Bada Shanren - Mynah Bird and Reflection

There are two or three more extant works by Zhu Da depicting a Mynah bird in a similar posture. While preserving the ambiguity for which Zhu Da's paintings are famous, this one seems to hint more directly to the bird's keen interest for its own reflection in the water below. It is doubtful that a 17th Century Chinese painter would have ever heard of the Greek myth of Narcissus, but he was involved for many years in the study of Buddhist scriptures, with their strong emphasis on the progressive abandonment of any fixed self-image. Another unique feature of Zhu Da's style is the tendency to reduce figures to almost abstract forms, somewhat akin to graphic designs. By deliberately enclosing the bird's silhouette in a virtual right triangle, Bada Shanren enhances the expression of the effort expended in maintaining this acrobatic posture.