Woman Applying Makeup — Lin Yun

A serene depiction of a woman at her toilette, rendered with delicate detail in the traditional Chinese gongbi manner on silk.

Woman Applying Makeup. Lin Yun (林雲). China, Republic period, c. 1930.

Lin Yun worked in the meiren hua tradition, the genre of paintings of beautiful women that flourished from the late Qing into the Republic period. Such works typically depict elegant women in domestic or garden settings, embodying classical ideals of feminine grace while subtly incorporating the modern sensibilities that characterised early twentieth-century Chinese painting.

Ink and colour on silk. Sheet size approximately 35.9 × 42.3 cm. Very Good.