Folded Beauty – Chinese Fan Paintings

Fan leaf paintings have a rich history in East Asia, evolving over two millennia across China, Korea, and Japan. In China, flat fans made of silk and bamboo gained prominence during the Song dynasty. These artworks were often created as gifts or commemorative pieces, sometimes dated or inscribed by friends or multiple artists.

Folding fans are thought to have been developed in Japan and Korea, were introduced to China during the Ming dynasty and became popular in the 16th and 17th centuries. To preserve fan paintings, many were removed from their frames and mounted in albums, often never used as actual fans. Fan paintings often feature landscapes, flora, fauna, and poetic calligraphy. Despite their small size, they demand great skill and creativity. Even modernist artists embraced this format to explore inner emotions, making fan leaf paintings a lasting symbol of intimate, expressive art.