The Chinese nature painting has a fine tradition: to express one´s feelings through natural objects. The flower-and-bird painters strive to display the beauty of nature and at the same time human sentiments in harmony.
Books
Cultivated Landscapes: Reflections of Nature in Chinese Painting with Selections from the Collection of Marie-Helene and Guy Weill Maxwell K. Hearn, Philippe de Montebello, Guy Weill (Preface) EDITION: Yale Univ Pr; (September 1, 2002) This book presents twelve major paintings by masters of the Ming dynasty (1368-1644), Qing dynasty (1644-1911), and modern periods, works given or promised to The Metropolitan Museum of Art by New York collectors Marie-Hélène and Guy Weill. The fully illustrated catalogue presents an in-depth discussion of each painting as well as a transcription and translation of inscriptions and seals.
Articles
Maxwell K. Hearn, Philippe de Montebello, Guy Weill (Preface) 
