Azure Cliff with Red Maples

Azure Cliff with Red Maples

Wu Bin

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

A solitary figure with a walking staff stands atop a low cliff contemplating a mountain vista. This scene of human encounter with nature is accompanied by a verse by the celebrated Tang-dynasty poet Du Fu (712–770), inscribed by the painter: The azure cliff catches the breeze, a lone cloud thin, Red maples, their backs to the sun, ten thousand trees dense. —Translation by Stephen Owen

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

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The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.