in The First Luohan Piṇḍolabharadvāja, in the Museum
of Fine Arts, in Boston, by the Ningbo painter Lu Xinzhong (late twelfth–early thirteenth century), make particularly good comparisons. Defining His Style
Based on these observations of this inscribed, dated, and firmly contextualized set, so distinctive from other
Tibetan painting traditions, we can summarize some
defining characteristics of Chöying Dorjé’s “Chinese style of thangka painting.” His figural arrangements
follow Chinese conventions, especially reminiscent of the Ningbo tradition, depicting small groups of pig-
mented arhats participating in social activities in open,
inky landscapes. His figural style is quite distinctive,
especially in his fleshy elongated heads, featuring simple abbreviated faces with tiny, red, pursed lips. These general characteristics are reminiscent of the distinct figural style of the
Karmapa’s contemporary, another Zhejiang painter, Chen Hongshou 陳洪綬 (1599–1652), an eccentric who was famous for his figure paintings (Fig. 3.21).535 (These characteristics are
especially true of Chen Hongshou’s portrayals of Tang ladies, such as the one depicted here.) The fingers on the hands of the Karmapa’s male figures are often bulbous and knotted, with an almost signature-like handling of the thumb.
There is very little use of shading in faces, except perhaps a barely perceptible amount
in the elder, left-flanking arhat in the central painting (Fig. 3.1). Rather, shading is mostly employed in the robes to suggest the lines of drapery, typically making use of two or three CHAPTER THREE
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FIG A DETAIL LEFT Arhat holding a painting
FIG ABOVE
Luohans viewing a painting of Avalokiteśvara (Part of Five-Hundred Luohan set) Huian yuan Monastery, Ningbo, China; ca 1178 Ink and color on silk 4 7⁄8 x 20 7⁄8 in. (111.5 x 53.1 cm) Daitoku-ji Temple, Kyoto Literature: Nara National Museum 2009, fig. 36, p. 131.