故宮書畫錄(卷八),第四冊,頁162&* 周度。生卒年不詳,字思玉,仁和(今杭州)人。善畫花卉,翎毛,或點或勾,老練純熟。 本幅畫寒林歸鳥,以淡赭色加於枯枝,用以形容日暮返照。歸鳥或群樓於樹梢,或三兩飛翔於雲天,樹枝、歸鳥,均以短筆觸完成,筆法生動有趣。畫家作畫,頗喜採用名家詩句。此幅題材,或許出自陶淵明詩「羈鳥念舊林」,為習見之畫題。本幅為「藝林清賞」冊第四開。 &* Chou Tu (style name Szu-yü) was a native of Hangchou. Although there are few details about his biography, it is known that he excelled in painting flowers, birds, and animals. He possessed skilled brushwork and used techniques including dotting and outlining. This painting is a depiction of birds returning to a wintry forest. The withered branches of the trees are tinged with red, creating the impression of the setting sun at dusk. The returning birds perch together on the tree branches, and several fly about in the clouds. The tree branches and birds are depicted through short, lively brushstrokes. Artists often liked to adopt subject matter from famous poetry, and this work was perhaps inspired by T’ao Yüan-ming’s poem, Faraway Birds Thinking of their Home Forest, a popular subject in painting. This painting is the fourth leaf in the album Yi-lin ch’ing-shang.