (105 9/16 x 26 in.); Painting only: 165.3 x 64 cm (65 1/16 x 25 3/16 in.); Overall with knobs: 268.2 x 74.1 cm (105 9/16 x 29 3/16 in.)
Type: Painting
Classification: Painting
Department: Chinese Art
Credit line: Mr. and Mrs. William H. Marlatt Fund
Accession no.: 1961.90

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