This exhibition celebrates the Chinese painting collection at Oberlin College, which began in 1912 with a gift from noted American collector Charles Lang Freer (1854–1919). The works on view include recognized masterpieces, hidden treasures, and albums rarely exhibited in their entirety. Some of the paintings are by anonymous professional masters; others are by the foremost painters of their respective eras. They span roughly 450 years, from the 16th to the 20th centuries, and represent three major genres: landscape, bird and flower, and figure painting. These works were given to the AMAM by some of its most important donors, whose generosity has benefited generations of Oberlin students and museum visitors.

This exhibition was organized by Kevin R.E. Greenwood, the Joan L. Danforth Curator of Asian Art, with research and translation assistance from Zimeng Xiang ’18 and Mengchen Xu ’16, curatorial assistants in Asian art, and with the generous assistance of Kai Li, a senior lecturer in Chinese at Oberlin College.