故宮書畫錄(卷五),第三冊,頁441-442&*故宮書畫圖錄,第八冊,頁203-204&* 周之冕(約活動於十六世紀後半葉,至十七世紀初),字服卿,號少谷,長洲(今江蘇蘇州人)。善寫意花鳥,家中蓄養多種禽鳥,以供寫生。 本幅畫八隻鸜鵒(俗名八哥),棲於樹上。周平日對羽禽飛止飲啄種種情態,曾詳加觀察,故能運以簡鍊之筆墨,寫出各各不同生動而活潑之神情。 &*Eight Magpies Chou Chih-mien (fl. Late 16th-early 17th centuries) Ming dynasty Chou Chih-mien was a native of Suchou, Kiangsu. He specialized as a painter of birds and flowers, and it is said that he raised all kinds of birds in his home, for painting from life. Eight magpies perch in a tree. Because Chou Chih-mien was intimately familiar with the various attitudes and manners of the birds, he was able to wield a fast-moving brush and capture all of their aspects with a sense of movement and life.